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Get ready to stay up all night for Nuit Blanche 2017

Nuit Blanche is back for the 12th annual city wide art show. On Sept. 30 from sunset to sunrise, Toronto’s downtown core is transformed into an artistic wonderland, with installations, exhibits, and live performances being carried out throughout the city. This year, the festival will Celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday under the theme entitled: “Many Possible Futures.”

This is the first time there is a specific theme at Nuit Blanche. The festival will host 35 art immersive projects, with four set to run from dusk till dawn. Over all there will be 300-plus independent artists and 90 different art projects to experience in the city.

Here are five exhibitions to look out for at this year’s festival:


Monument to the Century of Revolutions- Nathan Phillips Square ( all night)
Curated by Nato Thompson

This exhibition features 21 different showcases within one project. The installation is a reflection of Russian history and the Bolshevik Revolution, which led to the rise of the Soviet Union. The display will feature an array of different shipping containers that essentially form a village. In this village, different shipping containers will display moments throughout history from the Mexican Revolution to the French Revolution. One section will address issues of indigenous peoples, sex workers, queer activism and African diaspora. In all, this village is a social space that represents history and the narrative of global justice.


Calculating Upon The Unforeseen- AGO (6:58PM- 2:00AM) Indoors
The Forest- Curated by Clara Halpern

This performance at the AGO will feature Canadian artist Will Kwan, and addresses how inequality is created through economics and cultural discussions.The performance will address the “force and fragility” of the human voice through words. These spoken words will reflect on human history and poetic stories, and will only be conveyed through human and voice connection.


Taking To The Streets- Wellesley Street West & Queen’s Park Crescent West
Automobile- Curated by Barbara Fischer

Artist Joseph Namy will feature a translation of sound using the bass system of various cars. Clusters of cars will be parked under a bridge near Wellesley St., featuring an amplified sound that can be heard even before the display is seen. The goal of this installation is to see how people listen to music versus how they feel when they hear music. The loud bass is powerful and is meant to transmit this power to a large audience.


Netflix’s Red Forest- Spadina Courthouse Rotunda

For the first time, Netflix will be creating the “Upside Down” world that is featured in the popular Netflix series, Stranger Things. Expected to be one of the most popular attractions, explorers have a chance to explore the ‘Red Forest’ that reflects the upside down world. Guests even wear a hazmat when entering the forest to reflect the nature of the show. This is a big promotional effort for the show Stranger Things, but understandably is very appealing.

Fly By Night- The Gladstone Hotel
Curated by Lukus Toane

This celebration at the Gladstone Hotel on Queen Street Wes, is an all-night event that will showcase this hotel as one of Toronto’s oldest cultural hubs. The Gladstone is already known for their unique and artistic rooms, but the celebration will take place on the second floor public space and will feature live performances and a visual transformation of the environment. There will also be karaoke at the Melody Bar on the first floor.

As per usual the TTC will be operating all night to ensure the easy transport of persons around the city. For more information visit nbto.com


Hope you have an enjoyable Nuit Blanche 2017!

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What the hell happened to Nuit Blanche?

I remember the first time I went to Nuit Blanche. My sister and I headed out around 10 p.m. and stayed out until 2 a.m. wandering the streets of Toronto, taking a look and even taking part in some of the art. University Ave. was completely closed off and all of the exhibitions were placed on platforms outdoors. There were performance pieces, sculptures, photography galleries, and some really neat interactive installations. A few of the pieces were inside a few select buildings, but the majority was outside. Enjoying art under the stars — there is really nothing better.

As we made our way through the intense crowds, we were handed free samples of coffee or hot chocolate, pamphlets from sponsors, and a bunch of other goodies. There was live music and a few DJs, but mostly it was the atmosphere. All together, it seemed like an incredibly late night festival celebrating Toronto’s art community.

And I have to say I enjoyed it immensely.

This year, I left my house late at night hoping to experience something similar. And boy, was I disappointed.

I’m not sure if lack of funding was a factor, but there was very little that was good about this year’s Nuit Blanche. First of all, there was very little organization or signage. I managed to grab a map from a lone volunteer standing on a street by herself downtown, but aside from the rare volunteer and the odd Nuit Blanche square (it was an actual lighted square with a map and nothing else), there were no directions, arrows, or instructions as to how to find and/or enter each instalment.

Second of all — the lines!! If the point is to present art for the masses, this year’s Nuit Blanche failed. Most of the artwork was held inside, and therefore people had to line up to simply enter the building. Some of the interactive installations only let a dozen or so people in at a time.

The lines extended a few blocks and by the time I walked to the front to read the vague and artistic sign that explained what I would see if I decided to wait 45 min. outside in the cold, my mind was already made up. Like most people, I’m not willing to wait in line that long to see a few lights projected against a wall, no matter how modern it is.

The advantage of having art on the street rather than inside a building is that people can actually see it. There are no lines necessary. It also doesn’t make you feel as though you have to rush when you finally enter the building. I think in my total three hour Nuit Blanche experience, I only truly witnessed four or five installations.

And finally, there was no sense of community. Previous years, there were conversations about art, people spoke to one another, discussed what they were seeing, danced to the music, and celebrated Toronto’s culture.

The music, the atmosphere, it was all missing. Most of the time, I was left wondering: is this art or is this just a random group of people playing music dressed up as deer?

Sure, there were some really cool exhibits. “Pneuma” by Floria Sigismondi, a series of projections onto a steady stream of water being sprayed from the pool at Nathan Phillips Square, for example, was truly beautiful and mesmerizing Luzinterruptus’s Literature vs. Traffic was a treat for us book lovers and was quite the compelling installation.

But it wasn’t enough to warrant a whole night out. And by the end, I felt more exhausted than enlightened.

I realize that Nuit Blanche lost a significant amount of funding when Scotiabank pulled out, but if you are going to do it, make sure it is worth seeing. Because next year, some of us may not bother to show up.

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