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Toronto Star
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Toronto Star
Luminato Festival 2025: This new ‘immersive experience' is a monstrosity on the waterfront
Terceradix Luminarium 1.5 stars (out of 4) By Architects of Air. Until June 22 at the Harbourfront Centre. You would be forgiven for doing a double take as you approach 'Terceradix Luminarium,' a new immersive art installation on display at the Harbourfront Centre as part of the 2025 Luminato Festival. It's billed as a 'cathedral of light' and a 'monumental walk-in sculpture.' But, in reality, it's neither of those things. Instead, it could be more aptly described from the outside as resembling a supersized cluster of viruses: grey, alien and complete with spike proteins projecting from spherical bodies. Or an even better descriptor: a giant monstrosity on the waterfront. Things are much the same as you step inside this inflatable castle on steroids. That is, of course, after shelling out the $20 admission fee. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Its structure, created by the U.K. company Architects of Air, is comprised of curvilinear passageways, conjoining and diverging at odd angles. Walking through them, you feel like a blood cell, siphoned through a series of veins and arteries. For a pneumatic installation, it's fitting that the structure's design explores ideas of expansion and contraction. The architecture, featuring pointed windows and intricate geometric patterns, also occasionally recalls both Gothic styles and Islamic art. Cramped corridors give way to airy rooms with vaulted ceilings, wrapped around the perimeter with cosy alcoves (which you're free to sit in, as some visitors did, leaning their backs on the rounded exterior wall). But overall, the pervasive mood is one of drabness. The predominant colour: a purgatorial grey. And the only source of light: those small, slim windows. Walk through some of the rooms, play with those bouncy walls and soon you'll want out. When I visited 'Terceradix Luminarium,' it was during an evening that featured a musical performance. Violinists Daria Skibitskaya and Diane Kim led my group through the installation, all while playing an eclectic mix of short pieces, ranging from Simon and Garfunkel to Bach. The pair are competent instrumentalists and their choice of repertoire, curated by National Ballet of Canada concertmaster Aaron Schwebel, is inspired. But it's hard to picture a worse performance venue than the entrails of an inflatable castle. ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW Its acoustics warp the musicians' sound. That's even if you can hear them above the din of the generators, pumping air into the structure. (At one point, I was about to scream, 'Turn those damn things off already.' Then, I remembered that if we did, we'd probably all suffocate inside this humongous plastic balloon.) Though Architects of Air has been creating structures like 'Terceradix Luminarium' for decades, their continued popularity (or even rise in popularity) points to the Instagrammification of immersive art. Indeed, when I visited, it seemed like almost every other guest around me dropped $20 just to snap a photo inside the inflatable castle. Maybe they saw something inside this eyesore of an installation that I didn't. But for me, 'Terceradix Luminarium' is far from worthy of a spot on the 'gram.
Hamilton Spectator
04-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Hamilton Spectator
Hahaha Penticton Kidzfest 2025 kicks off Thursday and runs all weekend in Okanagan Lake Park
It's all about the kids this weekend in Penticton. That HaHaHa Penticton Kidzfest is set to kick off with four days of spectacular family fun at Okanagan Lake Park starting Thursday and continuing until Sunday. With a spectacular forecast calling for clear skies and warm temperatures, Jacki Kliever, one of two festival co-ordinators, said she expects the 2025 Kidzfest will be a resounding success. A group of Penticton and area volunteers formed the board for the first HaHaHa Kidzfest back in 2019 and the first event took place in June of 2021, she said. 'This is our fifth annual festival and we're very excited about this year,' said Kliever. 'Our mission is to bring world-class arts, artists and performers to children through performance and participating activities. 'Our three key words in putting on this festival are entertaining, educational and accessible.' This year's Kidzfest will feature a myriad of artists and performers in the park on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. A new twist for the 2025 festival is the introduction of the Luminarium: Arboralis, which will be on display throughout the festival from opening day on Thursday through Sunday. This exhibit, coming all the way from England, will make its British Columbia debut at the festival, said Kliever. Children will be able to experience a sense of wonder as they wander through the winding paths and soaring domes where ancient architecture and Gothic cathedrals meld into an inspiring monument to the beauty of light and colour, she said. The installation will awaken all five senses and create a sense of beauty and enchantment for all ages. Visitors will be transported and immersed into an amazing world of light for a unique sensory experience that will bring visual arts in places where visitors would never expect. The luminarium is fully accessible to wheelchairs and walkers, giving guests of all ages and ability the opportunity to explore and become part of this unique experience, she said. Since 1992, Architects of Air, based in Nottingham, England, have built 21 luminaria, made over 600 exhibitions and toured 43 countries, where over three million visitors have participated in this thrilling experience, she said. Arborialis will provide a unique experience into a world of natural sounds that pays homage to the Celtic goddess Danu and is dedicated to the theme of trees, in terms of both forms and graphic representation. The luminarium is designed to echo aspects of being lost in the forest as there will be radiant canopies of leaves that stretch overhead and there will be vibrant tree trunks rising from the ground beneath. The visual world of Arborialis will be enhanced by the natural and spiritual sounds of the Song of Danu created by Irish composer Dr. Michael Morris. 'It's an 11,000 square foot, inflatable air lock exhibit,' said Kliever. 'It's more like a massive colour maze where there are thousands of panels of colourful, translucent fabric that the sun shines through to create different patterns and lights combinations. 'It's an experience rather than hurrying through. It's going to be a massive hit with everyone.' The increasing popularity and success of Penticton Kidzfest can be seen by the move to Okanagan Lake Park from Gyro Park as it offers more space, more performers and more children to enjoy, said Kliever. 'The festival is growing and this year, particularly this year with the luminarium being part of the festival, we felt we needed to make the move to Okanagan Lake Park and wanted everything on one site,' she said. The festival has traditionally attracted about 3,000 children and their parents and caretakers and organizers are expecting larger numbers this weekend considering the incredible weather forecast and introduction of the luminarium on Sunday, she said. 'On opening day on Thursday and on Friday, we get school buses bringing in children from all over Penticton, but also as far away as Cawston, Oliver and even some from Kelowna who come down to spend the day with us as one of their end of school year field trips,' she said. 'Then on Saturday, it's more family oriented and hopefully we'll be getting kids and families who are experiencing the festival for the first time this year.' Almost all of the performers will show off their talents on a main stage inside Okanagan Lake Park. 'We will have a wide variety of performers hitting the main stage throughout the entire day on Thursday, Friday and Saturday,' she said. 'That's something that actually make our festival unique as in a lot of other children's festivals across Canada, you usually only get to see one or two of the performers on the main stage. Here, we offer all our performers to hit the main stage so everyone in the crowd can see them, which adheres to one of our main themes of accessibility.' Some of the performers include marching bands, singers, Bollywood dancers and hula hoop performers. Penticton was home to a children's festival that ran for many years, but ended in 2013, said Kliever. 'It was called the Okanagan International Children's Festival and it ran very successfully for quite a number of years, but it did end and stop production in 2013, she said. 'In 2019, the conversation started actually at the city council of the day with an idea that we needed some kind of celebration for families and children, to bring some vibrancy and energy to that demographic in our community and it sort of took off from there. 'Some of us had experience with other festivals and large events and past children's festivals and we came together and we all had a passion for seeing this happen. And here we are now in year five.' For the second consecutive year, Kidzfest will feature a Symphony Concert in the Park, which will take place Friday evening, said Kliever. 'Last year, we introduced our community concert in the park and it is for everyone, not just children and their parents,' she said. 'It was a big hit last year and we're bringing it back. 'Entry will be by donation and it's not a children's performance per se, but for everyone that wants to listen to beautiful classical music in the park. This year we've partnered with the Okanagan Symphony Orchestra and Okanagan Symphony Youth Orchestra and there will be a 26-person orchestra playing.' Gates for the concert will open at 6 p.m., with the concert beginning at 6:30. 'All of the proceeds go towards keeping Kidzfest accessible,' she said. 'We're inviting not only children, but seniors to come down with their lawn chairs and enjoy a wonderful evening of great music under the stars. It's a great fundraiser, but also a really great opportunity to bring the community together.' Tickets for the 2025 HaHaHa Penticton Kidzfest are available in advance online at . Tickets will also be available at the gate. There are options to purchase tickets for the festival, to the luminarium only or a combination pass for both, said Kliever. Daily combination passes are $15 in advance and $17 at the gate. 'We don't want to have anyone to miss out, so we've tried our very best to keep prices reasonable,' said Kliever. 'The weekend forecast is amazing and the chatter and excitement around town is amazing, so we're really excited about the festival and bringing all these folks in for a great weekend of family fun.' Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . 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