One of the most unconventional galas in Toronto, the Power Ball is celebrating its 20th birthday this year. Held on May 31, Power Ball XX: Carousal is presented by Italian fashion brand Max Mara and will transform The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery into a carnival-inspired extravaganza. In addition to London-based duo Bompas & Parr, who are presenting food installations, and fashion illustrator François Berthoud, who will show work inspired by Max Mara’s signature camel coat, a group of artists are creating one-night-only installations designed to surprise guests. Here’s a sneak peek at what they’ll be presenting.
Ana Rewakowicz
Artist Ana Rewakowicz, who splits her time between Montreal and Paris, is resurrecting a site-specific installation that was originally presented at a Montreal apartment in 2002. Called The Occupants, it’s a balloon-based installation meant to evoke one’s sense of belonging. “This intrusion metaphorically evoked the presence of a foreign body in one’s own living space and brought our attention to the question of positioning and seeking claim to a place,” she says. “Presented as re-make in the clerestory space at the Power Plant, this installation brings forward questions of belonging and our own attitudes towards ‘foreign bodies.’” The installation also references British television series The Prisoner, which portrays a former secret agent who is abducted and imprisoned in a resort village on an island guarded by mysterious balloons that suffocate people when they try to escape. “I hope my work thrives in the energy of the evening.”
An installation by Dominique Petrin.Anne Simonnot
Dominique Pétrin
For the influencers in attendance, “I can confirm there will be a flood of Instagram selfies made in this installation,” says Montreal-based artist Dominique Pétrin of her installation (pictured above), a hyper-stimulating Technicolor room that she describes as a “mise en abyme” of the party. “I really pushed the buttons with this artwork and didn’t have any filter. I wanted the content to be uninhibited, wild and fun, perhaps as well as the people who will attend the party.” Pétrin’s piece includes aliens dressed in Moschino, Louis Vuitton and Christian Louboutin, and it’s something that she says she would never have been able to create in any other context. “The fact that the event is a party was liberating and allowed me to do some really critical work in a very kooky, but thoughtful way.”
Jennifer Steinkamp
Los Angeles-based artist Jennifer Steinkamp will be projecting her animation onto the walls of the gallery. Titled Ovaries, its imagery represents the female reproductive parts of various fruit trees and was originally conceived for the USC Department of Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine in Los Angeles. “I read about stem cells for my inspiration. I considered women’s reproductive rights and the highly political relation to stem cell science,” she says.
Anitra Hamilton
Toronto artist Anitra Hamilton is presenting a surprise installation in an unlikely space: the gallery’s restrooms. Called Public Service, it’s a sound recording of the organ music captured at Jane’s Carousel in Brooklyn, New York, which will be played on loop throughout the duration of the party. “It’s the perfect venue for Public Service,” says Hamilton. “It’s pretty much guaranteed that everyone attending the Power Ball will visit the loo at some point during the event.”
For more information, visit thepowerplant.org.
Style happenings
Greenwood Stakes is kicking off the summer season at Woodbine Racetrack in Toronto on May 26. The first annual event includes craft cocktails, work by Toronto artists, live music and lawn games as well as a Style Stakes Best Dressed competition for best derby attire. For more information, visit greenwoodstakes.com.
Canadian sustainable fashion award Design Forward will be presented at a reception in Toronto on May 29. Selected from more than 50 applications, the three finalists – Triarchy, Obakki and Anian – will showcase their work at the event alongside panel discussions featuring emcee Jeanne Beker, a silent auction and the Green Carpet Challenge, which encourages guests to bring used clothing to the event to be collected and responsibly reused, repurposed and recycled. For more information, visit fashiontakesaction.com/designforward.
Two pop-up shops opened this week in Toronto. Footwear brand Allbirds has opened its first international standalone store at 700 Queen St. W., running until the end of August. And Montreal dress brand Éditions de Robes, worn by Sophie Grégoire Trudeau, has a pop-up space in Yorkville Village until May 26.