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Hi, Art!

Sunday, October 29, 2023

Hi, Art!

Sunday, October 29, 2023

Hi, art lovers!

 
People walk the floor at Art Toronto in this photo from the 2022 edition of the fair. The space is white-walled and cavernous. Framed artwork hangs on the walls. In the centre of the image is a cube-shaped structure, its beams painted in bold colours. A painting that appears to remix the Woodland style hangs inside the structure.

Courtesy of Art Toronto

 
Today’s your last chance to swing by Art Toronto, Canada’s largest contemporary art fair, and if you’re making the trip, bookmark our guide before you go. 

I got the chance to make a few laps around the fair during its opening night party on Thursday. Navigating between the booths (and wine-sipping visitors) is a dizzying experience — or it is for me anyway, with or without a glass of my own. And it can also feel a bit intimidating, which I was reminded of during my visit. I brought a friend to the fair, and it was her first time taking in the scene. One question she repeated in some form throughout the night: “What is this place?!” 

What is an art fair? Well, every fair is unique, and if you want to go deep into the history of how they function, this primer will take you all the way back to antiquity. Other links I probably could have texted my pal: how Toronto’s art scene is making a global impact, plus tips (upon tips upon tips) for first-time art collectors.

But hey, one of the best ways to understand something is to feel it out yourself, and just be walloped with all the colour and bustle — and art! — that comes with seeing more than 100 galleries in one place. Skip to the eye candy section for a few things that stopped me in my tracks.
 

And because we promised you eye candy ...

 
Photograph. Legs poke out of a creased white parachute that fills the square frame, as though the figure has dove into the centre.

Julia Sbriller and Joaquin Wall

Oh, hi! It’s me, arriving at Art Toronto! Not really, of course — but the performer in the photo sure is diving into the unknown. The image is from Julia Sbriller and Joaquin Wall’s Torontoides and it’s appearing at the Quimera booth along with the video performance it comes from. 
 
Installation view of Norberg Hall's Art Toronto booth. In the foreground is a white table covered with ceramic replicas of food and knick knacks. Behind the table, paintings hang on a white wall.

Norberg Hall

From the unknown to the uncomfortably familiar! Erica Eyres’s homey (and grody) ceramic sculptures were drawing a crowd at the Norberg Hall booth when I passed by.
 
Photo of a life-like ceramic replica of a worn copy of the Garfield anthology, Garfield gains weight, a long horizontal book with a blue cover.

Erica Eyres

According to the gallery’s website, Erica chooses objects that have personal significance, but as a viewer, I can’t help but feel nostalgic myself — especially when it comes to this replica of Garfield Gains Weight (only the best Garfield collection of all time). 
 
Installation of oars wrapped in colourful plastic thread are flanked by two large tapestries woven from colourful plastic thread.

Ari Bayuaji

This piece from Ari Bayuaji’s ongoing series, Weaving the Ocean, is appearing as one of the fair’s standalone Project Spaces, but I have to say the photo doesn’t capture how delicately woven his tapestries are. The thread is unspooled fishing rope — found ocean trash, really. And Ari collaborates with a group of artisans from Indonesia to make the works. Next month, he’ll be opening an exhibit at the Biosphere in Montreal. 
 
Black shelf adorned with ornate ceramic vessels and life-size ceramic phones.

Shanie Tomassini

This one’s better in person too — though as an iPhone addict, I find it has undeniable appeal, however you view it. Screen Glimmer Under a Moonless Sky by Shanie Tomassini. See it at Patel Brown’s booth.
 
Nighttime photo of a hotel window illuminated by electric light outside.

Brendan George Ko

Rivalry Projects has a captivating selection of travel photographs by Toronto-born artist Brendan George Ko. This one is Night View at Williams Lake Ramada.
 
Patterned black rug hanging on a white wall. It is woven from plastic filament.

Sukaina Kubba

Sukaina Kubba references textile patterns in much of her work, including this piece (It’ll Fade Over Time), which is hanging in the Next Contemporary’s booth. It’s a choice that’s packed with meaning: a carpet isn’t just a carpet — it’s a means of carrying culture across borders and generations. But on a purely esthetic level, the texture of her 3D-printed rug — coarse but lustrous at the same time — is simply irresistible.
 
Framed mixed-media work. A surreal image of a tree branch that forks nto human feet wearing black kitten heels.

Erika Harrsch

Before I wrap things up, a reminder to wear comfortable shoes if you visit the fair. Portrait in the Forest II by Erika Harrsch. (It’s at the Plataforma ArtBase booth.)
 
 

You've got to see this

 
 
 
Still from CBC Gem series The Bannocking. Close up of sizzling fry bread in a pan. Red text reads:
CBC Gem

Horror fans, can you handle The Bannocking?

 
Just in time for Halloween, watch this all-Indigenous web series inspired by classic horror. It’s streaming now on CBC Gem.
 
Still from BlackBerry. Camera focuses on actor Glenn Howerton (right) in character. He is a white man. Bald, serious expression, wearing a dark suit and tie.
IFC Films

Let’s get these stars an Oscar nomination

 
The nominations for the Gotham Awards were announced last week, which means awards season is officially underway. These five performances deserve Oscar gold.
 
All four original members of the Beatles sit on the front bumper of a car, looking at the camera. They are young men with long dark hair wearing suit jackets and wide-lapelled shirts.

Bruce McBroom & Apple Corps Ltd.

 

A new chapter in Beatles history

 
With the help of AI, one of John Lennon’s final recordings can finally be heard. The tune, “Now and Then,” will be released this week, and in a CBC exclusive, a behind-the-scenes video about the making of “the last Beatles song” will air Nov. 1.
 

Follow this artist

 
 
 
Instagram

Bryan Espiritu

@bryanespiritu
Installation view. Black and white painting from a family photo: five children make faces and look through a three-paned open window.

Bryan Espiritu

As the founder of streetwear brand the Legends League, Bryan’s collaborated with big brands (Nike) and big stars (Drake). But he’s also an artist, and his latest gallery show (Passage) opened in Toronto last week. The work blends painting and poetry, a choice that Bryan unpacked in this wide-ranging interview.
 

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I’m Leah Collins, senior writer at CBC Arts. Until next time!

 
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