Saturday night was the 5th annual Nuit Blanche (White Night) in Toronto. It is a collection of hundreds of free contemporary art exhibits spread through the city in 3 zones. They open around sunset and run all night long. The TTC extends their service and has an all-you-can-ride card for $10. It is amazing how many people came out to check it out.
We decided to focus our night around Queen West since we knew we wouldn’t last too long especially in the cold. We went to dinner on Ossignton and then set out to explore the exhibits using the fantastic app for the iPhone to find the ones we were interested in. We saw two on Ossington – one that I really enjoyed! It was a series of canvases on the wall but they looked blank until you held your cell phone camera up to them. Then you got images like the one on the left. Not sure how they did it but it was pretty neat. After that, we stopped at a gallery that was having a contest to win art. Basically you had to pop balloons with darts and then you could win pieces - it was a fun crowd! We saw four exhibits and then needed to stop for a cocktail. Luckily there are many great bars in that area, although you could get drinks or snacks at several of the exhibits. Many cafes, bars, and restaurants are open late for the crowds. It started to get really cold by 1 am, but at least the rain stayed away. I had heard mixed reviews about the event from a couple people. I have to admit, some of the art was “interesting” meaning I did not get it or really enjoy it, but I would definitely do it again next year to check out a wider variety of exhibits or areas of the city. The energy in the city was exciting, and we had a great time. It was the first time I felt a part of the city since we moved here.
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