Co-organized by Raster Gallery in Warsaw and Art Metropole, over 20 contemporary art galleries will take over Union Station for Villa Toronto, a major contemporary art festival that's previously been held in Tokyo and Reykjavik. Concerts and other events will run in conjunction with the fest. Read more here.

Villa Toronto, presented by Warsaws Raster Gallery in association with Torontos Art Metropole, brings over nineteen local and international art galleries and their artists to Union Stations Great Hall from January 16th to 23rd, 2015.

Art Metropole Toronto Shane Krepakevich and Elif Saydam

Jessica Bradley Toronto Derek Sullivan, John Sasaki

COOPER COLE Toronto JD Walsh

Diaz Contemporary Toronto Zeke Moores

Daniel Faria Toronto Iris Hussler

Hollybush Gardens London Reto Pulfer

i8 Reykjavik Ragnar Kjartansson

ibid Projects London/LA Michael Portnoy

Johann Knig Berlin Jeremy Shaw

LABOR Mexico City Eric Beltran

Misako & Rosen Tokyo Yuki Okumura

MKG 127 Toronto Dean Drever

Plan B Berlin/Cluj Navid Nuur, Rudolf Bone

ProjecteSD Barcelona Jochen Lempert, Patricia Dauder

RaebervonStenglin Zurich Dane Mitchell

Raster Warsaw Micha Budny, Aneta Grzeszykowska

Clint Roenisch Toronto Tony Romano

Jocelyn Wolff Paris Guillaume Leblon, Elodie Seguin

ZERO... Milan Hans Schabus, Gavin Kenyon

Accompanying this presentation, in cooperation with local art organizations, is a series of special events throughout the city, featuring among others a performance by Ragnar Kjartansson and a talk with Michael Snow. The one-week program is free and open to the public.

Villa Toronto is the most recent in a series of international gallery meetings initiated by Raster. Previous editions took place in Warsaw 2006, Reykjavik 2010 and Tokyo 2011. The event is not an art fair. Rather, Villa aims to use the curatorial experience of private galleries to create encounters with the general public and local art communities that are innovative, stimulating, and not merely market driven. Villa recognizes the decisive role private galleries play in determining the field of contemporary art and the type of explorations that take place within it. Villa encourages the cross-cultural circulation of art, artists and cultural workers, and dedicates its resources and focus to facilitate such an exchange, throughout the project and in the years to come.

Partners:

8 eleven, Art Gallery of Ontario, Justina M Barnicke, Kunstverein Toronto, Mercer Union, Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art, No Reading After The Internet, Power Plant, Scrap Metal, Vtape.

Villa Toronto warmly thanks its supporters: Toronto Arts Council, The Polish Ministry of Culture and Heritage, Osmington Inc., City of Warsaw, Consulate General of the Republic of Poland in Toronto, Goethe-Institut, British Council, Gallery Express, The Drake Hotel, Wondereur, The Consulate General of France, SOCAN Foundation, Canadian Art and C Magazine.