-- FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE --
PERFORMANCE ART AND SITE SPECIFIC INSTALLATIONS TRANSFORM PARKDALE DURING THE 5TH ANNUAL QUEEN WEST ART CRAWL
-- TORONTO -- Search for the mysterious mushrooms of Parkdale, a friendly bus stop attendant distributes mints and moist towelettes, the glow of black lights illuminates the local thrift store and the first annual tailgatecrasher party invites you to let off some steam! The Parkdale Town Square (1303 Queen St. W. at Cowan Ave.) will serve as PLAY/GROUNDS' home base for site specific installations and performance art that engage and interact with passers-by. PLAY/GROUNDS takes place Saturday, September 15 from 10am - 11pm and Sunday, September 16 from 10am - 8pm. Detailed information is available on Artscape's website at www.torontoartscape.on.ca/qwac.
PLAY/GROUNDS is curated by Elaine Gaito and Chris Reynolds. Presented by Parkdale Liberty Economic Development Corporation and Parkdale Village BIA for Artscape's Queen West Art Crawl, an annual weekend-long festival celebrating Toronto's Queen Street West, happening September 14 - 16, 2007.
Parkdale's streets, empty store fronts, vacant lots, and parks reveal intriguing and adventurous work including: Nick Tobier's Bus Stop Attendant welcoming passengers on board the ubiquitous 501 Queen Street streetcar - this unofficial ambassador of the TTC transforms The Better Way into a place where riders can connect in usual ways; Joy Walker's private studio wall is moved into the public viewing of a storefront space inviting viewers to view her art, and the work that goes into making it, from the other side of the display case; Katie Bethune-Leamen's life-size and miniature Mushrooms of Parkdale appear in the nooks and crannies of the neighbourhood; and Parkdale's Art All Stars and their fans invite you to "kick-back in the lot" long after the wine and cheese marathon ends - bands, beer, pick-up trucks and performance mayhem will converge on the patio of The Rhino, one of Parkdale's favourite local bars - it's time to cheer on the home team!
PLAY/GROUNDS will include work by: Oliver Husain, Katie Bethune-Leamen, Katherine Lannin, Nick Tobier, Jon Sasaki, Laura Nanni, Adam Paolozza, Joy Walker, Anthea Foyer and the Gladstone Cooperative.
PLAY/GROUNDS is presented by the Parkdale Liberty Economic Development Corporation (PLEDC) in partnership with Artscape's Queen West Art Crawl. Gladstone Variations, Time Out/Game On and Hidden Toronto: Intimate Walking Tours are co-presented by Artscape & PLEDC. PLAY/GROUNDS is sponsored by the Toronto Arts Council, the Parkdale Village Business Improvement Area, Employment Ontario and the Ontario Trillium Foundation. www.parkdaleliberty.com
ALL ARE INVITED! The Queen West Art Crawl kicks off with a LAUNCH PARTY at the Gladstone Hotel on Friday, September 14, starting at 7pm. You can take in all of the Gladstone Hotel's Queen West Art Crawl events and party until the last person is left standing!
ABOUT THE QUEEN WEST ART CRAWL
Organized by Artscape, the fifth annual Queen West Art Crawl is one of the largest multi-disciplinary, community-based festivals that Toronto has to offer. In association with Artscape's community partners, Parkdale Liberty Economic Development Corporation, Parkdale Village BIA, Gladstone Hotel, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Workman Arts, West Queen West BIA, and 401 Richmond, the Queen West Art Crawl celebrates the buzz, character, edge, authenticity and soul of historic Queen Street West with an annual weekend-long festival happening September 14 - 16, 2007. www.torontoartscape.on.ca/qwac
Artscape is grateful to our Queen West Art Crawl Supporters: ING Direct, NOW Magazine, CHUM 104.5 FM; Queen West Art Crawl Funders: City of Toronto - Community Festival & Events Grant, Toronto Arts Council, Toronto Community Foundation; Artscape Operational Funders: TEDCO, City of Toronto, Ontario Trillium Foundation
Media contact:
Liz Kohn, Director of Communications, Artscape
T: 416-392-1038, ext. 25
E: liz@torontoartscape.on.ca
ABOUT ARTSCAPE
Celebrating its 20th anniversary this year, Artscape is a not-for-profit enterprise engaged in culture-led regeneration. Artscape's work includes anchoring creative communities within affordable spaces and building authentic and dynamic places by connecting creative and cultural resources.
Artscape set down serious roots in the Queen West neighbourhood in 1995 with the purchase of Toronto's first legal artist live/work building at 900 Queen Street. For more than a decade, this location has provided space for 22 artists and their families as well as six artist work studios including the * new * gallery. Three years later, we opened the Parkdale Arts and Cultural Centre at 1313 Queen Street; our first foray into a mixed-use development in a project that combines artist live/work studios with business associations, social service organizations and Gallery 1313.
Launching the Queen West Art Crawl in 2003 was a natural and fitting next step. The Crawl fosters local networks, celebrates and cultivates the unique character and diversity of Queen West; one of the city's most precious cultural resources - a natural habitat for individual artists, non-profit arts organizations, artist run centres and a dynamic range of creative enterprises and enterprising creatives. www.torontoartscape.on.ca