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Nuit Blanche transformed Toronto streets this Saturday, with the 14th year of the all-night art crawl featuring almost 90 art projects by more than 300 artists. While another White Night is now in the books and we're taking a look at some of our favourite installations, there are some extended projects that will remain available a little longer for those who missed the weekend festivities.
Installations were concentrated in a few different areas of the city, including the Fort York/Niagara area, the City Hall area, The Danforth, and even Scarborough City Centre, with additional art projects scattered through the city.
CityPlace/Fort York:
Located at the west end of The Bentway at Strachan, 'Halcyon' consisted of dancers bathed in blue light, dancing to an audiovisual installation where visitors were encouraged to use their camera flashes.
Further east on The Bentway, 'Hoarding' wrapped a section of the Gardiner Expressway’s supporting structure in yellow hazard tape. This project will be on view until October 20 as part of The Bentway's fall programming.
Thermally Speaking by LeuWebb Projects
A “ramp to nowhere” on the north side of the Fort York Visitor Centre was illuminated with colours, responding to passersby with projected shapes.
Everyone Wants a Free Baby! by Studio F Minus
This participatory performance art installation at Garrison Common included a circus-theme with a lively conductor, where a doll “baby” complete with a parachute was fired from a pneumatic cannon at 20-minute intervals.
Just east of the Fort York neighbourhood, a section below the Gardiner not yet part of The Bentway running through CityPlace was home to this illuminated orb, responding to passersby with glowing pulses of light and sound.
Niagara Neighbourhood:
North of the rail tracks—easily accessed via the newly-opened Garrison Crossing bridges—several more installations were on display in the Niagara neighbourhood.
This creative installation opened up a City road salt storage dome to the public, where a 3D printer slowly created a miniature crystalline city model with a liquid salt solution.
LAB001 (Licht am Bau 001) by Markus Heckmann
Just next door at the Wellington Destructor, this light installation used lasers, video, pulsing ambient music, and fog to animate the exterior facades of the old garbage-incineration facility.
Anatomy of an Abattoir by Kim Morgan and Kaitlyn Bourden
The disused Quality Meats slaughterhouse was the site of an eerie installation featuring illuminated windows and ghostly castings of objects from the building’s former use.
Eulogy for the Coffin Factory by Lake Effect Projects
The old Coffin Factory at 89-109 Niagara Street, set to be redeveloped, was given a proper funeral at Nuit Blanche, complete with 24 caskets designed by former artist-tenants of the 1880s-built factory.
City Hall
The epicentre of Nuit Blanche festivities was once again City Hall and Nathan Phillips Square, where several projects attracted long lines.
Peace to the Past, Reach for the Future by Esmaa Mohamoud and Bryan Espiritu
The Toronto Raptors were recognized on the doorstep of their 25th season in the NBA with a 18-foot (5.5 metre) sculpture honouring the NBA champions. A mix of fog and lighting brought this large pair of hands to life.
The striking Eaton Centre bridge was illuminated with a dynamic light installation evoking the northern lights.
Easily the most popular installation at Nuit Blanche, this Japanese-inspired garden with a glowing 30-foot moon and tinted, raked sand is one of the eight extended projects, and will be on view until Saturday October 12th.
Many more installations were isolated in various locations across the city, including one at the MaRS Centre next to Queens Park Station.
Transformation by Fezz Stenton and Daniel Lanois
This multi-sensory exhibit featured projections of natural landscapes contrasted by large inflatable plastic cups representing waste, described by the artists as a “rallying cry for our planet.”
Along with 'Lunar Garden' and 'Hoarding' shown above, a total of eight installations will remain on display as late as October 20th. In the Fort York area, visitors can check out “Stronghold” by John Notten, a wooden, overgrown Muskoka Chair structure containing an immersive experience that explores Fort York as an archetype of power and privilege. “Life of the Earth” by Director X follows up on the popular “Death of the Sun” installation from a few years ago, and will at the Ontario Science Centre until January, while four projects at Scarborough Town Centre—Scarborough Royalty, Ephemeral Artifacts, Tepknuset, and ReConnected STC—will remain open until mid-October.
Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
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