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Urban Planner: June 13, 2009
Urban Planner is Torontoist’s daily guide to what’s on in Toronto, published every morning. If you have an event you’d like considered, email all of its details—as well as images, if you’ve got any—to [email protected].
Odile & Nestor by Stéphanie Heendrickxen, courtesy of Rolly’s Garage.
ART: “Stimulate Me!” brings together artists based in Toronto, Montreal, and New York for a show and sale today. Artists Gail Pak, Hoi-An Tang, Stéphanie Heendrickxen, Melissa Tung, Jean Chin, Marcos Chin, Lily Kim, and Monique Kelley have a common goal of providing accessible art, and with all works priced at fifty dollars or less, this truly is recession-friendly pricing. Rolly’s Garage (124 Ossington Avenue), 12–8 p.m., FREE.
ANIMALS: The dog days of spring are here. Today kicks off Woofstock, North America’s largest outdoor dog festival. This weekend-long celebration of all creatures canine will feature fashion shows, dog trick contests, and the “Ms. & Mr. Canine Canada Pageant.” But don’t worry if your dog is an underachieving mutt—there’s something for everyone, including the Ugliest Dog contest. For those puppy pals who have passed through the Gates of Heaven, there will also be a memorial service. The day will wrap up with the Yappy Hour Dog Party, which promises tail-wagging fun in the form of socializing, music, and dancing. St. Lawrence Market Neighbourhood (Church Street South of Front Street, Berczy Park), 10 a.m.–6 p.m., FREE (admission to the Yappy Hour Dog Party is $10).
FOOD: Calling all foodies! Head down to the waterfront this weekend, where top chefs from around town will be on hand to prepare and serve a plenitude of gourmet street food—just in time for lunch—as part of Luminato Festival’s Thousand Tastes of Toronto. Although Luminato seems to be keeping these “top chefs” a surprise, there is some speculation floating around in the blogosphere. Last year’s event—under the name One City, One Table—saw the masterminds behind such restaurants as Grano, Cava, North 44, and Noce. In addition to the tastes, a thousand plates, decorated by Torontonians to share their fondest taste memory, will be on display. While you eat, you can also enjoy free street performances by Cirque de Soleil. Central Waterfront (Queens Quay West between Rees Street and Lower Simcoe Street), 12–9 p.m., $5 per food item.
MUSIC: Rock Plaza Central needs a little hometown lovin’. They’re coming back in the midst of a North American tour to celebrate the release of their new album, …at the moment of our most needing. This dynamic quintet—which often expands with friends joining on the road—was recently signed by Paper Bag Records. Tonight’s show, with opening acts Suckers and Weather Station, is sure to be a captivating performance. Frontman Chris Eaton’s strained vocals and well-crafted lyrics—no surprise coming from this novelist—will be laid over guitar, trumpet, mandolin, banjo, and violin to form a indie-folk/classic rock fusion. Lee’s Palace (529 Bloor Street West), 8 p.m., $12.50 in advance, $15 at the door.
WORDS: Toronto-based professor and director of the Visible City Project Janine Marchessault and theorist and curator Gunalan Nadarajan join forces to present “Ephemeral Art in the Digital Age.” This public talk is in connection with the online collaborative exhibition “REPLYall,” a six-week project that brought together five Canadian artists who used the medium of the internet to engage in visual dialogues, creating images based on, and in response to, their fellow artists’ work. Art Metropole (788 King Street West), 2 p.m., FREE.
ART: O’Born Contemporary Gallery is hosting a reception for its annual summer exhibition, “HOT!” The exhibition, which runs until August 8, presents new works from artists Kyohei Abe, Alex Fischer, Davida Kidd, and Alina Skyson. The work of these young artists focuses on exploration of visual paradigms in the photograph itself and topics such as appropriation, spatial constructs, distortions of the real, and the authority of the eternal object. O’Born Contemporary Gallery (710 Yonge Street), 1–4 p.m., FREE.