Posts tagged with Toronto
November 5, 2009 | New Art | by Gerry Mak 
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Toronto-based painter Andre Ethier combines traditional painting techniques with flowing, textured brushwork to lend his psychedelic paintings a brooding moodiness that is reminiscent of the work of Ivan Albright as well as that of the Surrealists. Unlike other artists working with similar themes, Ethier’s images are more somber than they are giddily hallucinatory, and the horror he portrays is more nuanced, with vague references to ancient mythology and pop culture Read more
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October 7, 2009 | New Film | 
by Zolton |
This beautiful documentary charts the journey of a loggerhead turtle from its traumatic hatching on a Floridian beach and its frantic scramble to make it to the sea, to its battles with the currents as it makes its way on its genetically programmed path of discovery through the temperamental oceans. Partly fictionalized to allow for the many years over which the ‘journey’ takes place, the cinematography is stunning and the storyline engrossing, making this one of the standout screenings at the recent Toronto International Film Festival.
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September 25, 2009 | New Film | by Zolton |
Directed by Jordan Scott, the daughter of Ridley Scott, and starring the sensual Eva Green, Cracks is an unsettling, yet tragically beautiful movie set in the lush surrounds of the English countryside and featuring a Lord of the Flies-ish storyline in which a group of English boarding school students turn on a new Spanish-born classmate when they feel threatened by her evident exotic-ness and worldliness. With a dark subtext in which boundaries between teacher and student and the students themselves are increasingly blurred, and beguiling cinematography, this film, which I saw at the recent Toronto International Film Festival, provides plenty of talking points, not the least of being the stunning performance of Green as the teacher whose fantasises about a life that she had never had the opportunity to live ultimately lead to a calamitous outcome. Read more
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September 18, 2009 | New Film | by Zolton |
Whilst in Toronto last weekend for the International Film Festival, I caught a screening of Dorian Gray, the superbly realised adaptation of the Oscar Wilde classic which first appeared nearly 100 years ago in Lippincott’s Monthly Magazine and now stars the unheralded Ben Barnes and the meticulously brilliant Colin Firth. Directed by Oliver Parker, the film is a dark, dangerous, yet stunningly shot expose on the trappings of beauty and the inherent temptations that its combination with youth and curiosity can bring. The costume design, in particular, is wonderful, not just for the aspirational seduction of the draping and the romanticisim of the accessories, but for its shaping of an alluring but frightening world where darkness and light go hand in hand and the descent into madness is both sudden and expected. This is a compelling film, though not without its flaws. Mind you, the best of them rarely are.
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September 1, 2009 | New Music | by Gerry Mak |
Toronoto-based guitarist and vocalist Adam Cooper explained to me that he wants to make people sick with his band, Orn, much the way French shock films such as Irreversible do. When the trio hit the stage at the Smiling Buddha in Toronto, I understood exactly what he meant. Read more
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August 18, 2009 | New Events | by Erin Letson |
Paintings from Nicholas Aoki’s new solo exhibition, Goodnight; Sweet, Hearts blur two worlds — one of mortals and one of Gods, skeletons and creature spirits. The Toronto-based Aoki uses watercolors and acrylics to create rich landscapes that he layers with the characters in this journey to death. And while the paintings contain a dark subject matter, they also contain flashes of light — a glowing full moon, say, or lamp posts helping guide the way.
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August 12, 2009 | New Photography | by Alison Zavos |
These shots of drag queens by Toronto photographer Liam Sharp were taken backstage at various clubs in the village. Of the series, Sharp says: ‘I’m afraid to send them out. I don’t want to be known as the drag queen photographer. The dilemma of a commercial photographer’s struggle, especially in Canada, is that Canadians are so literal. Internationally, the depth and range of what is accepted is so much greater. It’s understood that it’s not me that these pictures represent. Rather, an interesting plot that is graphic and photographic’. Read more
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July 24, 2009 | New Music | 
by Zolton |
Toronto-based producer, and co-founder of the awesome Suction Records label, Jason Amm (aka Solvent) creates ‘robot music too complex and contemporary to sound like it was recorded in 1981, and too seeped in the time-honoured traditions of melody, songwriting and hands-on synthesis to be lost in the overcrowded world of IDM’. This uplifting, propulsive track, My Radio, is simply massive.
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July 22, 2009 | New Music | by Erin Letson |
Toronto-based Timber Timbre’s third self-titled studio release keeps a soft and moody vibe with eight simply structured songs that seem meant for listening to in the dark. Taylor Kirk, the man behind the project, has a singing voice that’s both folky and restrained. He calls on other artists to fill in strings, banjo and accompanying vocals, while his percussive backdrops anchor the low-key tunes.
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July 17, 2009 | New Art | by Ben Keys |
The creatures of Nicholas Di Genova’s imagination occupy a strange space between the petting zoo and the apocalypse. The Toronto illustrator develops entire structured communities of twisted beasts that often blur the lines between animal and machine, yet somehow even his hound of Hades ends up looking cuddly (possibly because it’s half chicken). Recent projects have included painstakingly detailed ballpoint studies of everything from tortoises to flowers to vampire bats. In an upcoming exhibition, another piece will feature a grid of 20,000 butterflies. Hey, the man likes details. Read more
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July 15, 2009 | New & Cool Architecture | by Zolton |
Designed by — and named after – the iconic architect Frank Gehry, Toronto’s FRANK is a tasty complement to the Art Gallery of Ontario, located, as it is, within the building’s beautiful surrounds. The interior design is stunning: modern, chic, and urbane, it’s a work of art in its own right, featuring modern Danish furnishings and an installation of Frank Stella’s work. And the restaurant itself benefits from the oversight of executive chef Anne Yarymowich, who has created a small but delightful menu, showcasing local wines and seasonal ingredients. Read more
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July 10, 2009 | New Food and Packaging | by Zolton |
Walking down Toronto’s Queen Street West a few weeks back, we were momentarily distracted (if an hour or two counts as momentarily) by the cake-y delicacies that adorned the store window of The Red Tea Box. Oh boy! This place is like that scene out of Hansel and Gretel where they stumble upon the Gingerbread House, only the treats here are Tea Cakes and the decorations on them should probably be hanging on the walls of a local gallery. These cakes are stunning. Almost too good to eat. Mind you, that didn’t stop us. [photos by Alison Zavos] Read more
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July 9, 2009 | New Photography | by Alison Zavos |
Born in the Canadian prairies, Liz Wolfe studied photography at Ryerson University’s School of Image Arts in Toronto. We asked her how much of her work evolves from experimentation and how much is carefully thought out from the beginning?
‘I only experiment in the pre-production stage, never during shooting. Occasional scenarios have arisen in which I’ve altered elements of the photograph slightly during shooting, but these situations are extremely rare. Typically, everything is sketched out, color-coded, planned in advance. I know exactly what the final photograph is going to look like before I start shooting. And I mean exactly!’ Read more
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July 6, 2009 | Cool Travel | by Zolton |
One of the best designed restaurants I’ve eaten at, Ultra Supper Club, located in Toronto’s bustling downtown area, offers a fun and playful ambiance and a beautifully conceptualized menu that fits neatly into that burgeoning culinary category of ‘modern fusion’. Which means, exactly? A bit of this, a bit of that, all elegantly presented and rounded off with a sparkling wine selection which complements the variable dining options. Read more
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July 3, 2009 | New Illustration | by Gerry Mak |
Toronto-based illustrator Jessica Fortner creates really elaborate 3D scenes that she photographs to make final images that resemble stills from a claymation movie. Read more
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Yoko Furusho’s work leaves me absolutely speechless. There are so many lines in all of her drawings that I really wonder how she can do it all with one single hand. Just take a look at her Galliano and Fantasy drawings, and you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about. Not to mention her magical characters, her endless parade of patterns and her remarkable use of colour, which makes you feel like you’re swimming inside of a whipped cream and strawberry pie! Read more
Empty Bottles was the first track by Santa Cruz songwriter Reed KD where I really felt like I was getting a sense for him as a lyricist. Read more
In my teenage years, I was a fanatical collector of Archie Comics, living my life vicariously through the mischevious misadventures of Archie, Betty, Veronica and the gang. Eventually I sold my collection to a high school friend, who bought several garbage bags worth of digests along with my prized Ozi skate deck. This vibrant artwork by Singapore-based designer Hanyi Lee takes me back to that time and I kinda wish that I’d kept the damn things, if only for a few more moments of saccharine sweet escapism within their apple pie, primary colour world.
Old-school, timeless French is the vibe of creative agency Mother London’s latest campaign for Stella Artois. Titled Recyclage de Luxe, these massive, 1960s vintage-esc posters lining the walls of London’s tube aim to unabashedly promote Stella’s green credentials. The vibrant, revival ads, along with other campaign gimmicks, are all part of the brand’s efforts to boost its environmental image. Read more
I spent the formative first six years of my life in Wellington, New Zealand, a beautiful windswept city framed by a magnificent harbour in one direction and a stunning collection of green, rolling hills in the other. It was here, on a return visit many years later and deep amongst the clipped accents and ruddy faces of the weather-beaten locals, that I stumbled upon the vast catalogue of the then Dunedin based record label Flying Nun. And what a roster of acts they housed — The Chills, The Bats, The Clean, Tall Dwarfs, The Verlaines, and my favourite guitar-pop band, Straitjacket Fits. Read more
We love the vivid colours in the Freak La Notte range of t-shirts. The French label’s collection of shirts are like little canvases of super-styled surrealism – bold, elegant, and enchanting.
My friend and fine artist Sara Wolfe sent me this link of Chicago based artist Diego Leclery. He created this flash animation Panda, to celebrate the recent Beijing Olympics. He initially said he would take it down after the closing ceremony, but it is still up, so watch this cool one before it’s gone!
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Wheeeeee! This game is so freaking fun! You move your cursor over each dot to make them split into four smaller dots ad infinitum.
There is not a medium that UK illustrator Lizzy Stewart cannot wrap around her little finger to make the most beautiful, whimsical images. Read more
I live the upbeat, feel good tempo of the new single — A Hundred Hearts — from Philly group, The Swimmers. Off their latest album, People Are Soft, this song is a strangely fitting anthem for the blustery day outside.
With the recession still biting, it may be time to whip out the glue and the cardboard and make your next pair of cool kicks. Don’t know how they’d manage in the rain though? Read more
T-post: the world’s first wearable magazine
So here’s the scoop. Every six weeks, T-post subscribers get a new t shirt issue in the mail, with a news story on the inside and an artist interpretation of that story on the front. Yes, we agree. It’s clever, clever. Read more
Wolfmother. Rock n roll. Mystical lyrics. Heavy riffs. They have a new album out, Cosmic Egg, and we have five copies to giveaway, along with their debut album. To enter, tell us your favorite Wolfmother song and the city you live in. Yo! Two fingered salute. Read more
From this artist selection of t-shirts comes this Christina Koustospirou illustration, silkscreened on a limited edition t-shirt, and distributed in a vinyl sleeve, with a biography of the artist on the back of the sleeve. Every t-shirt is numbered and signed by the artist, and comes in organic cotton. Read more
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