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Photo credit: John Jones and Dean Tomlinson
Does your browser not support Flash? View this photo set on Flickr.
Photo credit: David Karaiskos Photography
On Thursday, April 19th, 2012 the Art Gallery of Ontario transformed into an imaginative open forum for over 1,800 party-goers who were invited to explore the future of art at the AGO's annual fundraiser Massive Party. Centered around the elements "LIGHT SOUND OBJECT PAST PRESENT FUTURE" as conceived by Toronto artist and Massive Party artistic director Bruno Billio, oversized letters spelling "FUTURE" and "ART" greeted guests upon arrival at the Gallery.
All night, guests tweeted using the hash tag #thefutureofartis and watched as their tweets scrolled across the AGO's signature Spiral Staircase in Walker Court. This was also the place to experience the creative mind of Edgar Allan Poe, and have your photo taken with this literary master in the Kobo photo booth, exquisitely designed by Melanie Cantwell Designs. Guests in Walker Court grooved all night to the harmonizing tracks of DJ Morgan Shim.
Multi-colour, sparkling streamers draped and swayed over a full dance floor upstairs in Baillie Court, which was brought to life by DJs Eon Sinclair of Bedouin Soundclash, a.k.a. The Soul Proprietor and opening DJ Tenement Yard Selector, filmmaker Charles Officer. This party hot spot also featured conversation-starting projections and more oversized letters spelling key party theme words like "OBJECT" and "LIGHT" that doubled as impromptu resting spot for party-goers.
Perhaps the highlight of the evening was the exciting new space for Massive Party – the Weston Family Learning Centre. Guests in this hidden gem strolled through the featured interactive artist projects to the tunes of Michael Rault and his band, as well as DJ Kids and Explosions. In the Gallery School, Justin Broadbent created a mock-basketball court made out of neon tape, representing a game of Good vs. Good, punctuated by cheerleaders and coaches who handed out 2nd place ribbons to guests. In the Education Commons, Renée Lear's projection piece involved footage of the Group of Seven and a performance element that wowed guests throughout the evening. At 11 pm, Cesar Forero performed a piece along with dancer Michelle Moylan and soprano Pam Pattel that explored human relationships with the land and its many living creatures. Jenn E. Norton remounted Les Soeurs Fox du 21e ciècle // The 21st Century Fox Sister, which was an exciting and surreal experience for many guests.
Limited edition artist multiples were also available throughout the night, including a "Massive" bling necklace by artist Jade Rude and custom View-Master by artist An Te Liu.
Massive thanks to our sponsors and committee for their tremendous support and hard work in making the 8th Massive Party a great success. Funds raised through Massive Party will help the AGO continue to deliver ambitions education and exhibition programs.
Committee:
Hughene Acheson, Laura Adams, Andrea Anders, George Barkas, Annatasha Bartel, David Beevor, Bruno Billio, Jeffrey Charles, Marie Corsini, Tyler Currie, Perry Dellelce, Rob Drynan, Trish Durisotti, Robert Fonn, Nikole Fraser, Gillian Hewitt Smith, Alison Goodwin, Emily Hanft, Carolyn Lawrence, Adrienne Maniezzo, Sarah Massie, Daniel McClure, Amy Piotrowski, Christina Raheja, Liz Ridout, Katie Rook, Yulia Rosenberg, Som Seif, Carolyn Smith, Boris Tsimerinov, Tim Usher Jones
Partners
In-kind Sponsors:
Media Partners:
Design Partners:
Massive Party 2011
Interested in photos from our event last year? Check out our Flickr sets: Photos by Dean Tomlinson, Photos by Christina Gapic, Photos by Camilla Singh and Walter Willems.
