Art

Inside Out Launch Party

Art

 This is what a crew of diverse LGBTQ folks and their allies looks like. Boy, do we have a gay old time. A good time. A blast. At the launch party for Toronto’s Inside Out Film Festival, 2016, the night started with a panel discussion with the jury and key players of the festival. My wife got to sit in the fancy chairs and charmingly answer questions. Hosted at St. James Cathedral, it was a stylish affair.



  Looking lovely, as ever, Allia voted for The Same Difference as her ‘must watch’ film. The trailer is available online and this film is pretty powerful; charting the strict gender roles within urban black lesbian culture, it was such an eye-opening film. I was excited, hearing all of their top picks, to flag the films I will be checking out throughout the festival.
 After the panel discussion, the drinks flowed freely and people mingled, taking advantage of the passed hors d’oeuvres, great company and photo booths. As the evening unfolded, we were treated to vogue-ing, a selection of djs and dancing late into the night.

Check out the silliness of our photo booth pics (by Monocle Booth); can you guess which are from early in the festivities and which ones are from later?

And what does one wear? A mix of cheap and cheerful separates that blur masculine and feminine. It’s almost laughable how cheap this outfit was.

 All in all, it was a blast and I cannot wait to see the full line-up of LGBTQ films!

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Modern Space 

Art

Fun, fun, fun: at the release party for the band “Modern Space” whose EP is coming out… now! They remind me a bit of Tokyo Police Club, swingy, punchy and youthful, with great beats and catchy bass lines. A cute, grungy gang of men dressed in a motley bunch of offhand outfits that could easily have been pulled from a drama teacher’s closet and a hipster/dive bar, mashed together. The event had freely flowing beer courtesy of Beau’s. MMmmm Lug. Tread. Hosted by Nuvango, the crowd was smattered with their signature bold prints and graphic leggings, which Nuvango is known for (all prints in their line are sourced and give credit to the actual artists for the use of their images). The space also hosts art openings in their gallery space, which has also found itself reinterpreted as a one-0ff yoga studio and, now, a concert venue. Also important: their leggings are SO comfortable, and incredibly well-made. See them (below). I love them. Fan. For sure.

It was worth going out on a weeknight for a dip into the random fun of being young, or at least feeling a little younger for some hours.  Talking to strangers is always a good time at Nuvango. Especially when those folks are strange already-friends. Below, some featured art from Jake Sherman’s “I’m New Here” series.
  My favourites: pink flamingo style.
  

Checking out the newest line of straight-from-the-runway items, soon to be available at Nuvango’s Queen Street storefront. Art. My lady love. The band. And the shadows.

Modern Space – Release Party.

Some rough clips. Cheers to live music, great art work and weeknights.

Modern Space, Live at Nuvango

Modern Space 2

 

Trinity bellwoods flea And the rage room

Art, Indulge

What a great way to spend the day, having a brunch with our wedding photographer to pick final albums,  at  Toronto’s The Northwood. Then we headed to the Trinity Bellwoods Flea – a mix of food and handmade items, hosted in a variety of venues while the weather is a little chilly, until it makes its way back to the name-sake park – Trinity Bellwoods. We enjoyed oysters from ‘Island Oysters’ – guided skillfully by the founder of this niche company.

  

We also checked out the handmade jewellery by Laborde. Loved the weight of these chains, especially the ones made from re-purposed brass watch links
I love being able to window shop, while my oysters get shucked. The coziness of the market means you have everything at your fingertips (plus a bar with signature cocktails like spiced cider, bellinis and other yummies). As always, we were out to support YYZ Imports.

Picked up some quirky plates at Lousongmade. Who can resist a delicate saucer with a saucy saying? “La-di-fucking da!” or “Smash the Patriarchy” or “Fuck that shit”. Or, that yellow edged plate (below) with a sweet little bird, chirping “Don’t be a tit.”

 
Finishing off with some homemade soup, organic and vegan options available in mason jars and hot sauces (great for hostess gifts) on our way out the door (N0.7 hotsauce!)

Leather and wool coat, burgundy tunic, bralette and White Feather Designs enamel necklace. Check out more of Bre’s gorgeous work at her website. Next we went for daily soup at a friends place. He has started up an intriguing tradition of having open doors on weekends with noon, 2 pm and 4 pm drop in times to share a meal with folks. He invites couples, singles, people and tells them when to show up. The pot of soup starts at the beginning of the day and feeds the community of friends who arrive. He and his partner sit and chat, eating a little with each new group and getting to know people. Genius. We ended up talking about the Anglican church, gay pride, repealing the buggery laws in Jamaica, documentaries and lecturing at Canadian universities. We may need to start a daily soup of our own!

We ended up, next, at a surprise for me; I sprained my ankle the day before my birthday and apparently said, ‘I just want to break some shit’. Wish granted. I was taken to a rage room, where we blasted some Eminem and 90s tunes, while armed with a crow bar and baseball bats, against a variety of foe – a horse statuette, some large bottles, ashtrays, china and… my favourite, two printers. All my tech-angst was released. It’s way more fun than you’d guess. I recommend the ‘couples package’ from Battlesports Inc. Here

 This is apparently great for recently broken up or divorced folks. 

Suited up. 

In flight. 

 The debris.  

Almost last… we had an impromptu dinner at Stazione Central. Delicious Italian fare.

Then we went to celebrate a friends new Canadian citizenship…. a perfect day!

Betroffenheit

Art

Spent an awesome day in Toronto at the distillery district doing a movement workshop, before seeing an incredible performance of Betroffenheit, choreographed by Crystal Pite  for Kidd Pivot.  

 It was a deeply moving and tightly-wound production about trauma and how the mind reels in the wake of tragedy and loss. I felt so lucky to have been in the audience seeing this show. Wow. Just wow.  

  The Distillery District   
Shops and the Love locks 

 Shops and cobblestone streets. My fave stop was at the studio is the Saucy Milliner. 

  
Also got to stop in to check our album out at Pikto Gallery. They aren’t friendly, but they sure make gorgeous photo books. 

  
Press shots from the show. I felt so undone in the second act that I found my eyes brimming with tears.  What a technically mesmerizing show! It’s starting to tour; see it!

Deep Impact

Art, Uncategorized

Every so often I turn the basement into a studio, the ping pong table into an art desk. The most recent challenge was to create a new piece for a contractor friend who likes ‘masculine art’ and saw some of my older work. 

I was happy to oblige and pull out my paints for a 30×60 piece in bold Crimson. 

   
    

   
   
The pieces are almost always reversible. And I think j succeeded in keeping the more translucent areas from looking at all ‘pink’. 

It’s always nice to have a project and in his case it seemed serendipitous, he installed a great basement floor and I used the nice, newly transformed space to make something for him. 

Voila!

  

Theatre: a day in Niagara on the Lake. 

Art, Indulge

I spent Friday at Niagara-on-the-lake’s Shaw Festival for a day of theatre and sight seeing.

Itinerary:Get ready.  Vintage dress, with bat wing sleeves and a YYZ Imports necklace.

YYZ Imports Necklace

Assorted Rings… ring finger (White Feather Designs’ custom engagement ring)

Birds, and bling…

Getting ready for the day out.

My dressing room is my 7-year-old-self’s dream come true.

Makeup: a gold smokey eye and pale pink lip. Inspired by my magazine perusin, I added a hint of gold to the inner corner for aime sparkly and a hint of vintage bling, and hair to match – a bit teased up and sixties looking but softer.

A look I pulled from an old magazine.

I’m a daytime smokey eye fan. And adding some gold to the inner corner is on trend for fall.

Gilded Lids.

…bangs are the obvious part of a look… Cause I already have ’em.

Checking all the boxes for Fall’s ‘Hit List’: Big Bang.

Next…Get there: tour the Shaw Festival Theatre. We went on a backstage tour and same te costume department, scene shop and trap doors below the stage.

The Festival Theatre: We had a great backstage tour.

Dressing Rooms

Models of show sets. These maquettes are used to show actors (and production crew) what the full scale sets will look like as they rehearse and plan their show.

Costume designs are sketched up and provided to the costume department to invent, re-invent, sew and create.

Final pieces bring to life the artistic vision.

The photo above shows this creation as it appeared on the stage.

Costumes from past shows were on display and completely gorgeous.

This costume appeared in last season’s production of Cabaret. Fanciful and bright!

Another real-life costume, up close, for us to see the craftsmanship and detail.

And here is a still from the stage production… brought to life!

Sometimes pieces need to be distressed, to appear worn or damaged in subsequent scenes. That all takes place in the costume shop.

After our tour, we headed for lunch at Fournos; saganaki and souvlaki!

Opa!

And gelato at Carlotta’s. The best in town!

Always spoiled for choice! More treats at Carlotta’s

The small town charm is amplified by the presence of many horse drawn carriages that take tourists around the downtown.

Fall colours in full effect.

Show #1: a matinee production of Sweet Charity 

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Sweet Charity

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Sweet Charity

Inside the Festival Theatre

Costumes from past shows

Beautiful illustrations.

For dinner, I joined my parents for a home cooked meal.
Then off for Show #2: Peter and the Star catcher at the Royal George Theatre.

The George.

Peter Pan’s origin story. A raucous, fun-filled ensemble production that had us cackling with laughter and amazed like awe-filled children.

The cast of Peter and the Starcatcher

The cast of Peter and the Starcatcher

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Peter and the Star Catcher

Next season the Shaw Festival is putting on Sweeney Todd, Alice and A Woman of No Importance, among other fantastic shows. I will definitely be back for that.

As the theatre let out, before you know it, it’s midnight. Sweet dreams. It’s almost Halloween!