Gallery goes big with late-night horror screenings; special edition First Thursdays; a marquee series of talks including R.L. Stine; a family Halloween bash and more
TORONTO – The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) presents an exciting line-up of programs to accompany the hotly anticipated exhibition Guillermo del Toro: At Home with Monsters, running Sept. 30, 2017 to Jan. 7, 2018. Late-night horror screenings, talks, special menus and a wide array of art courses and workshops celebrate the only Canadian stop on the exhibition’s tour.
Organized by the AGO in partnership with the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Minneapolis Institute of Art, Guillermo del Toro: At Home with Monsters offers a rare glimpse into the creative process of the famed filmmaker, revealing his influences from the Medieval era to contemporary culture and paying particular attention to his fascination with horror, sci-fi and the Victorian era.
Timed-entry tickets for Guillermo del Toro: At Home with Monsters go on sale to the public on Sept. 15, 2017. They are $16.50 for post-secondary students and youth ages 17 and under, $21.50 for seniors and $25 for adults. Tickets will be available online at AGO.ca, in person and by phone. Admission is free for AGO Members and for children five and under. AGO Members have access to an exclusive preview before the exhibition opens to the public. More information about the benefits of AGO Membership can be found at AGO.ca/membership.
There’s something for everyone in this monster line-up to extend the exhibition experience with a favourite activity, whether it’s dining, socializing, artmaking or simply being a fan, including:
- a special Guillermo del Toro book signing;
- Screenings;
- Talks;
- AGO First Thursdays;
- Family activities;
- Courses and workshops;
- AGO Bistro features; and
- shopAGO offers.
Details are available below. Join the conversation online with #GDTAGO.
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BOOK SIGNING WITH GUILLERMO DEL TORO
Fans are invited to meet the filmmaker face-to-face at a public book signing on Wednesday, Sept. 27 from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. The AGO’s Wednesday night hours of free admission will be extended by one hour, beginning at 4 p.m. shopAGO will also be open starting at 9 a.m. (when fans can begin lining up outside the AGO). Attendees are encouraged to arrive in costume, but will need to check any swords, masks or tails! For more information, please visit the event page on AGO.ca.
TALKS
Inspiration is a Monster: Conversations with Legends of the Dark Arts
This marquee series of talks features legendary creators, including prolific author R.L. Stine and avant-garde artists Diamanda Galás and Peaches, who will share the sources of their inspiration, their relationship to the monstrous and the macabre, and riff on what freaks them out—artistically speaking. For more information, please visit AGO.ca/inspiration-is-a-monster. Tickets go on sale on Sept. 13, 2017.
SCREENINGS
The Films of Guillermo del Toro
Guillermo del Toro has reinvented the genres of horror, fantasy and science fiction through various projects, but most notably his filmography. A series of screenings of some of his most beloved films begins on Oct. 11 in the AGO’s Jackman Hall cinema. Tickets are $8 for students, $10 for members and $12 for the public, and are currently available at AGO.ca.
Oct. 11 and Oct. 13, 2017, 7:00 p.m.: The Devil’s Backbone
Oct. 25 and Oct. 27, 2017, 7:00 p.m.: Pan’s Labyrinth
Nov. 1 and Nov. 3, 2017, 7:00 p.m.: Hellboy II: The Golden Army
Nov. 15 and 17, 2017, 7:00 p.m.: Pacific Rim
Nov. 22 and 24, 2017, 7:00 p.m.: Crimson Peak
Nightmare on Dundas Street Movie Nights
This series of late-night screenings features 10 of the most terrifying films of all time as selected by Guillermo del Toro, running every Friday beginning on Oct. 6. The Jackman Hall cinema will offer food and drinks, and horror-themed cosplay is encouraged. Tickets are $8 for students, $10 for members and $12 for the public, and are currently available at AGO.ca.
Oct. 6, 2017, 10:00 p.m.: Psycho
Oct. 13, 2017, 10:00 p.m.: Carrie
Oct. 20, 2017, 10:00 p.m.: Night of the Hunter
Oct. 27, 2017, 10:00 p.m.: Halloween
Nov. 3, 2017, 10:00 p.m.: Silence of the Lambs
Nov. 10, 2017, 10:00 p.m.: Rosemary's Baby
Nov. 17, 2017, 10:00 p.m.: The Exorcist
Nov. 24, 2017, 10:00 p.m.: The Shining
Dec. 1, 2017, 10:00 p.m.: Repulsion
Dec. 8, 2017, 10:00 p.m.: The Haunting
AGO FIRST THURSDAYS
The Gallery will present two First Thursdays, its popular monthly art party events, in celebration of the exhibition. Tickets are $11 for members and $13 for the public.
October: Enter Darkness
Oct. 5, 2017 at 7:00 p.m.
Celebrating the 5th anniversary of AGO First Thursdays, this supersized party explores Guillermo del Toro's obsession with monsters. The immersive AGO takeover features a headlining performance by avant-garde legend Peaches, artist Tasman Richardson and other macabre-inspired artists. Tickets go on sale on September 14 at AGO.ca.
November: The Victorian and the Dead
Nov. 2, 2017 at 7:00 p.m.
The November edition of the Gallery’s First Thursday falls precisely on the Day of the Dead and will be guest-curated by the Toronto-born, New York City-based performer, nightlife personality and party producer Ladyfag. Tickets go on sale on October 12 at AGO.ca.
FAMILY ACTIVITIES
The AGO is going all out for a one-day monster party for families just in time for Halloween, with the Halloween Family Monster Bash on Oct. 29. Families are invited to wear Halloween costumes and join a dance party led by Miss Fluffy Souffle and the local kids’ band Space Chums. Other ghoulish art activities include a candy booth, special effects make-up, Gallery tours led by monsters, and hands-on slime art activities. This event is free with general admission.
AGO Family Sundays return every Sunday in November and December, offered up free with admission. The fun begins with Snips, Snails and Puppy Dog Tails in November, taking inspiration from Guillermo del Toro’s passion for collecting. Children will be painting sticks and rocks as well as making objects from scratch to create a collaborative Cabinet of Curiosities that accumulates throughout the month! Sundays in December explore the idea of fandom in kids’ culture with SuperFanz. Children create fictional super-hero costumes—capes, masks, wands, shields—and then fly through the clouds installed throughout the Weston Family Learning Centre.
COURSES AND WORKSHOPS
A selection of adult, youth and children’s art courses and workshops will expand the exhibition experience into all things monstrous. There’s something for everyone from ages six and up, including creating your own Cabinet of Curiosities, delving into the arts of alchemy and magic, a night at the museum, mask-making, and film/video explorations inspired by Guillermo del Toro. To learn more and for class schedules, visit AGO.ca/learn/courses.
AGO BISTRO
AGO Bistro (formerly FRANK), the AGO’s on-site restaurant, is offering two new Cinq-à-Sept menu items and three-course prix-fixe lunch and dinner specials to complement the exhibition experience from Sept. 27, 2017 to Jan. 7, 2018. Custom At Home with Monsters cocktails will also be available during lunch, brunch, and dinner services at AGO Bistro.
The menus celebrate del Toro’s heritage with Mexican-inspired dishes, featuring a spiced, seared duck breast with yucca, Mexican chocolate and sea buckthorn jus; birria-braised beef; chilli-lime charred savoy cabbage; fried panela; and a luxurious chilli chocolate cake served with avocado ice cream. The lunch menu is $35 and the dinner menu is $45. A prix-fixe dinner and exhibition package is $65. Members receive a 10 per cent discount on regular AGO Bistro menu items, excluding alcohol, applicable taxes and gratuities. For reservations, call 416-979-6688.
shopAGO
shopAGO marks the exhibition with a wide variety of horror, fantasy and sci-fi themed products curated around del Toro’s collection, films and television series, and personal inspirations. Perfect for del Toro-themed Halloween parties and decorating, products include skull bowls and jewellery, Trollhunters collectables, Frankenskull sculptures and bottle stoppers, monster mugs, laboratory shot glasses and more.
Guillermo del Toro: At Home with Monsters is accompanied by a fully illustrated catalogue published by Insight Editions. The 144-page volume, available in shopAGO, is edited by Britt Salvesen, Jim Shedden, and Matthew Welch, with contributions by Guillermo del Toro, Keith McDonald, Roger Clark, and Paul Koudounaris.
Join the conversation online with #GDTAGO.
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SUPPORTERS
Lead Supporters: Richard Rooney & Laura Dinner
Supporting Sponsor: AeroMexico
Government Partner: Canada Council for the Arts
We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, which last year invested $153 million to bring the arts to Canadians throughout the country.
Nous remercions le Conseil des arts du Canada de son soutien. L'an dernier, le Conseil a investi 153 millions de dollars pour mettre de l'art dans la vie des Canadiennes et des Canadiens de tout le pays.
ABOUT GUILLERMO DEL TORO
Guillermo del Toro (b. 1964) is one of the most inventive filmmakers of his generation. Beginning with Cronos (1993) and continuing through The Devil’s Backbone (2001), Hellboy (2004), Pan’s Labyrinth (2006), Pacific Rim (2013), and Crimson Peak (2015), among many other film, television, and book projects, del Toro has reinvented the genres of horror, fantasy and science fiction. Working with a team of craftsmen, artists, and actors—and referencing a wide range of cinematic, pop-culture, and art-historical sources—del Toro recreates the lucid dreams he experienced as a child in Guadalajara, Mexico. He now works internationally with a cherished home base he calls “Bleak House” in the suburbs of Los Angeles.
ABOUT THE AGO
With a collection of close to 95,000 works of art, the Art Gallery of Ontario is among the most distinguished art museums in North America. From the vast body of Group of Seven and signature Canadian works to the African art gallery, from the cutting-edge contemporary art to Peter Paul Rubens’s masterpiece The Massacre of The Innocents, the AGO offers an incredible art experience with each visit. In 2002, Ken Thomson’s generous gift of 2,000 remarkable works of Canadian and European art inspired Transformation AGO, an innovative architectural expansion by world-renowned architect Frank Gehry that in 2008 resulted in one of the most critically acclaimed architectural achievements in North America. Highlights include Galleria Italia, a gleaming showcase of wood and glass running the length of an entire city block, and the often-photographed spiral staircase, beckoning visitors to explore. The AGO has an active membership program offering great value, and the AGO’s Weston Family Learning Centre offers engaging art and creative programs for children, families, youth and adults. Visit AGO.ca to learn more.
Sept. 30, 2017 – Jan. 7, 2018: Guillermo del Toro: At Home with Monsters
Mar. 3 – May 27, 2018: Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors
The Art Gallery of Ontario is funded in part by the Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport. Additional operating support is received from the City of Toronto, the Canada Council for the Arts and generous contributions from AGO Members, donors and private-sector partners.
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For hi-res images and other press inquiries, please contact:
Andrea McLoughlin; Account Manager, Holmes PR
416-628-5609 | [email protected]
Carly Maga; Communications Officer, AGO
416-979-6660, ext. 403 | [email protected]
Samantha Chater; Communications Officer, AGO
416-979-6660, ext 504 | [email protected]