Introducing the Artscape Salon: Speed-dating with Toronto’s art hotshots

See the pictures from Artscape Salon »

Earlier this month, Toronto’s art community hobnobbed at the converted heritage centre Wychwood Barns for Artscape Salon, a speed-dating style dinner that allowed over 200 guests to meet 20 of the city’s creative luminaries as they roved from table to table. During dinner, speakers including artist Gary Taxali, musician Maylee Todd, actor David Sutcliffe (read: Christopher from Gilmore Girls) and painter Amy Shackleton met with guests, switching up conversation as they went. Indeed, the chit chat was anything but boring, with my table erupting in ballet fandom during a meet-cute with National Ballet Principal Dancer Sonia Rodriguez, with talk of the AGO’s upcoming Art Spiegelman retrospective upon visit from CEO and director Matthew Teitelbaum and with a game of temp tattoo with illustrator Alanna Cavanagh, who gifted us drawn lemons, pears and watermelons. The Salon was just the latest in Artscape’s fundraising initiatives, which benefit the organization’s not-for-profit urban developments including affordable live/work studios, schools and theatres at the heart of Toronto’s arts community.