New to Nuit Blanche

Last night I went to my first Nuit Blanche in Toronto; conveniently the friend I went with is much more familiar with the city and was able to help guide me to the best areas in town. We started North of where I live at the Spadina House and Casa Loma stables. Spadina House had a number of installations that were spaced along a path in their beautiful garden. They also had an interactive piece where one person at a time could put on special glasses and control bubbles on a projected screen (I didn't try it, but my friend thought it was pretty fun). The installation at the Casa Loma stables recreated a birch forest with speakers built into the trees and lighting effects to change the feeling of the forest from light and airy, to dreary and mysterious.

When we were finished with the installations north of Dupont, we hopped on the subway, got off at Union, then worked our way back north. It was disappointing that Union did not have any installations but after walking only a few minutes we were in one of the most heavily populated areas. Walking along Bay, we stopped at the Design Exchange, looked at a fun house, took a break on the steps at the corner of Bay and King, then continued on the City Hall.

There were a number of pieces to see in an around City Hall, but my favourite piece of the night ended up being the suspended pieces in the Eaton Centre titled Vertical Constructions: Dancer #1 and #2, by Max Streicher. The sculptures were made of recycled billboards, sewn together to create abstract shapes that the artist wanted to represent speed and movement.

After much walking we made it to our final destination, Market 707, an urban food court that transforms shipping crates into food stalls. While many of the items were sold out, it was still a great place to finish off, and we enjoyed Korean veggie pancakes and chicken curry dumplings before our quick ride home.