Posted on October 2nd, 2006 by Andre De Pape.
Categories: Andre • Event Reviews.
There is no city without culture, and in large part there is no culture without art. Nuit Blanche was a peculiar event around Toronto, involving a number of different facets and institutions, which we’re unified in an all night art exposition.There is no city without culture, and in large part there is no culture without art. Nuit Blanche was a peculiar event around Toronto, involving a number of different facets and institutions, which we’re unified in an all night art exposition.I unfortunately did not investigate this event fully, and focused most of my time in the Art and Design district of Queen Street West. To put my experience into context, I really was far more interested in the event itself than I was in the art which was exhibited. This was not a pretense, I truely was looking forward to walking the streets and being wowed by the art, but once engaged, it was the event that took the focus. This is in large part due to the works being very isolated in thier individual spaces. Queen West as an area is bursting with independent studios and galleries with a wide range of work. The potential of this night was lost on many of these institutions, instead of embracing the energy and evoking some sort of connection to the mass on the streets, many chose to self promote and compartmentalize thier role in the night. Many videos on the street demanded you to sit in a chair and watch them like you would any other video, even performance art demanded this same sort of separation of audience to performer. The entertainment venues took this as an opportunity to have bigger parties, lasting all night, but again making it their own as opposed to a engaging environment. The community pool in trinity bellwoods was brought into the night in a charming and inviting way. The pool was transformed into a multimedia social event, with many people swimming in the pool and an audience that could be immersed into this open environment. I find it funny that it took the most isolated area of the zone to really embrace the enegery of the community. Perhaps it’s the new media in me, but I see these events as great opportunities to engage the public in a vital part of the city, and as this event continues, I can only hope to get immersed into the culture of Toronto.