The Whitest Night

What is art? I could give you a cliched "Webster's dictionary definition" but I think I'll settle for a more personal explanation. To me, art is anything that is meant to stretch your mind a little further than you intended it to be pulled. Therefore, art succeeds inasmuch as it accomplishes this charter. The more you are filled with a sense of awe as you ponder an art piece, the more that particular work has connected with you, and the more artistic it has become. Less successful art induces a more blase response. A I've-seen-that-before-and-it's-only-mildly-interesting state. Note the inherently subjective slant to this definition, what resonates with me and is therefore art, maybe discordant to you and is thus lessened. Also, the intention to mind-bend is as important as the actual feeling. So for example, lightning in its wild, elemental fury is always awe-inspiring; however, this was not lightning's intention and hence it is less art and more natural beauty. One could argue that lightning's creator, be it Norse god or otherwise, may have had this purpose, in an effort to humble humanity. Fine. You win. I'm getting sidetracked.

So what is art? Nuit Blanche is art. To set the scene, Nuit Blanche is a Toronto-based event where for one night in early October, the entire downtown core is transformed into a giant modern art gallery. World renown artists choose a particular portion of the city--be it side alley or mall atrium--and fill that space with whatever their muse commands. Imagine MOMA on Ecstasy and you'll have a good feel for this event. For all my American friends, it is one of the best reasons to be a Torontonian. It is also, in and of itself, Art. Meant to convey a sense of wonder at all that can be accomplished with civic pride and imagination. It lasts from 7 pm until sunrise the next day. I lasted from 9:30 pm to sunrise the next day. Here is my journey.

9:30-10:00 pm. Arrive at University of Toronto. Set off excitedly in search of Art, expecting it to be everywhere. For an event with over 120 installations, Art is proving extremely elusive. Spend some time considering whether chemistry majors attempting to demonstrate different colored flames is Art. Decide that this should not be the highlight of my evening.

10-10:55 pm. Found it! After much wandering (in the wrong direction), I decide to follow the crowd and end up in Hart House, one of the major student centers at U of T. Highlights include eating crickets (salty) wrapped in seaweed, visiting a green domed bar, and watching a hilarious video broken telephone amongst Eastern European women. Lowlights included the "space ship" exhibit, which sounded cool until you realized that it was just a bunch of clear balloons suspended with string. Like a minimalist birthday party. Also, too much political activism in one spot. Felt a little preachy.

10:30 pm. Found out that I forgot my SD card in my digital camera. Also realize that there is a slight downgrade in photo quality from my digital camera to my camera phone. Like 10 Megapixels per photo downgrade. Time for some creative editing!

11:03-11:09 pm. Come across a huge panoramic video display. Kind of like a UFO landed in Queen's Park but instead of enslaving humanity, its only job is to show nonsensical scenes of people looking bored of their affluent hotel-like surroundings. Mesmerizing. There are also random signs telling you to do vaguely inspirational things. I'm not sure why I've been telling it incorrectly all this time.

11:30-11:33 pm. FIRE!!!! I don't know about you, but nothing says Art quite like huge bursts of flame. I am drawn to this exhibit like a moth to my funeral pyre. It is called the Heart Machine, not really sure how it works but people seem to be pressing colored discs, there is driving techno music, and flames are jetting out at odd angles with a terrifying whooosh. Oddly, there is a dance party in front of it, and a full service bar. My kind of heart. Too bad my poor cellphone camera is not up to the challenge.  Time to edit part 1.

For Part II, go here.