Inside the Hearn

In case you haven't had a chance to get down to the Hearn Generating Station, which is the site of Luminato #10, it is definitely of interest to those who like hulking industrial ruins.  It definitely has a lot of potential, but it is very, very raw space.  Also, the food options are extremely limited -- either the ultra-expensive (and sold out) restaurant on the mezzanine or overpriced food trucks outside the venue.  Add to that that there are no proper rest rooms in the Hearn -- just a bunch of porto potties (and inside the facility there is less ventilation than is desirable).  There wasn't quite as much art on display as I had hoped.  Mostly some video and light-based art on the ground floor and Trove on the mezzanine -- sort of a graffiti style tribute to the top 50 artistic treasures in Toronto.

Here are some of my photos from last Sunday.

Trove #3: Philip Guston, Untitled Head, 1979, (Private Collection)

Here you can see the world's largest disco ball in action.

Tafelmusik at the Hearn

It was quite amusing seeing Tafelmusik in such an unusual space.  The acoustics were ok, but not amazing.  They often had to pause between numbers to wait for the elevator to stop moving.  Fortunately, it didn't run during the middle of a piece, or I was able to tune it out.  I wonder if that affected The James Plays.  The set was a bit further from the elevator than the music stage, but the sound probably echoed throughout the whole Hearn anyway.

So I think they would have to spend a fortune to turn this into a permanent art gallery/event space, and it doesn't help that it is definitely off the beaten path and transit options are quite limited. Biking down wasn't too bad, however, though I would be quite hesitant to bike back after dark.

The Hearn is definitely worth a look, and pretty much everything will be on view through Sunday, so there is almost a whole week left to go check it out.