Thursday, November 1, 2012, 6:30 – 11:00 p.m.
ART GALLERY OF ONTARIO
317 Dundas Street West
Toronto, ON M5T 1G4
T: 416.979.6648
www.ago.net
www.ago.net/1stThursdays.
The second installment of 1st Thursdays at the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) will build on the excitement of the program’s sold out October launch, as the AGO and Aeroplan, an Aimia company, announce the winner of the $50,000 Grange Prize 2012 for contemporary photography live in Walker Court on November 1, 2012.
Jo Longhurst, Suspension (1), 2012, vinyl, 366 x 218 cm (dimensions variable)
Bringing together an impressive roster of artists, live music and art projects, 1st Thursdays are interactive art nights out featuring a variety of performances, pop-up bars, art-making activities, artist and curator tours, talks and live events. As the name suggests, 1st Thursdays take place on the first Thursday of each month, as the AGO opens its doors to adults 19+ from 6:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. Cash bars are set up throughout the galleries and visitors can explore the AGO throughout the night.
Toronto-born fashion sensation Stacey McKenzie will host The Grange Prize 2012 winner event in Walker Court and will move the party into high gear at 8 p.m. McKenzie is known for her appearances on Canada’s/America’s Next Top Model and for her international modelling career, appearing in Vogue, Harpers Bazaar, Flare and Vibe, among other magazines. The much anticipated award will be presented by Adam Broomberg and Oliver Chanarin, a London–based artist duo who served on The Grange Prize jury this year.
During this celebration of all things photographic, party-goers are invited to experience the history of photography with the Tintype Studio and the experimental black and white panoramas featured in the exhibition Josef Sudek: The Legacy of a Deeper Vision. Guests are invited to feel the glare and heat of the paparazzi as they walk the red carpet, before assuming the role themselves as part of the AGO’s first visitor photo contest.
Josef Sudek (Czech, 1896-1976), Mannequin on the Lawn from the series A Walk in the Garden of Lady Sculptor, 1953-57, gelatin, silver print, 40 x 29.8 am. Art Gallery of Ontario anonymus gift 2000. AGO/Courtesy Anna Fárová estate © 2012, 2000/58
Following The Grange Prize winner announcement, musical guest DIANA will collaborate with local photographic artist Laurie Kang for a very special performance. Katie Stelmanis of Toronto indie band Austra will follow with a ground-stomping DJ set.
ShopAGO continues its DesignTALKS, a series of lectures by leading local designers focused on small space design. Architect, interior designer, teacher and critic Tania Bartolotto hosts this month’s talk from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. She will shed light on her unique process that utilizes design as a vehicle for maximizing our health and well being in the places where we live, work, learn and play. The AGO’s U.K.- born artist-in-residence Mark Titchner has a new exhibition in the Young Gallery and visitors are invited to get a sneak peek of his work on their way though FRANK restaurant.
Tickets for November’s 1st Thursday are on sale now. Regular-priced tickets are $10 in advance and $12 at the door. Admission for AGO Members is $8 in advance and $10 at the door. Tickets can be booked online by visiting www.ago.net/1stThurdays. Party-goers are encouraged to buy tickets early, as the October launch of 1st Thursdays sold out, with rush tickets available only.
Visitors in front of Diego Rivera’s mural. Photo: Mauricio Contreras-Paredes
Frida Kahlo (1907-1954). Autorretrato con monos, 1943 (Self-Portrait with Monkeys, 1943), oil on canvas, 81.5 x 63 cm. The Jacques and Natasha Gelman Collection of Mexican Art. (C) Banco de Mexico Diego Rivera Frida Kahlo Museum Trust, M.D.F./Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York
Once guests have paid the entrance admission for 1st Thursday, they will be offered the opportunity to purchase $10 tickets to see Frida & Diego: Passion, Politics and Painting. The exhibition will be open until 9:30 p.m., with the last entry at 9 p.m. AGO members enter the exhibition for free. Please see more about it at http://www.artoronto.ca/?p=14707.
ABOUT THE GRANGE PRIZE 2012
On November 1, 2012, the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) and Aeroplan, an Aimia company, will announce the winner of The Grange Prize 2012, Canada’s only major art and culture prize whose winner is chosen entirely by public vote. Two artists from Canada and two from the United Kingdom have been shortlisted to compete for the $50,000 prize. Online voting is currently taking place at www.thegrangeprize.com and is open until 11:59 p.m. on Oct. 30, 2012. Selected by a jury of leading Canadian and British photography experts, the artists on this year’s shortlist share a fascination with the world of images that surround us every day — from fashion editorial and sports photography to landscape images and crime scene documentation. They include Annie McDonell and Emmanuelle Léonard of Canada and the U.K.’s Jason Evans and Jo Longhurst. Please also see more about it at: http://www.artoronto.ca/?p=13865.