Something magical is in the air this winter with Toronto Light Fest artistically illuminating the Distillery District.
Photos by, Ruby Wray – The ultimate photo ops, #09 Angels of Freedom by the OGE Group – Israel and the ever popular resident #15 Love Locks by Mathew Rosenblatt – Canada are lit up for lovers to come together to express their love.
TLF is a free festival, inviting Torontonians to come out of the dark and into the light for phosphorescent photo ops.
Some of the interactive installations like #08 The Magic Dance Mirror by Kyle Ruddick – United States (shown left), had long lineups if you are patient enough to wait. On the right, #06 Bands of Friendship invites spectators to gather meanings from different perspectives.
The first annual Toronto Light Fest kicked off the last week of January, welcoming throngs of families, friends and couples to the historic Distillery District.
Some of you are thinking,
What Toronto Light Fest?
This is the first year that the Distillery is taken over for the winter months to be decorated in lights.
#07 Run Beyond by Angelo Bonello – Italy
The creator of Light Fest, Mathew Rosenblatt, wanted to give Torontonians an escape during the dark cold days of winter.
#17 Love Lock Benches by Mathew Rosenblatt
“Our hope is that city residents will be drawn out of their traditional indoor habitats to experience Toronto in a way they never have before,”
-Mathew Rosenblatt.
Light Fest map (on left) and #16 Origami Tigers by LAVA – Australia, is designed to bring attention to the international campaign to save tigers.
The festival features 21 art installations by local and international artists that are displayed around the distillery district. Light Fest is reminiscent of the outdoor all night art bonanza, Nuit Blanche, with the festivals’ curation–except it’s localized to one area of Toronto, there aren’t hoards of drunk teens (yet) and you can save your walking shoes for this one.
Hot chocolate never looked so good at Cacao 70 in the Distillery District
In need of a break, I pop into the “Chocolate Shop” Cacao 70, a brunch-style restaurant that boasts chocolate on tap. They have a wide array of unique hot chocolates served up with latte art to make it that much more appealing to drink hot chocolate. I try the Mexican hot chocolate, a rich blend of cacao with cinnamon for a modest $9. It was the perfect antidote for a cold winter’s night to walk around and take in the lights.
#12 The Uniting Lightstar -Venividimultiplex, The Netherlands and (right) #21 Our House by Tom Dekyvere, Belgium at Toronto Light Fest
Toronto Light Fest runs until March 12th, 2017. For more information visit their website.
#04 Infinite Support Lightform – The Netherlands (left)