al&d/The University of Toronto will again be part of Nuit Blanche, "an all night contemporary art thing" happening in the City of Toronto, Saturday September 29, 2007 from sundown to sunrise. This is a free, public celebration of contemporary art occurring throughout the city. Because of the overwhelming response to last year's inaugural festival, Toronto again joins international cities such as Paris, Rome, Brussels and Madrid in holding another "Sleepless Night" of artistic expression. The overall goal of Nuit Blanche is to highlight creative works that will inspire wonder and encourage dialogue, to make contemporary art more accessible to the public, to celebrate creativity in the City, and to demonstrate a commitment to the arts.

This year, seven U of T programs and venues will present a wide variety of installation and performance-based art on the St. George campus, and The Eric Arthur Gallery will open its doors to the public all night long, featuring the exhibition Graphic Virtuosity: Architectural Posters from the Robert G. Hill Collection.

In addition, artists commissioned by the City will be hosted in several of our venues. As happened last year, the night's activity is focused in three "zones" in downtown Toronto: along Queen St. W., Dundas/McCaul/College, and Bloor/Yorkville. These declared zones will feature commissioned art installations assembled for the event, overseen by renowned Canadian and international curators. The University of Toronto's projects will be located primarily at Hart House, Innis College, University of Toronto Art Centre, H.G. Phelan Playhouse, Faculty of Architecture, Landscape, and Design, and the Faculty of Music. It will be, we hope, a magical night for all.

For more information about the City of Toronto's Nuit Blanche plans, visit www.livewithculture.ca and www.arts.utoronto.ca/nuitblanche.htm