Wait Until You See This, 2010

Lili Huston-Herterich - Chicago, USA
Brad Tinmouth - Toronto, Canada

Installation

One of the most vocalized criticisms of Nuit Blanche in Toronto is summarized perfectly by Toronto's Eye Weekly's arts editor David Balzer: "my experience of Nuit Blanche 2009 changed drastically at 5am on Sunday morning... because the much-dreaded lines — which characterized and smothered almost everything — had died down." Balzer’s association of sluggish lines with Nuit Blanche is precisely what Wait Until You See This explores. In a culture of adrenaline-fueled exponential consumption, waiting in line is a bane to our existence. Nevertheless, curiosity compels us towards long lines due to the expected promise of a rewarding end, even though our impatience reminds us throughout of our precious time wasted. What happens when the line itself is the end we are waiting for? What happens when the line is all there is?

Huston-Herterich and Tinmouth’s Wait Until You See This toys with the phenomenon of waiting: the anticipation that justifies the monotony of passing time. The installation creates a void of sensational stimulation and hyperbolic spectacle forcing viewers to consider the possibilities offered by the static state.

Lili Huston-Herterich and Brad Tinmouth are new media artists living and working in Toronto, Canada. Their collaborative work focuses primarily on digital phenomena and the intersection of virtual and tangible space. They direct and curate Butcher Gallery, an alternative exhibition space in Toronto. Both graduated with BFAs from York University in 2010.

Suitable for all ages