PSYCHIC BOUTIQUE
Check out the immersive installation created by artist Patrick Cruz for his take- over of the Canadian Art booth. Now a “psychic boutique,” the space is covered in hand-painted lines, symbols and imagery inspired by cave drawings and alchemy. Using India ink and commercial flooring, our booth is transformed into a psychedelic space for reading and looking. As of Friday morning, 5 of 20 paintings remain and only 4 of 16 sculptures were taken opening night.
Patrick Cruz is a Filipino-Canadian artist and organizer whose multidisciplinary, maximalist and highly graphic works are informed by cultural hybridity, the project of decolonization and the paradoxical effects of globalization. Cruz holds an MFA from the University of Guelph and was the winner of the 2015 RBC Canadian Painting Competition.
Also, commencing daily at 2 p.m. at the Canadian Art booth meet members of our editorial team for a short tour of some of the best booths and solo projects at the fair.
Edition Toronto
Produced annually in tandem with Art Toronto, Edition Toronto is a free event dedicated to the promotion of art-book publishing in all forms, as well as artworks created in editions. Last year, more than 10,000 visitors took in projects by artists, publishers, galleries and organizations that are advancing art books nationally and internationally. Look for booths this year by GuyGuyGuy, Paul + Wendy Projects, Nothing Else Press and Forest City Gallery, among other exciting producers, creators, printmakers and art centres. Special talks and panels are worth a look too. Full program details are available at editiontoronto.com.
Musing on the Museum
Montreal artist Karen Tam is an expert at creating multifaceted installations that surprise, provoke and delight. For her Art Toronto project, she is building a blend of tourist shop and elite museum: a vibrant installation of ersatz vases that melds low-budget, papier-mâché materials with multimillion- dollar Ming dynasty treasures. The aisles between the objects will be slim, challenging visitors to become highly aware of their own place within the space—reframing the installation itself as a vessel.
