PAINTING | Art Battle 6
"Not all art is created equal" is the motto of Art Battle, Toronto's fast-growing competitive painting competition. If you haven't heard of the event yet then you're missing out on a unique art experience (and also, you don't read this column enough). The battle pitches painters chosen from the audience against each other in a series of one-on-one contests to see who can create the best piece in 20 minutes. The winner gets their piece auctioned off, the loser sees their creation cut to shreds with a chain saw. Tonight is the sixth and final episode of the spring season, and organizers have decided to spice things up by asking the models from the erotic life drawing class the Keyhole Sessions to pose for a special fourth match to end the evening.
The Great Hall, 1087 Queen Street West, $5 for painters, $10 patrons, 7:30 pm

BOOKS AND LIT | Stroll Book Launch
If there's one thing we here at blogTO share with Eye Weekly columnist Shawn Micallef, it's a love for walking through our beloved city. Micallef is fl창neur, some one who strolls through the city with the purpose not of window shopping or arriving at a destination, but to better understand urban space. His Psychogeography column in Eye captured the imaginations of many Torontonians for its insightful observations of our neighbourhoods, and tonight Micallef, who also writes for Spacing and the innovative [murmur] project, launches a new book that includes 32 Toronto walks and a fl창neur manifesto.
Lula Lounge, 1585 Dundas Street West, Free, 8 pm

FILM | Long Pigs
Even though Long Pigs was shot in Toronto nearly three years ago, this horror mockumentary is only now getting its theatrical debut in its home city. Maybe until now we just weren't ready for it; if there's one word that critics agree describe this film written and directed by Chris Power and Nathan Hynes, it's "gruesome." Picture dismembered limbs on meat hooks, pots full of human stew, and a serial killer so creepy he makes Hannibal Lecter look like Jamie Oliver. A darkly comic story about two hack documentarians' friendship with a jovial cannibal who plays beer league hockey by day and butchers prostitutes by night, the film's won best picture awards at LA's Mockfest Film Festival, the Texas Frightmare Weekend, and the Moving Image Film Fest here in Toronto. Runs til Sunday.
The Royal, 608 College Street West, $12, Tuesday to Sunday 9:30 pm

MAGAZINE | Drink and Destroy: Color Magazine Launch Party
Disciples of the wheeled deck converge on 751 tonight for a party to mark the launch of the latest issue of Vancouver-based skate culture magazine Color. The magazine was founded in 2002 by two out of work Van City skaters who wanted to put something out there that represented their lives both on and off the board. Since then Color's expanded into a multimedia enterprise that includes a clothing line, website, video platforms, and skate boutique. But you don't care about that, do you? You care about the $3.50 beers, classic skater setlists from the likes of Jamie Tancowny, Alex Olson, and Spencer Hamilton, and the screening of the new Vans Europe 1966 video. Why, you're nothing but a punk kid, ain't ya?
751, 751 Queen Street West, Free, 10 pm

CYCLING | Rally to Support 3-Foot Passing Law
Riding a bicycle in this city in increasingly a political act. Cyclists are battling for space both on the roads and in the political arena, demanding Toronto revise its traffic laws, build better bike lanes, and recognize bicycles as an essential mode of transportation for the 21st century. In the wake of one of the worst cycling accidents in Canadian history last week, the Ontario legislature hears arguments today on a new law that would require motorists to give cyclists at least 3 feet of space when passing them on the roads. Similar laws have been passed in sixteen U.S. cities, and according to Toronto activists, the law could save lives. The city's two-wheeled community will hold a rally this morning in support of the bill.
Queen's Park, 9:30 am

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Photo: "Toronto West Beach" by veryscary, member of the blogTO Flickr Pool.