LONG WINTER Galleria Show
January 30, 2016 / 8 pm – 2 am
1245 Dupont St.
The art community seemed to breath some new life into the staid seventies style Galleria Mall on Dupont and Dufferin. Organizers of Long Winter, Mike Haliechuk and Brian Wong, pulled off a successful event with some cool installations, good bands and performance art. The mall – that has been sold to developers: Freed Developers and ELAD Canada for $80 million – awaits its fate. The developers have been doing some community consultations to see what the local residents would like to see on the 12 acre site.
The crowd with one of Fastwurms’ banners (right)
Long Winter paid homage to malls like the Galleria, that have faded or lacked décor to start with. It is always fun exploring alternative venues but it is surely not easy to stage large events at such sites. The place was packed with several thousand people who came out to the event. Works like Andrew Lamb’s “In the Hall of the Mountain King” – a sculptural piece depicting a large colorful pigeon head – helped to add some colors to the mall’s otherwise plain interior. Artist, Shari Kasman, cleverly matched photos of the dreary mall interior with Pantone patches. Media artist Jeremy Bailey – represented by Pari Nadimi Gallery in Toronto – invited viewers to participate in his interactive video work “Penis Paint”. Participants were reluctant at first but then jumped into the humorous interactive performance. Fastwurms (formed in 1979) used colorful banners hung from the ceiling, trying to lift the dull atmosphere of the mall – not an easy task to accomplish.
Andrew Lamb, In the Hall of the King Mountain, made from Galleria shopping bags
Jeremy Bailey and audience member
Artist, William Andrew Finley Stewart, used his “Arcade Project” to remind us of the arcade games found in most malls of this vintage. There were some of these games sitting in the hallway and a few people parted with their change. Visitors to Long Winter seemed just as happy going into the Photo Booth or trying the Love Meter. Others ventured into snacks from the El Amigo food kiosk. Specials were hot dogs and pop for $5 or pop corn but no burritos on the menu.
William Andrew Finlay Stewart, The Arcade Project
El Amigo
Artist, Carolyn Tripp, offered to help people to discover the color of their aura and many of the visitors were interested in it.
Carolyn Tripp’s Performance, Colouring Your Aura
Lines ups formed to get drink tickets and then to get into the two licensed rooms including the Shoppers Dance Mart. The outside lineup for people who didn’t have tickets was pretty long. If you didn’t really come to drink you didn’t have to line up, just go inside and catch the bands and see the art.The music line up was pretty fine and started with Teenanger. New Fries put on a good performance as well. It seemed like a good line up of bands worth the $20 cover alone.
TEENANGER
NEW FRIES, the audience and hanging Fastwurms’ banners
Both the Ontario Arts Council and the Toronto Arts Council had supported the event. Most of the art installations worked – some better than others.
Jonathan Carrol & Ben Macarthy, Installation, THE Environment
Residents living in the area no doubt appreciated the general necessities that the Galleria provided despite its dreary reputation. It has a post office, bank, drugstore, LCBO, grocery, dry cleaners and Café. Now it also has a 24 Hour Fitness Club plus a gymnastics club for toddlers. The area is booming with galleries on the move such as PM Gallery, Neubacher Shor Contemporary, Angell Gallery, Cooper Cole and others. Patience will prevail as we wait to see what new designs for the site would emerge later this summer.
The Long Winter Galleria event reminds us all the malls of our past and make us to recognize that even now, in its bleak design, it can still provide some entertainment. Perhaps the developers and new owners of the Galleria will be inspired to include some art as decoration, after seeing the success of the Long Winter Event. Thanks to Wong, Haliechuk and their team for pulling off a bold event.
Text and photo: Phil Anderson