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Mercer Union, a centre for contemporary art

Name: Mercer Union, a centre for contemporary art
Address: 1286 Bloor Street West, Toronto, ON, M6H1N9, CA
Telephone: +14165361519

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Mercer Union, a centre for contemporary art

Mercer Union is an artist-run centre featuring Canadian & international works

05/28/2026

We're thrilled to highlight a number of significant projects presented at the Venice Biennale of Arts by several Mercer Union artist alumni:

Abbas Akhavan: Entre chien et loup, the Canadian National Pavilian

Lotus L. Kang: The face of desire is loss, the Bvlgari Pavilion

Lydia Ourahman: 5 Works, the Nicoletta Fiorucci Foundation

Lawrence Abu Hamdan: 450XL: The Story of a Fugitive Sound, Canicula — Fondazione In Between Art Film

Congratulations to the artists on their spectacular presentations, and to all the exhibiting artists at Venice 🥂 The 61st edition of the Venice Biennale of Arts, In Minor Keys, is curated by the late Koyo Kouoh and runs through 22 November, 2026.

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Abbas Akhavan, Entre chien et loup, 2026, Canada Pavilion, 61st International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia. Courtesy the artist and the National Gallery of Canada. Photo: Francesco Barasciutti.

Lotus L. Kang, The face of desire is loss, 2026, Bvlgari Pavilion. Courtesy the artist, Bvlgari, Commonwealth and Council, Franz Kaka, Kukje Gallery and Esther Schipper Berlin/Paris/Seoul. Photo: Andrea Rossetti

Lydia Ourahmane, 5 Works, 2026, Nicoletta Fiorucci Foundation. Courtesy the artist and Nicoletta Fiorucci Foundation. Photo: David Levene.

Lawrence Abu Hamdan, 450XL: The Story of a Fugitive Sound, 2026, Fondazione In Between Art Film. Courtesy the artist and Fondazione In Between Art Film. Photo: Marco Capelletti Studio.

05/22/2026

SPACE: Alize Zorlutuna
Surface Tension: To Comb [Tarak]
23 May—23 September 2026

In 2025-26, Mercer Union invited artist Alize Zorlutuna to develop a series of works over one year for the SPACE billboard commission.

To Comb [Tarak] is the final edition in Zortlutuna’s year-long series, titled Surface Tension. The work is accompanied by a forthcoming text by Joy Xiang.

“Tarak is the Ebru technique in which a comb is dragged across the surface of the water and pigment, rippling the colours in intricate designs. To comb is to tend, to untangle, to put into order what is unruly. It is to unknot, to separate, to thoughtfully and carefully pull something away from something else. With gentleness and discernment, we comb archives, memories, hair. Queering the gesture of combing earth and water, this edition uses Tarak in undulating waves and swooping curves that break with tradition, offering a form, a tending, that curves around unexpected corners.”

– Alize Zorlutuna

Learn more about the work here: https://buff.ly/vfPmQch

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SPACE is Mercer Union's billboard commission. Through this platform, one artist is invited to produce a series of works for the building's east façade over one year.

Image: Production still, Alize Zorlutuna, To Comb [Tarak], 2026. Courtesy the artist.

05/19/2026

𝗠𝗘𝗥𝗖𝗘𝗥 𝗥𝗘𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗢𝗡: Celebrating our story 🥂✨

In 1979, twelve artists founded Mercer Union, an organization 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘴 𝘣𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘴:

Michael Balfe • Peter Blendell • Ric Evans • Peter Hill • Jamie Lyons • David MacWilliam • John McKinnon • Robert McNealy • Jaan Poldaas • Renée Van Halm • Joy Walker • Robert Wiens

Today, in collaboration with their friends, we are launching 𝗠𝗘𝗥𝗖𝗘𝗥 𝗥𝗘𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗢𝗡—a special initiative to celebrate the founding story that continues to energize us.

✨ 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗴𝗶𝗳𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗶𝘁 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗲. ✨

Between now and our birthday on July 10, every gift is matched dollar-for-dollar thanks to a generous anonymous donor! Proceeds raised from this initiative will bolster the exhibitions, programs, and commitment to artists at the heart of Mercer Union’s mission.

𝗝𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲: https://buff.ly/drKDFl4 🔗 𝗗𝗼𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁!

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🥂𝗦𝗔𝗩𝗘 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗗𝗔𝗧𝗘: Friday, 10 July 2026
𝗠𝗘𝗥𝗖𝗘𝗥 𝗥𝗘𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗢𝗡, a community homecoming social.
Free + open to all. Stay tuned for details!

05/07/2026

Saturday is your last chance to view Alvin Luong: DEPHINITELY PARADISE. We wrap up the exhibition with a day of public programs:

2PM | Exhibition tour: Swing by for a free, drop-in tour led by Mercer Union staff

4-6PM | Artist Afternoons: Join us for our community social, hosted by Mercer Union Board member Emma Steen. Complimentary refreshments will be served–come as you are!

Celebrate with us and see the exhibition before it closes. You can register for Artist Afternoons here: https://buff.ly/SzglmWl

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Alvin Luong, DEPHINITELY PARADISE, 2026. Installation view: Mercer Union, Toronto, 2026. Commissioned by Mercer Union, Toronto. Courtesy of the artist. Photo: Vuk Dragojevic.

RBC
CONTACT Photography Festival

05/02/2026

This is the final week to visit Alvin Luong: DEPHINITELY PARADISE— be sure to see the exhibition before it closes! Mercer Union is open Tuesdays to Saturdays 11AM-6PM.

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Alvin Luong, DEPHINITELY PARADISE, 2026. Installation view: Mercer Union, Toronto, 2026. Commissioned by Mercer Union, Toronto. Courtesy of the artist. Photo: Vuk Dragojevic.

RBC
CONTACT Photography Festival

04/29/2026

🗓️ Mark your calendars! Join us on Saturday, 9 May from 4-6 PM for our community social Artist Afternoons. This edition is co-hosted by our spectacular Board member, Emma Steen.

Emma Steen is a programmer, curator, and writer from downtown Toronto. Her area of interest lies in art and writing that explores intimacies, bodies, and gathering with feminist and anti-colonial intention. Emma works at the Royal Ontario Museum as a Performance Program Coordinator, bringing live arts performances, parties, and cultural events to the country's largest museum.

We invite artists, friends, peers, and neighbours to join us on the patio, and take in our current exhibitions with good company. Gather around Alize Zorlutuna’s SPACE commission, Surface Tension: Reckoning [Git gel with cedar], and catch the last day of DEPHINITELY PARADISE by Alvin Luong in the gallery.

Refreshments are on the house, and all are welcome. Register here: https://buff.ly/FkUvkcd

04/24/2026

Alvin Luong’s DEPHINITELY PARADISE explores the historical and contemporary status of the Malaysian island, Pulau Bidong.

Here, Alvin explains how his steel scaffold sculptures formally pay homage to structures used to grow corals on the seafloor while also resembling beds, signalling a place of rest. This metaphor at the heart of Alvin’s exhibition reveals the bottom of the ocean as a complex site of death and renewal.

Interested in learning more? Join Mercer Union staff for drop-in tours every Saturday at 2PM until the end of the exhibition. Upcoming tours will be held, 25 April (tomorrow!), 2 May, and 9 May. We hope to see you there!

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Video by Vuk Dragojevic

RBC
CONTACT Photography Festival

04/17/2026

The virtual tour of DEPHINITELY PARADISE with artist Alvin Luong is now online.

As we enter the gallery, Alvin introduces the frottage banners and a framed photograph of a Malaysian tombstone, connecting them to ideas of refusal, memorialization, and loss central to the exhibition.

Watch the full video here: https://buff.ly/3MANNUb

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Video by Vuk Dragojevic

RBC
CONTACT Photography Festival

04/15/2026

Congratulations to artists Parastoo Anoushahpour, Faraz Anoushahpour, and Ryan Ferko on their upcoming solo exhibition, "One's Own Eyes,” at VOX, centre de l'image contemporaine. Included in the presentation are the commissioned films Lovers' Wind (2024) and Postscript (2024), a pair of powerful meditations through critical image-making that premiered at Mercer Union in 2024. 🎈

"One's Own Eyes" runs from 24 April to 20 June 2026. Be sure to stop by if you're in Montreal!

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Image: Parastoo Anoushahpour, Faraz Anoushahpour, Ryan Ferko: Lovers’ Wind. Installation view: Mercer Union, 2024. Courtesy the artists. Photo: Vuk Dragojevic.

04/08/2026

Alvin Luong gives us a virtual tour of his exhibition, DEPHINITELY PARADISE 📹

In this clip, Alvin unpacks a poetic link at the heart of his newly commissioned film: the connection between refugees who resettled to Pulau Bidong and the corals cultivated on the same island for export today.

Come by and experience it yourself! Alvin’s exhibition is on view through 9 May 2026.

Watch the video here: https://buff.ly/3MANNUb

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Video by Vuk Dragojevic

RBC
CONTACT Photography Festival

Address

1286 Bloor Street West
Toronto, ON
M6H1N9

Opening Hours

Tuesday	11am - 6pm
Wednesday	11am - 6pm
Thursday	11am - 6pm
Friday	11am - 6pm
Saturday	11am - 6pm

Telephone

+14165361519

Website

http://www.mercerunion.org/

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