iArt Museum at the University of TorontoUniversity of Toronto St. George Campus
Things Fall Apart
The fourth Toronto Biennial of Art, curated by Allison Glenn, explores rupture through the Great Lakes and global waterways, across both campus galleries.
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A secondhand muskrat coat sits on a chair, glass hands crossed over a stone in its lap. On opening day it led Rebecca Belmore's Gichigami here from Queen's Park, dancers in coats of crushed water bottles that, CBC's critic wrote, sounded like crashing waves.
This is the Biennial's central hub: 21 artists and collectives across two buildings a few minutes apart, the University of Toronto Art Centre and the Justina M. Barnicke Gallery in Hart House. Water is the thread, from the Great Lakes to the Strait of Hormuz. At the Art Centre you walk down an aisle of 1,000 brass bells by Antonio Obá, who invites you to ring them, knowing it announces you.
The themes run heavy, from the Middle Passage to colonial displacement; CBC found that when the works succeed, "the effect is transporting." Entry is free, no tickets. Open Tuesday to Saturday, noon to 5pm, until 8pm Wednesdays. One Art Centre work has strong lighting contrasts that the museum flags for photosensitive visitors.
Editor's pick
A secondhand muskrat coat sits on a chair, glass hands crossed over a stone in its lap. Rebecca Belmore is one of 21 artists here tracing water from the Great Lakes to Hormuz; CBC found the best of it "transporting".
Look for
Belmore's Gichigami
Look for seven garments layered with crushed plastic water bottles, and the muskrat coat on a chair with glass hands crossed over a stone.
Obá's aisle of bells
At the Art Centre, 1,000 small brass bells on thin metal spokes ring as you brush past, leading to a painting of Dorothy Counts surrounded by a celebrating procession.
Partridge's umiaq
At the Barnicke Gallery, three garments hang over the skeleton of a boat while you stand on a mirrored floor among projected water and voices.
Devine's waterway maps
Brightly coloured paintings map waterways from above, from the St. Lawrence River to the Strait of Hormuz, picking out trade and military chokepoints.
Julianknxx's salt marsh film
At the Barnicke Gallery, a figure in sheer white dances on a salt marsh while a Marseille choir sings Comorian lullabies.
Good for
- Cheap Culture
- Evening Visits
- Out-Of-Town Guests
Skip if
You have photosensitive epilepsy: one Art Centre work uses strong lighting contrasts, and the museum advises discretion.
Also at Art Museum at the University of Toronto
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Image credits
9
- Things Fall ApartCourtesy of Art Museum at the University of Toronto
- Psychedelics: Art. Culture. Science.Courtesy of Royal Ontario Museum
- Crawford Lake: Layers in Time© Craig Smith, 2023
- Critical Minerals: Critical Choices©ROM
- Art Museum at the University of TorontoUnderline Studio, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Royal Ontario MuseumMaksim Sokolov (Maxergon), Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Gardiner Museumremundo via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0
- Bata Shoe MuseumCanmenwalker / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0
- Art Gallery of OntarioOwen Byrne / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0