Art, Drinks and Food on Bloor Street : Mercer Union Gallery and The Emerson

Julie, Meghan and I went to the opening night party for the new installation at The Mercer Union Contemporary Art Centre, (located on the north side of Bloor, just east of Lansdowne), last Friday evening.

The exhibition, guest curated by Denise Ryner, is called Common Cause: before and beyond the global, and runs until March 24, 2018. Described as “Installations by Fayçal Baghriche, Sandra Brewster, David Hartt and Jeneen Frei Njootli consider historical, present and speculative expansions on the global, as a permanently unfixed, interdependent but disordered whole.

↑ Mural “Elective Purification, 2009” by Fayçal Baghriche ↑

↑ “Enveloppements, 2010” by Fayçal Baghriche ↑

↑ Hmmm, how to photograph a sound installation? “Snow Crust and Sinew, 2018” by Jeneen Frei Njootli ↑

↑ Film projection, found carpet, and speakers by Havid Hartt, “Adrift, 2015” ↑

↑ Ingredients for Black Cake: my sister’s jar of fruit, currents soaked in rum and wine, by Sandra Brewster, called “Heirloom, 2017”

↑ Meghan and friends in front of “A Trace, 2017” – Mixed Media, by Sandra Brewster. ↑

↑ Life imitating art ↑

↑ They had really good snacks! Based on proximity to the gallery and what I’ve seen on Yelp photos, I believe they came from South Indian Dosa Mahal Restaurant. Nom. ↑

After, at Julie’s recommendation, we crossed the street and went to The Emerson. It was an excellent choice — the drinks, drinks, server and atmosphere were just right.

To drink I had the “Value Village” : Bourbon, Sweet Vermouth, lime, thyme syrup”, Julie had the “Strip Club Spritz” : Elderflower liqueur, Cava, lemon, and Meghan had red wine.

They offer a selection of their side dishes, served in tapas style. We had the butternut squash gratin, shaved brussels sprouts, asiago roasted cauliflower, and french fries served with roasted garlic aioli. It was all good but my favourite was the cauliflower.

All in all, a great night out with friends.

Thanks for reading,
xo loulou

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