Royal Agricultural Winter Fair 2019 coming in November

Toronto's annual winter fair fills over one million square feet in Exhibition Place with unparalleled equestrian events, culinary training, agricultural exhibitions and plenty of entertainment November 1 to 10, 2019. A special feature from November 1-3 will be performances by the RCMP Musical Ride with their 32 horses and riders during paid performances in the Royal Horse Show.

From RAWF's website "Today The Royal continues that legacy of excellence and is the largest indoor agricultural event in the world. The Royal Horse Show is one of the world’s finest equestrian spectacles and attracts athletes from across the planet. A win at The Royal means something, regardless of whether you’re pickling, jamming, raising beef or driving six-horse hitches. Every year, 300,000 people come to The Fair to celebrate the very best food, livestock and horsemanship this country has to offer. There’s so much to do, see, hear, eat and indulge in at The Royal!"

On the first Saturday (Nov 2) you can check out the world-class Royal Horse Show family matinee beginning at 1pm with the RCMP Musical Ride as well as National Show Jumping Speed Competition, Pony Jumpers and Six Horse Hitches with Belgians, Clydesdales and Percherons, plus special giveaways.

"The Royal boasts a huge variety of equestrian competitions open to all ages. Along with Hunters and Show Jumpers, you will be amazed at the many different breeds of horses that pull carts, coaches, wagons and big hitches. Cheer for your favorite high stepping Hackney, shout when the announcer calls “drive on!” in the Road Horse classes or clap and whoop it up when the judge approaches your favorite heavy horse hitch for inspection! The Royal Horse Show is world-class equestrian competition at its finest."

Royal Agricultural Winter Fair hours

Tues. to Sat.: 9am – 9pm
Sun. Nov. 03: 9am – 6pm
Mon. Nov. 04: 9am – 6pm
Sun. Nov. 10: 9am – 6pm

Besides the amazing horse jumping championships one of my favourite events at the show is the Burnbrae Farms Culinary Academy where participants prepare meals under notable chefs using their favourite recipes and tasty local ingredients ($20 per session). We had a lot of fun cooking with the chefs and I can highly recommend the culinary experience.

Also at the show will be vendors as well as live music, entertainment lifestyle presentations and indigenous programming on the OLG Stage.

Salmon spawning in the Credit River

It's hard not to feel sorry for the thousands of fish that make the journey upstream from Lake Ontario, for those fish that have completed the journey, their bodies lay along the water's edge and spent eggs can be seen nearby. Last year we watched the salmon in Lowville Park.

This is along the riverfront trail just upstream of McNab Park. This is just off highway #7 in Norval

 

Blessed graffiti mural on Dupont Street

The paint is fading and some of the work has changed over time, but I am happy to see that the graffiti mural remains on the Dupont Street underpass. The spaceman is new though but the business men angels still raise their hands to swear about something.

Art at the Small Arms Inspection Building

The Mississauga arts centre at 1352 Lakeshore Road East in Mississauga hosts part of the 2019 Toronto Biennial of Art. This cool facility is right across Toronto's western boundary and was converted from a wartime small arms factory into a community art forum. The bank of windows in part of the building looks out onto some great fall foliage. Photographer Judy Chicago also has a number of works featuring pyrotechnics and smoke bombs.

New Mineral Collective Pleasure Prospects sculptures

Adrian Blackwell's Isonomia in Toronto?

A 300 foot cushion with an image of the shoreline of Etobicoke Creek is coiled and ready for people to sit on

See more art after the jump.

Devilish Desires - Toronto Oddity & Horror Expo

Scary, spooky! Skull Store and 13 Flames Empire presents Canada's first oddity and horror expo on Saturday, October 12.  This expo has all the dark and mysterious performers and attractions located deep underground (the basement) at 337 Symington Avenue from 11am till 7pm. The address is listed as a community centre but it looks like a small mall. The entrance is along Symington Street near the Beer Store.

It only costs $5 for admission and when you pay they put the mark of the devil an x on your hand! Plus the joint is licenced.

Performance list:

1pm - Poppa Jimbo the Misfortune Teller
2pm - FenyxFyre the Human Anomaly
3pm - Eyeclops the Body Butcher
4pm - Mysterion the Mindreader
5pm - Circus by Scarlet Black

From their Facebook page "We'll also have a museum of oddities, including ancient relics, deformed animals and other terrifying treasures - provided by the Prehistoria Natural History Centre!"

Vendors include
Taboo Textiles
Rue Morgue
The Hidden Path
Spider & Fly
Trevor Walker
The Vault
Skull Store
Salem's Lott Scary Hot Sauces
Kingpin's Hideaway
The Toy Butcher
Troma
Rotten Rags
Atelier Propraetoria
Tony's Dark Nightmares
NeoShiki
Midgard Metal Works
Drop Dead Candles
W.S Critters
Valkyrie Bone Crafts
Zombie Jesus

See more horror after the jump.

Lancome popup at the Bay

Hudson's Bay has a popup on the 7th Floor of their Queen Street department store called ExtraOrdinary Spaces. Flowers and coloured balls join chairs, hanging flowers and other associated art and perfume installations from September 10 to October 20, 2019. You can get to the popup by taking the elevator and when the door opens, there you are. Plus it's free.

If you start in the Toronto Eaton Centre you can cross to the Bay from the second floor pedestrial bridge over Queen Stree.

It looks like they also kept the ball pit from the last installation exhibition they had at the Bay

Day of the Girl FACT or FACT CHECK

 

Tomorrow is International Day of the Girl Child on October 11, 2019, the Toronto Eaton Centre had a game show in centre field called Fact or Fact Check starting today. "Plan International Canada is hosting an interactive game show to celebrate International Day of the Girl and spread awareness for girls’ rights."

You can play the game from the 10th to the 12th and help spread awareness for girls' rights.

Thursday, October 10, 2019 5:00 p.m. – 8 p.m.
Friday, October 11, 2019 10:30 a.m. – 8 p.m.
Saturday, October 12, 2019 10:30 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Lunar Garden at City Hall

Workers tending the zen garden in Nathan Phillips Square move about the heavy turquoise sand pulling a 30 pound rake, weaving intricate patterns around the sparse artifacts that populate the individual plots, gaining perhaps wisdom and peace. The large art installation by Danial Arsham fills a good portion of the concrete square put there for the annual all-night art festival Nuit Blanche 2019 and will remain their until Saturday, October 12. A large moon overlooks the garden, set at the edge of the permanent stage and at night the moon will shine brightly on the installation acompanied by music from Charlotte Day Wilson.

The five separate areas of the garden contain 425,600 pounds of sand as well as sculptures of a single tree, a fountain, a large camera and a clock along with a number of white rocks.

From the City of Toronto's Nuit Blanche web portal, "Visitors will be able to take a break from the everyday and Zen out in this surreal world. A 30-foot (nine-metre) light orb resembling the moon will light up a landscape made of colourful sand. The sculptures—enlarged casts of everyday objects—will hint at future archeological finds. Shifting between a centuries-old tradition, an artist's creative interpretation, and an implied future, the garden plays with motifs of permanence and impermanence creating a work that has the tendency to float in time. This signature style of reimagined architecture continues the artist’s past work—including colour-gradient sand paintings which present raked Zen gardens in a static, vertical format. The artist’s recent shift away from black, white and gray tones became possible with special glasses that correct his colourblindness. These allow him to see a broader, more vibrant spectrum—one he will share with Toronto through this otherworldly and luminous “Lunar Garden.”

World Press Photo 2019 at Brookfield Place

The best of the best of the best are back in the Allen Lambert Galleria during the 62nd annual World Press Photo Exhibition. Over 78,000 photos were entered from photographers from 129 countries, the winners will be in the galleria from October 1 to 23, 2019. Here is a small selection of some of the winners. Sarah Blesener's photo of Russian students laughing before a singing and marching competition in the picture at top.

Descriptions from the World Press Photo website: "Patriotic education, often with a military subtext, forms the mainspring of many youth programs in both Russia and the United States. In America, the dual messages of ‘America first’ and ‘Americanism’ can be found not only as a driving force behind adult political movements, but around the country in camps and clubs where young people are taught what it means to be an American. In Russia, patriotic clubs and camps are encouraged by government. In 2015, President Vladimir Putin ordered the creation of a Russian students’ movement whose aim was to help form the characters of young people through instruction in ideology, religion and preparedness for war. The ‘Patriotic Education of Russian Citizens in 2016–2020’ program called for an 8 percent increase in patriotism among youth, and a 10 percent increase in recruits to the armed forces."

Visitors wander the free exhibition in Brookfield Place

A child sleeps on a mattess on top of a dead river in this photo by Mário Cruz

"The Pasig River in Manila, Philippines was declared biologically dead in the 1990s, due to a combination of industrial pollution and waste being dumped by nearby communities living without adequate sanitation infrastructure. A 2017 report by Nature Communications cites the Pasig as one of 20 most polluted rivers in the world, with up to 63,700 tons of plastic deposited into the ocean each year. Efforts are being made to clean up the Pasig, which were recognized by an international prize in 2018, but in parts of the river the waste is still so dense that it is possible to walk on top of the garbage."

Brent Stirton photo of a female anti-poaching ranger training in Zimbabwe

"Akashinga (‘The Brave Ones’) is a ranger force established as an alternative conservation model. It aims to work with, rather than against local populations, for the long-term benefits of their communities and the environment. Akashinga comprises women from disadvantaged backgrounds, empowering them, offering jobs, and helping local people to benefit directly from the preservation of wildlife. Other strategies—such as using fees from trophy hunting to fund conservation—have been criticized for imposing solutions from the outside and excluding the needs of local people. "

Helen Mirren at L’Oréal Paris Fashion Week

The world's number one beauty brand L’Oréal Paris hosted a runway spectacular during Paris Fashion Week 2019 which celebrated inclusive beauty and emerging fashion. Ageless beauties Helen Mirren and Andie McDowell walked the runway showcasing the diversity of the L’Oréal Paris beauty season. All photos by Giovanna Giannoni.

Helen and Andie joined other exceptional women during Le Défilé L’Oréal Paris to walk the runway for women everywhere at the historic institution Monnaie de Paris.

Photo Credit: Giovanna Giannoni

"In its trailblazing drive to make fashion’s beauty for all, L’Oréal Paris has become known for its world-headlining public shows, staged in the heart of the city during Paris Fashion Week. After the inaugural Champs Elysées extravaganza, followed the river Seine’s floating runway, the 2019 edition was held at the architectural Monnaie de Paris, once again proving an unmissable fashion week rendez-vous."

Doutzen Kroes, Photo Credit: Giovanna Giannoni

"Brand ambassadors Camila Cabello and Amber Heard made their first-ever appearances at Le Défilé L’Oréal Paris. In a celebration of motherhood, Eva Longoria walked the runway carrying her baby son, Santiago, in the grand finale. Proving beauty has no age, Helen Mirren and Andie McDowell made their return to the Paris runway while the lineup also saw star turns from Marie Bochet, Liya Kebede, Aja Naomi King, Doutzen Kroes, Soo Joo Park, Luma Grothe, Duckie Thot and Aishwarya Rai."

Photo Credit: Giovanna Giannoni

Nuit Blache Toronto 2019

Nuit is near! The all night art festival starts this Saturday, October 5 from Sunset (7pm) and continues till sunrise (7am). One sleepless night with a curatorial theme of Continuum. Some of the extended projects will be on display until October 14. The turquoise sands of Lunar Garden wait for Nuit to begin raking the Japanese Zen gardens, illuminated by a large nearby moon in the photo at top.

"Nuit Blanche Toronto creates significant artistic and cultural energy in our city. By making a wide spectrum of contemporary art accessible and enjoyable for everyone, it is as much a celebration of our diversity as it is a showcase for the creativity of our talented artists. I encourage Toronto residents from across the city to take part in this celebration of art." - Mayor John Tory

Life of the Earth by Director X. City of Toronto photo

Works will continue to be exhibited in Scarborough while more neighbourhoods will join the roster of the 14th annual Nuit exhibition locations. Nine major areas will be available for exploration as part of the official Nuit Blanche program; Scarborough (20 projects), Don Mills (four projects), Danforth East (two projects), Bloor Yorkville (nine projects), Waterfront (11 projects), Downtown (16 projects), Sterling Road (six projects), West Queen West (five projects) and Fort York (15 projects). To help you get around the TTC will be running an all-night subway service so you can try your best to see the 90 contemporary art projects from over 300 artists. A map, washrooms, food vendors and first aid services will also be available at Toronto City Hall, Nathan Phillips Square, Yonge-Dundas Square and the Scarborough Town Centre.

Here are some facts about some of the art installations along with extended showings of some of the Nuit Blanche exhibits.

- 3,500 bells as part of a sculptural and performance installation offering the experience of slowing time, space and the senses (Ephemeral Artifacts by Anandam Dance theatre and Brandy Leary, sponsored by Scarborough Town Centre).

- 3,000 sashes, each part of an infinitely repeating poem, given to the public to circulate throughout the night
(Death by Committee - On and on and on and on by Death by Committee)

- 406 pounds of plastic waste pulled from Toronto waterways reused to create a polar bear sculpture (Poly by Josh Jaikaran, Dave LaGrotta, Katrina Salvador and Ryan Smith)

Everyone Wants a Free Baby! by Studio F Minus. City of Toronto photo

- 36 "babies" launched from a canon into the sky, gently parachuting into the crowd (Everyone Wants a Free Baby! by Studio F Minus)

- 24 coffins adorned by former artist-tenants transformed the audience into a funeral procession (Eulogy for the Coffin Factory by Lake Effect Projects)

As part of the Nuit Blanche Toronto Extended Projects program, supported by the Government of Ontario, eight projects will remain on display beyond October 6:

- Lunar Garden by Daniel Arsham, until October 12
In the largest Japanese-inspired garden he’s ever created, Daniel Arsham brings the moon to downtown Toronto—along with his iconic brightly coloured sand and sculptures.
Location: Nathan Phillips Square, 100 Queen St. W.

- Ephemeral Artifacts by Anandam Dancetheatre and Brandy Leary, until October 13
This sonic, sculptural and performance installation offers the experience of slowing time, space and the senses. The dancing bodies of Scarborough are honoured here.
Location: Scarborough Town Centre, Centre Court, 300 Borough Dr.

- Scarborough Royalty by Durothethird, until October 14
In a tribute to his hometown, Durothethird makes royalty of everyone in this immersive installation combining graffiti with sculpture.
Location: Albert Campbell Square, 150 Borough Dr.

- Tepknuset by Jordan Bennett, until October 14
A new sculptural work by an award-winning artist reflects on Mi’kmaq visual culture to depict narratives around land, home and our place in the universe.
Location: Albert Campbell Square, Galleria Level, - 290 Borough Dr.
(outside Scarborough Town Centre RT station)

- Reconnected STC by Mark "Kurupt" Stoddart, until October 14
This project reconnects the local community with some of its many extraordinary individuals.
Location: Pathway between TTC and Scarborough Town Centre, 300 Borough Dr.

- Stronghold by John Notten, until October 20
This immersive experience repurposes common objects to explore the fort as an archetype of power and privilege.
Location: Fort York National Historic Site, 250 Fort York Blvd.

- Hoarding by Gareth Lichty – until October 20
Vast amounts of hazard tape wrap the pillars of the Bentway, creating a monumental, immersive installation that becomes animated in the wind.
Location: Bentway East, 250 Fort York Blvd.

- Life of the Earth by Director X, until January 5, 2020
Director X returns with his thought-provoking Life of the Earth, a follow-up to his monumental Death of the Sun, which wowed crowds at Nuit Blanche 2016. Life of the Earth is created in partnership with the Ontario Science Centre.
Location: Ontario Science Centre, 770 Don Mills Rd.
Road closures to accomodate Nuit Blanche will be necessary for the following locations.

• Bay Street between Dundas Street West and Adelaide Street West from 8 a.m. Saturday, October 5 until noon on Sunday, October 6.
• Queen Street West between Yonge Street and University Avenue from 4 p.m. Saturday, October 5 until 10 a.m. on Sunday, October 6.
• Fort York Boulevard between Ianuzzi Street and Fleet Street from 4 p.m. Saturday, October 5 to noon on Sunday, October 6.
• Borough Approach East between Borough Drive and Ellesmere Road
• Borough Drive between Brian Harrison Way and Town Centre Court
• Town Centre Court from south of the City of Toronto parking lot to Borough Drive

City of Toronto Nuit Blanche exhibitions and Nuit Talks are as noted in the Toronto news release:

"Creation: Destruction curated by Layne Hinton and Rui Pimenta (Toronto), is located in the Fort York neighbourhood. Inspired by its geographical area, this exhibition will challenge our understandings of creation and destruction. Artists include Max Dean and Jared Raab (Toronto), Kim Morgan (Halifax, Nova Scotia) and Kaitlyn Bourden (Bowmanville, Ontario), and Jonathan Schipper (Ellenville, New York), among many others.

Queens and Kings of Scarborough curated by Ashley McKenzie-Barnes (Toronto), is located around the Scarborough Centre neighbourhood. This exhibition confronts systems of social marginalization, self-identity negotiation, and racial stereotyping within a modern framework. Artists will include Ebony G. Patterson (Chicago), Kent Monkman (Toronto), Jordan Bennett (Terence Bay, Nova Scotia), Hatecopy (Toronto) and more.

Lunar Garden created by Daniel Arsham (New York) and sponsored by Shiseido, is an installation that will be located at Nathan Phillips Square. This large-scale project re-interprets a traditional Japanese Zen garden with colour, sculptural casts and a musical score by Charlotte Day Wilson (Toronto) offering a fully immersive experience.

Partner-produced and special projects
Created by individual artists, producers and organizations, and cultural and educational institutions, the partner-produced Independent Projects portion of Nuit Blanche features 48 projects celebrating the diversity of Toronto's art communities.

Fifteen major institutions across the city will feature art projects and exhibitions free to the public throughout the night of Nuit Blanche. The participating institutions are 401 Richmond, Aga Khan Museum, Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO), Artscape Launchpad, Bata Shoe Museum, The Drake, East End Arts, The Gladstone, Museum of Contemporary Art Toronto (MOCA), OCAD University's Onsite Gallery, Harbourfront Centre, The Power Plant, Toronto Biennial of Art, Toronto Sculpture Garden and Royal Ontario Museum (ROM).

Art projects commissioned with partners and sponsors: HXOUSE, the Bentway, Cadillac Fairview – CF Toronto Eaton Centre, Oxford Properties-Scarborough Town Centre, Concord Adex, Toronto Arts Council, MLSE's Toronto Raptors and the Ontario Science Centre bring new perspectives to familiar locations and institutions while emphasizing relevant and timely global issues.

• Life of the Earth (multimedia installation) by Director X is being created in partnership with the Ontario Science Centre. The installation shows the earth, as if seen from space, drastically changing from Pangaea to present time and to the future beyond humankind. This large-scale 360 projection will be on view alongside Death of the Sun, which was commissioned by Nuit Blanche Toronto in 2016.

• Peace to the Past, Reach for the Future (sculpture) by Bryan Espiritu and Esmaa Mohamoud is being created in partnership with MLSE's Toronto Raptors. The artists reflect on the team's past and imagine its future while connecting to the diverse communities which continue to shape both artists and athletes.

• On Thin Ice (sculptural installation) by Ghost Atelier is being created in partnership with HXOUSE for Yonge-Dundas Square. The installation brings the audience inside the deep crack in the glacier and serves as a physical reminder of the state of the planet, while emphasizing the importance of bearing witness.

Nuit Talks
Now in its 10th year, Nuit Talks provides the opportunity to examine and showcase the art, artists and concepts involved in Nuit Blanche, featuring engaging talks, roundtable discussions and one-on-one interviews. Admission is free. This year's Nuit Talks is presented in partnership with the University of Toronto Scarborough and the Doris McCarthy Gallery.

The Nuit Talks program will include these presentations:
• Art, the City Builder: curators Layne Hinton, Rui Pimenta, with artists Francesca Chudnoff and Max Dean, September 18, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., The Bentway
• Art, the Mirror: Director X, September 25, 7 to 8 p.m., Royal Ontario Museum
• Art the Maker: Ebony G. Patterson, October 2, 7 to 8 p.m., OCADU Auditorium
• Art, the Storyteller: RISE, Jalani Morgan, Emelie Chhangur, Mark V. Campbell, October 3 from 7 to 8 p.m., University of Toronto Scarborough
• Art the Maker: Daniel Arsham, October 4 from 7 to 8 p.m. Art Gallery of Ontario
• Art, the Entrepreneur: Mark Stoddart, Durothethird, MEDIAH, Hatecopy, Rania El Mugammar on October 5 from 5 to 6:30 p.m., Scarborough Town Centre
• Art, the Opportunity: Ghost Atelier, Bekah Brown, October 10, 7 to 8 p.m., HXOUSE"

I could find no evidence that the anti-nuit event Les Rues Des Refuses will take place alongside the official Nuit Blanche program, which is too sad, however there will be a number of non-official events also taking place during the all-night art thing such as a silent disco in Graffiti Alley, a Tron lighting experience at Campbell House and a climate change exhibit at Denison Avenue and Queen Street West featuring a origami bear in a pool of oil.

Toronto declares climate emergency

City of Toronto Council put down the hammer and declared an emergency and plans to accelerate action to combat climate change. Reduction of greenhouse gas emissions is targeted to be net zero by 2050. Severe weather events and flooding have increased over time in the big smoke so the Toronto is joining hundreds of other cities around the world to acknowledge the crisis. The United Nations identifies that global CO2 emissions need to be net zero by 2050 to hold global warming to 1.5 degrees.

"We have joined cities around the world in declaring a global climate emergency and committing to take further action to tackle climate change. The threat of climate change is a major issue facing our city, and all cities. The declaration approved by Council today lays out what I believe are ambitious but realistic new targets to help focus our efforts when it comes to reducing Toronto's greenhouse gasses as quickly as possible." - Mayor John Tory

Key council priorities will be supported in the climate action including improving health, economy and social equity. Pushing energy efficiencies in homes and buildings will be some of the improvements the city hopes will improve the local economy. Investing in zero emission battery powered buses and cycling infrastructure will improve air quality.

"This month, the City is inviting residents to share their ideas on climate action and priorities for Toronto by attending a public meeting or completing an online survey. Input from residents will help to inform the next TransformTO Implementation Plan, for 2021 to 2023. The Plan will be presented to Council in the spring of 2020. The online survey will be available starting October 7 and public meetings begin October 8. More information about the City's TransformTO climate action strategy, links to the survey and public meeting details are available at http://www.toronto.ca/transformto."