WHAT’S NEW & HAPPENING IN TORONTO FALL/WINTER 2019 TORONTO, CANADA (September 2019) – Feel the cool air rush into Canada’s Downtown as fall descends on Canada’s largest city. While the leaves begin to change colour, Toronto continues to evolve with new city changes, restaurants, exhibits and fall-focused experiences! Read through our latest “What’s New” for a list of notable updates and happenings around the city. ATTRACTIONS & EXHIBITS Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) 1. Early Rubens October 12, 2019 – January 5, 2020 www.ago.ca/exhibitions/early-rubens The AGO is thrilled to showcase Peter Paul Rubens (1577–1640) in a new exhibition featuring the North American debut of some of his most ambitious works. Rubens is one of the most revered painters in Western art – widely recognized for his riveting, dynamic and even cinematic style, known as the Baroque. The exhibition highlights works the Flemish master produced between 1609 and 1621 – a crucial time that was the artist’s most innovative and inspired. 2. Hito Steyerl: This is the Future October 24, 2019 - February 23, 2020 www.ago.ca/exhibitions/hito-steyerl-future Hito Steyerl is an acute observer and interpreter of globalized and digitized cultures; her work often blends the personal with the political and irony with seriousness as she investigates how images are created, packaged and consumed. This exhibition will be the first solo show in Canada for the German artist, filmmaker, writer and cultural critic. Taking up all of Level 5 of the David & Vivian Campbell Centre for Contemporary Art, the exhibition includes some of the artist’s most iconic works to date, ranging from single-channel projections and video monitor works, to elaborate architectural environments. The Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) Bloodsuckers: Legends to Leeches November 16, 2019 – March 22, 2020 www.rom.on.ca/en/exhibitions-galleries/exhibitions/bloodsuckers-legends-to-leeches Discover the fascinating science lurking beneath the surface of history's most enduring legends at the ROM this fall with Bloodsuckers: Legends to Leeches . Vampire bats and birds, live leeches and lampreys, and more of nature’s most bloodthirsty animals star in this ROM-original exhibition. Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) Age of You September 4, 2019 — January 5, 2020 www.museumofcontemporaryart.ca/age-of-you-programmes-2019 Age of You is a timely exhibition about how the self has become more extreme, and what it means to be an individual today. It is curated by Shumon Basar, Douglas Coupland and Hans Ulrich Obrist, with graphic design by Daly & Lyon and over 70 visual contributors from the worlds of art, design, filmmaking, photography, performance and electronic music. A series of public programmes will run in parallel and expand upon the exhibition’s themes. Age of You has been commissioned and produced by MOCA Toronto. Ryerson Image Centre (RIC) The Way She Looks: A History of Female Gazes in African Portraiture September 11 – December 8, 2019 www.ryersonimagecentre.ca/exhibition/the-way-she-looks-a-history-of-female-gazes-in-african-portraiture Drawn from the extraordinary holdings of The Walther Collection, The Way She Looks revisits the history of African photographic portraiture through the perspectives of women, both as sitters and photographers. Guest curated by rising scholar Sandrine Colard and organized by the RIC in collaboration with The Walther Collection, The Way She Looks: A History of Female Gazes in African Portraiture features contemporary works by female artists alongside twentieth-century studio portraits and early colonial images and albums. Escape Manor Elevator Pitch Opens September 17, 2019 www.escapemanor.com/toronto Elevator Pitch is a new semi-permanent experience at Escape Manor. The escape room will be designed for four adventurous guests and will be a 25-minute experience. The experience will be based on the namesake novel, "Elevator Pitch" by renowned Canadian Best Selling Author, Linwood Barclay. Aga Khan Museum Caravans of Gold, Fragments in Time September 21, 2019 – February 23, 2020 www.agakhanmuseum.org/exhibitions/caravans-of-gold Aga Khan Museum has partnered with African nations and members of the African diaspora to bring Toronto the ground-breaking exhibition Caravans of Gold, Fragments in Time. In relation to this exhibit, guests can also experience an Afrofuturist art installation made of Lego and world-class thought leaders and performers who reveal new dimensions of this vast and complex continent. Ontario Science Centre 1. Life of the Earth September 22, 2019 – January 5, 2020 www.ontariosciencecentre.ca This large-scale artwork by Canadian contemporary artist Director X reflects on humanity, environmental degradation and Anthropocene extinction. This multimedia installation shows the past, present and future of the Earth as if seen from space. Life of the Earth runs simultaneously with the Brampton-raised artist’s monumental Nuit Blanche Toronto 2016 project Death of the Sun . Life of the Earth , a collaboration between the Science Centre and the City of Toronto, is part of Nuit Blanche Toronto 2019. 2. MindWorks September 28, 2019 – April 26, 2020 www.ontariosciencecentre.ca Through intriguing, thought-provoking experiences that task visitors to use their bodies and minds, this new exhibition researched, designed and fabricated by the Science Centre will spark moments of mindfulness, challenging visitors to question themselves and discover answers experientially. Visitors will learn more about their own minds and how they think, feel and react. Meridian Arts Centre Mandela: Struggle for Freedom presented by TO Live October 10, 2019 – January 7, 2020 www.tocentre.com/events/mandela Mandela: Struggle for Freedom - a major exhibition developed by the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, Winnipeg in collaboration with the Apartheid Museum, Johannesburg, South Africa – opens in Toronto at the Meridian Arts Centre (formerly the Toronto Centre for the Arts) on October 10 th . Mandela is an exhibition that looks at Nelson Mandela and the movement that formed around him. Follow Mandela into hiding after he is declared an outlaw, and then join him inside a replica of the prison cell that was his home for 18 years. Experience the bittersweet joy of his release, after 27 long years of imprisonment. Finally, witness South Africa’s first democratic elections, and find out about Mandela’s efforts to rebuild a nation shattered by racism and injustice. Square One The Dr. Seuss Experience Starts October 26, 2019 www.drseussexperience.com Square One is excited to be the global-premiere location of the The Dr. Seuss Experience launching this October 2019. A massive 15,000 square foot experience with 360-degree immersive spaces, the Seuss-tacular spectacle is an Instagrammable playground and presents a journey through the wondrous world of Dr. Seuss. The experience will include beloved stories and characters of Dr. Seuss, including “The Cat in the Hat”, “Horton Hears A Who!” and “The Lorax” as well as other timeless favourites, and will be travelling to multiple cities across North America. StickerYou www.StickerYou.com StickerYou has recently opened the world's largest sticker store at 677-679 Queen Street West. In addition to the new store, StickerYou is also opening a permanent sticker museum this fall to showcase the history of stickers, from "labels" attached to commodities in ancient Egypt to decalomania, the creation of bumper stickers and the growth of sticker art culture. The store is also planning a temporary sticker art exhibition that will be held within the museum that will expand on the sticker art culture of North America and will feature sticker art by a range of artists, including Shepard Fairey and Matthew Hoffman. FESTIVALS & EVENTS Thursday Night OVERTIME at Hockey Hall of Fame Starts September 26, 2019 www.hhof.com/Overtime Located in the heart of downtown Toronto, the Hockey Hall of Fame (HHOF) is a venue like no other. For the first time ever, HHOF is opening their doors for a series of 19+ after-hour events: Thursday Night OVERTIME at the Hockey Hall of Fame . It will be an evening for attendees to experience the museum while enjoying some of the best live entertainment, local food vendors, and beverages this city has to offer. Event Dates: • Thursday, September 26 th , 2019 – Season Opener • Thursday, October 31 st , 2019 – Halloween Bash • Thursday, November 28 th , 2019 – Kickin’ Country Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) September 5-15, 2019 www.tiff.net For the first time ever, the TIFF 2019 Opening Night Gala Film is a Canadian-made documentary. Titled Once Were Brothers: Robbie Robertson and The Band, the documentary is a touching tale of Robertson’s young life and the creation of one of the most enduring groups in the history of popular music, The Band. In total, there are 333 titles at TIFF this year with 36% of them being directed, co-directed, or created by women. Yorkville Murals September 12-14, 2019 www.yorkvillemurals.com Toronto is about to get a bit more colourful! Yorkville Murals, a brand new festival presented by INK Entertainment, is an artistic initiative celebrating contemporary muralism from September 12-14. Featuring local and international artists RISK, Ben Johnston, Mr. Brainwash, Whatisadam and more, Yorkville Murals will transform the courtyard of 99 Yorkville Avenue into a paradise of public art, becoming a hub for social gatherings and elevated cultural experiences. Alongside the murals, the festival will feature artist talks, panels, film screenings and pop-up parties. The Word on the Street Festival September 21 – 29, 2019 www.thewordonthestreet.ca/toronto Celebrating its 30 th year, The Word On The Street Toronto 2019 Festival delights audiences of all ages with author readings and featured programming alongside Canada’s largest open-air book fair. This September, the festival will return to Harbourfront Centre for a birthday party like no other, celebrating the past and future of Canadian literature with an exciting lineup of debut authors alongside perennial favourites.