After a heavy rain last Thursday, the twentieth annual fundraiser Power Ball XX: Carousal, presented by Max Mara, took place at The Power Plant Gallery. As always, it attracted a large crowd from the city’s artistic and fashion communities, as well as socialites, TV personalities and “suits” from the financial district.

This year’s theme Carousal was executed throughout the gallery: from the entry hallway, where a huge clown mouth with blinking eyes was breathing out neon steam, to the stilt walkers, who were wandering around the gallery for the whole night. The venue was decorated like a fin-de-siècle fair, but instead of cotton candies, the attendees were treated to whiskeys and vodkas.

With no particular dress code, the majority of guests supported the theme with circus and fair-inspired ensembles, feather headpieces, and a lot of glitter and sparkling dresses.

The first hall set the tone with a voyeuristic tattoo station, set-up in a circus style: Toronto-based tattoo studio Ink & Water were creating actual tattoos as a show. This station kept guests watching and guessing: are those people under a tattoo gun set up actors or real people, having their tattoos done at the party?

 

Krispy Kreme doughnuts, popsicles and CXBO Chocolates stations were spread out within the interior of the gallery, all of them presented in an unusual and artistic way, either as an installation or a fairway game. The Max Mara video installation was projected in the main gallery with bottomless prosecco by Fiol and music by Toronto-based DJ Willa.

 

Of course, the Power Ball is not just about the food and entertainment, but primarily art.

Dominique Pétrin, who FAJO interviewed last month, did not disappoint. Her art piece was called “I heard they didn’t serve cocktail sausages this year because the curator thought it would be too alpha”. She decorated the whole room in vibrant Technicolor and inhabited the walls with charming green aliens, who behaved just like the Millennials—sipping martinis, dressed in the latest fashion and taking selfies of Justin Trudeau.

 

 

 

Another room had a giant 3D computer animation of fruits, called “Ovaries” by Jennifer Steinkamp. Apples, raspberries, plums, pears and peaches represented as female reproductive parts, were floating on the screen, bumping into each other and provoking sexual allusions to the guests, who were able to have berry cocktails in the room.

 

Ana Rewakowicz had several balloon installations throughout the gallery: from the hallway, leading to the terrace, to the outdoors, where guests, five people at a time, could insert their heads into a huge inflatable structure, sharing the same air and space.

 

Outside the gallery, there was a traditional food court with street food, like corn dogs and burgers, as well as an actual food truck, and additional dance floors. Sophie Jones, Prince Innocence and Tona were performing on the outdoor terrace and kept guests entertained all night long.

This was definitely another Power Ball to remember.