It’s a few mins to 7pm on October 3rd I’ve just arrived on my bike at Nathan Phillips Square when my phone rings. It’s my contact at the City of Toronto, “oh good you’re here - great photo op up on the podium” my girlfriend captures me running up the ramp (beginning of the Instagram REEL below) to reveal the marching band “Band Band Clock - by Lisa Kiss) in formation ready to kick off the 20th year of Nuit Blanche here in Toronto.
I then follow the marching band, carefully walking backwards down the ramp and this begins the next 10-12 hours of hustling around photographing nearly two dozen public artworks installed and exhibited for one night only.
A night that you can try your best to plan, but will always somehow take you in a variety of directions. For me Nuit Blanche has been an annual art event that has been happening for just a bit longer than i’ve called downtown Toronto home, it’s been what has taken me to new parts of the city for the first time ever, and consistently also a night full of surprises.
I remember the first year (I think it was 2017) I was asked to be a part of the team to document the works across various zones to provide to the artists participating. When I was sent a collection of spreadsheets it seemed like so much work and basically impossible to cover in one night. Then we did it and as a team we were able to capture it all.
This year, the 20th anniversary, the theme was Tomorrow’s Memories and it explores the ways memories are created, preserved, revisited and reimagined through art. By remounting past iconic works such as:
Everything and Nothing (2014)
“returns a work by the late Kelly Mark, often referred to as the godmother of Nuit Blanche Toronto. Presented as a dialogue between a man and a woman, each reading from scripts of one hundred phrases beginning with “everything” and “nothing” respectively”
Avataq and Avataq Gathering (2022) by Couzyn van Heuvelen
“remounted at Nathan Phillips Square featuring inflated foil sculptures that reinterpret the traditional Inuit hunting tool through a blend of contemporary aesthetics and Inuit cultural traditions.”
Brendan Fernandes’ On Flashing Lights (2018)
“in the underground parking garage at Toronto City Hall. A formation of police vehicles will occupy the space, flashing lights becoming the backdrop for a dance party featuring live DJs, transforming an everyday urban space into a powerful setting for gathering, movement and contemplation.”
Enjoy!
✨📸
All photos are my own, and copyright Andrew Williamson Photography (unless otherwise stated)
Thank you for reading (and watching) No AI tools were used in the creation of this post. Any grammatical or spelling errors are the result of my career as a professional photographer and filmmaker and not being a writer. ✌️
Support this Newsletter:
You can also support this newsletter, by liking and sharing this post with a friend.
You can also find me on, Instagram / Threads / Vimeo and my portfolio
