Witness the Gladstone Hotel as it Transforms into a 4 Day Art & Design Carnival
January 21-24
Thirteen … an unlucky number for some, but not for Come Up to My Room (CUTMR). This year’s event, the thirteenth edition, once again showcases the work of new and established artists, designers and collectives from Canada and the US. CUTMR encourages spatial exploration that engages our senses, our memories and our perceptions of reality. Framed within the backdrop of the historic Gladstone Hotel, CUTMR invites participants to inhabit four floors with site-specific, immersive installations that stimulate the imagination and encourage discussion and dialogue between contributors and visitors alike.
Come Up to My Room (CUTMR) was conceived in 2004 by Christina Zeidler and Pamila Matharu as a vehicle for experimentation and interaction within the fields of art and design. Acting as counterpoint to the Interior Design Show (IDS) and giving rise to the more recent Toronto Design Offsite Festival (TO DO), CUTMR has since become a cornerstone of the Toronto alternative design scene. Over the years, CUTMR has featured the work of hundreds of artists and designers from Canada and abroad, and continuously challenged participants to push their everyday practice by offering a blank canvas upon which to explore new themes and ways of working.
Coming from the fields of architecture and exhibition design, this year’s curators, Jana Macalik and Nuria Montblanch have re-engaged with the heritage of CUTMR, focusing on the spatial sensory experiences and design as the medium. The designers have been encouraged to identifying discursive opportunities, altering perceptions of space and place. The inclusion of designers’ own identities within the experience of the exhibition affects narratives and is reflected in their use of interactive and tactile media. Thus, a space of discourse is created where multiple dialogues can begin to take place – between the hotel, the spaces and the people within.
CUTMR 2016 Featured Artists
Bruno Billio, Carl&Rose; Chiho Tokita; Chinedu Ukabam; F_RMlab; Galerie Youn; Iaboni Priftaj Design Associates; ialc; Interactive Arts; Invention Squad; Jessica Bromley Bartram; Lamers Bramm Design / LBD; Mario Sabljak; Matt MacDonald; Michael Neville; Nicole Beno; Plus Farm Collective; [R]ed[U]x Lab; Shelter Bay; Ryerson Artspace presents Archestra; Sara Nickelson & Studio WOOLF; Susan Dobson & Simone Ferkul; TAXA WORK; KLAUS presents Tom Dixon; The Racket Club; University of Waterloo School of Architecture / Prof. Elizabeth English and 3rd-year Architecture Students; Uufie; and Virginia Melnyk.