August 25th 2011
Things got started off as usual on this tour in Trinity Bellwoods Park, with bike tune-ups performed by Bike Pirates and a musical bike themed puppet show by CYCLOPS, a cycling oriented puppet squad. Tongue and Groove Collective were also on site, fastening their various homemade road painting prototypes to participants bikes. These bike painting apparatuses trace our path through the city leaving a trail of different coloured paint on the street.
Our first stop on the tour was a performace of SPIN by Evalyn Parry at The Theatre Centre. She wowed the audience with her bike inspired music and storytelling performance based on the historic story of Annie Londonderry. This was followed by a visit to the Gladstone Hotel to see their annual juried exhibition Being Scene presented in partnership with CAMH and Workman Arts.
From there we made our way to the Pia Bouman Dance School to watch three short films selected from the Bicycle Film Festival presented by Aubrey Podolsky. Due to the surprising size of this month's audience, we had to split the group in two with half attending a sput-of-the-moment dance party in the lot next door, while the other half watched the films.
Our next stop was at 48 Abell, a space we visited back on our very first tour in 2010. Michael Toke's studio space was slotted for demolition and so this event became both a studio visit, but a chance to pay our respects to an important landmark in the Toronto arts community. This stop also featured a participatory performance of The Pack Sessions by Niomi Cherney.
The final stop for the night took place at 99 Gallery at the Second Annual Art Spin Exhibition. This show, curated by Art Spin, featured works by Keith W. Bentley, Vanessa Maltese, Gillian Iles, Scott Eunson, Markus Heckmann, Wrik Mead, Sarah McCaw, TH&B, Tom Ngo, Gareth Lichty and James Gauvreau, with special additions by Vuk Dragojevic, fauxreel, Joel Richardson, Jerrem Lynch, Tim Betteridge, Basil Alzeri and Maryam Taghavi on the opening night.
Live musical performances by Rambunctious, Sean Pinchin, Tangi Ropars, The Bob Standards and The Short and Curlies. Special thanks to Ash Butti, director of 99 Gallery, for her assistance putting together this exhibition.
PRESS:
BlogTO "Art Spin helps launch new 99 Gallery on Sudbury St."
The Globe and Mail: In Other Venues
Daily Serving "Art Spin at the new 99"
InsideToronto "For-profit gallery with a non-profit spirit"
PHOTOS
Photos by David Wyndham
Tongue and Groove Collective's Bicycle Painting Apparatus. Photo by David Wyndham.
Tongue and Groove Collective's Bicycle Painting Apparatus. Photo by David Wyndham.
Simon from Tongue and Groove Collective has the most Art Spin appropriate moustache. Photo by David Wyndham.
CYCLOPS, the cycling oriented puppet squad perform in Trinity Bellwoods Park. Photo by David Wyndham.
CYCLOPS, the cycling oriented puppet squad perform in Trinity Bellwoods Park. Photo by David Wyndham.
CYCLOPS, the cycling oriented puppet squad perform in Trinity Bellwoods Park. Photo by David Wyndham.
CYCLOPS, the cycling oriented puppet squad perform in Trinity Bellwoods Park. Photo by David Wyndham.
CYCLOPS, the cycling oriented puppet squad perform in Trinity Bellwoods Park. Photo by David Wyndham.
Participants gather and watch CYCLOPS in Bellwoods. Photo by David Wyndham.
Setting out on the ride, we're joined by this delicious bike full of ice cream. Photo by David Wyndham.
John Cairnes and his Empress sound system. Photo by David Wyndham.
Setting off north in Trinity Bellwods Park. Photo by David Wyndham.
Bike parking outside the Theatre Centre. Photo by David Wyndham.
Headed west into the sun on Sudbury St. Photo by David Wyndham.
Headed west into the sun on Sudbury St.
Guarding the bikes behind the Gladstone Hotel. Photo by David Wyndham.
At the Gladstone for their annual 'Being Scene Exhibition'. Photo by Christopher Jones from Live With Culture.
Parking the bikes outside The Theatre Centre. Photo by Christopher Jones from Live With Culture.
Emcee Michael Louis Johnson on the trumpet. Photo by Christopher Jones from Live With Culture.
The audience fills up The Theatre Centre for Evalyn Parry's performance. Photo by David Wyndham.
Evalyn Parry performs SPIN at The Theatre Centre. Photo by David Wyndham.
Evalyn Parry performs SPIN at The Theatre Centre. Photo by Christopher Jones from Live With Culture.
John Cairnes mans the tunes outside the Pia Bouman school for dance. Photo by David Wyndham.
A spur-of-the-moment dance party outside the Pia Bouman School for Dance. Photo by David Wyndham.
A 'Plinth Action' performance by Basil AlZeri. Photo by David Wyndham.
Projections by Jerrem Lynch. Photo by David Wyndham.
The crowd at the Second Annual Art Spin Exhibition. Photo by David Wyndham.
A performance by Maryam Taghavi. Photo by David Wyndham.
The crowd at The Second Annual Art Spin Exhibition.
The crowd at The Second Annual Art Spin Exhibition.
The artist Tim Bettridge demonstrates his bicycle powered video projection.
The crowd at The Second Annual Art Spin Exhibition.
PARTNERS
