Dates

September 21 - December 1, 2024

Curatorial Statement

For the third edition of the Toronto Biennial of Art (TBA), titled Precarious Joys, we have been immersed in dialogues and active listening, a crucial element in our curatorial journey traversing national and international landscapes, numerous artist studios, and art encounters in Toronto, throughout Canada, and beyond. Our interactions have traced connections between artistic creations reflecting social and ecological imperatives, resulting in us identifying key directives drawn from the artists’ endeavours: “Joy,” “Precarious,” “Home,” “Polyphony,” “Solace,” and “Coded” are terms that encapsulate how TBA artists’ practices amplify political consciousness and reassert the power of aesthetics in shaping collective existence.

Some of the presented artworks address the various layers of history that define life in Toronto, while others reflect broader social and political structures of inequality and power under global neoliberal governance. Key issues that resonate across the exhibition include environmental justice, sovereignty, self-representation, belonging and migration, land dispossession, collective memory, feminist genealogies, diasporic sonic cultures, sacred plant wisdom, weaving as spiritual listening, resistance and resilience, ancestorship, and queer worldmaking. Rather than presenting a single theoretical assertion, however, Precarious Joys is organized around open dialogues and poetic connections. Together, these many works will conjure sparks that light a fire amidst the fragility of existence.

—Dominique Fontaine and Miguel A. López

Precarious Joys

Edited by Dominique Fontaine and Miguel A. López. Co-published by the Toronto Biennial of Art, Goose Lane Editions, and Art Metropole.

In partnership with Art Metropole and Goose Lane Editions, TBA released the exhibition catalogue, Precarious Joys, at the opening of its third edition on September 21, 2024. Edited by the Biennial’s 2024 curators, this publication includes conversations between artists, curators, community and staff members, as well as reproductions of artwork by featured artists. Together, the texts and images offer readers insights into how artistic practices can amplify political consciousness and reassert the power of aesthetics in shaping collective existence.

Available to purchase through Art Metropole and at booksellers across Toronto. Precarious Joys is also available through various online retailers including Amazon and Indigo.

Purchase Online Here

2024 Visitor Guide

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2024 Evaluation Report

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Exhibitions

TBA 2024 featured work from 36 exhibition artists, including 16 Canadian artists and 20 newly commissioned works in 11 venues across the city. TBA is at the forefront of commissioning works from a diverse range of artists that address vital issues from a perspective grounded in Toronto. Through its exhibition, TBA places local artists in dialogue with artists from across the world, elevating Canadian perspectives on the global stage and creating access to leading international contemporary art for Torontonians.

For a comprehensive list of all artworks in the 2024 Toronto Biennial of Art, click HERE.

32 Lisgar St and Park

Art Gallery of Ontario

Billboard at Abell St and Queen St W

Collision Gallery

Gallery TPW

The Auto BLDG, 9th Floor

The Image Centre (TMU)

The Power Plant Art Gallery

Toronto Pearson International Airport

Toronto Sculpture Garden

Toronto Union Station

Programs

The 2024 Biennial hosted 67 artist-led public programs as well as numerous opportunities for learning, led by Programs Curator Jenn Goodwin and Senior Manager of Learning & Mediation Mary Kim. These programs were developed for audiences of all ages and explored the artistic practices and ideas running through and adjacent to the Precarious Joys exhibition. With a focus on performance and movement, artist-led public programs branched out from the exhibition to address the inherent wisdom and knowledge we all carry within us. Artists were further engaged, along with educators and other collaborators, to create meaningful learning tools, freely accessible at TBA sites and online. TBA’s Learning Programs took many forms — conversations, workshops, school visits, performances, Storytelling Sessions, walks, and more, providing multiple entry points for deeper visitor participation in the Biennial.

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Storytelling

In Person

2024 Donors & Supporters 2024 Team