FEAST 02 Student Grant Winner

Curator Zach Pearl and artist/designer April Wong are the recipients of the FEAST XPACE Student Grant.

April Wong, installation view

Rapid City Prototype | Project Summary

"For FEAST 02 I am proposing an 'evolving' installation piece by by April Wong in the provided Gladstone studio. This piece will take the Gladstone and its surroundings as its subject matter, and reflect the current gentrification of the Queen Street West area while making commentary from its community visible.

Both a practicing artist and a masters student in architecture at the University of Toronto, Wong's work manifests as graphic, pattern-heavy cityscapes and tectonic forms that feature characters who are caught in the throes of their chaotic environment. Concerned with the cultural 'symptoms' of gentrification and the visual transformation of the cityscape as an index of locality, Wong intends to cover the entire surface of the Gladstone studio with drawings that mirror the increasing architectural dissonance of Queen Street West. To make her installation participatory, Wong will construct her piece in several layered, overlapping panels of materials like mylar, parchment and plexiglass. Wong will then lead a seven day series of two-hour workshops in which she will invite viewers to become collaborators by rearranging the composition of the pre-existing panels and generating new patterns, buildings and characters to add individual voices and perspectives from the community." - Zach Pearl

April Wong, installation view

Winners of FEAST 02 grants

We are pleased to announce that Shannon Linde & Edward Birnbaum are the winners of the FEAST Project Grant, and Zack Pearl & April Wong are the winners of the XPACE FEAST Student Grant.

'Toronto Sauna Project', rendering

Thank you to all the presenters and participating diners for making FEAST 02 a great event. More information on the winning proposals and photos of the dinner to come.

Shannon Linde & Edward Birnbaum, 'Toronto Sauna Project'

The Toronto Sauna Project (working title) is a public installation that takes over an otherwise closed-for-the-season Toronto Parks building in MacGregor Park, transforming the space into a community-accessible sauna for two consecutive weekends in Februrary 2012. Based on the theme of winter solace, the project stems from a reaction to current sauna and bathhouse practices that exist in North America under segregated circumstances, as well a desire to revive unused public space during the long winter months. The goal is to create an authentic sauna experience through the use of electric heat sources and cedar, supplemented by media elements such as sound and light. The Toronto Sauna Project will offer a warm retreat from Toronto’s longest, and often most isolated, season, inviting the community into a comfortable space that is all at once relaxing, reflective, and fun. 

Inspirations for 'Toronto Sauna Project'

Images of Toronto sauna culture

Site for 'Toronto Sauna Project'