On Thursday June 4, The Power Plant and leading fashion house Max Mara present Power Ball: Appetite for Excess, Toronto’s most anticipated annual art party.

The Power Plant is Canada’s leading contemporary art gallery and is located at 231 Queens Quay West. The theme of year’s Power Ball is “Appetite for Excess” and brings together decadence and debauchery through visual art, music, fashion and food. From the art installations and performances to the food and drinks, The Power Plant promises to be bigger and better than ever.

7 PM – Power Ball will commence with a Food Performance by American artist Jennifer Rubell, who is notorious for her large-scale, food-centric works.

9 PM – Guests are invited to explore every corner of the Power Plant’s art-filled gallery spaces, stopping to get a glimpse of art projects, light sculptures and installations. Attendees can expect signature cocktails and creative catering.

We spoke with Director of The Power Plant, Gaëtane Verna, to find out more about this year’s Power Ball.

SDTC: Any hints at what Jennifer Rubell has up her sleeve for the event in terms of what it will look like or how it will play out?

GV: There is no way I will give away the elements of surprise and intrigue which will mark this year’s unique Food Performance. What I can say is that our guests must be prepared to work a little for their dinner, to look above their usual sightline or momentarily leave their comfort zone. Just expect the unexpected.

Can you talk about the process behind how you select the artists? What questions do you ask yourselves?

The Power Plant invites artists whose work and practice match or complement the theme. We choose artists who will make an impact and who are thought provoking while being fun and poking at the senses, all in a party environment.

What was the most challenging aspect of planning this year’s event?

Each year brings the challenge of matching – or improving – the most successful ever event, which the previous year’s Power Ball inevitably was. However, we can hardly promote ourselves as the most creative art space in the remarkably creative city that is Toronto and not come up with something wonderful. And I must say, this year we have outdone ourselves!

What is the most gratifying aspect for you personally when putting on Power Ball?

Seeing, greeting and appreciating the friends of The Power Plant in a more informal environment while raising funds that are much needed to ensure that the gallery remains on the cutting edge of what’s happening today in the art world, nationally and internationally.

You have integrated Bar Isabel’s Grant Van Gameren as well as a ‘coffee performance’ by Sam James into the The Food Performance, So Sorry. Can we look forward to eating the art?

Yes, both Chef Grant Van Gameren and coffee master Sam James were invited by Jennifer Rubell for the performance and there will also be Bertrand Alépée from The Tempered Room for the sweet side. Again, as I mentioned earlier, you have to be ready to participate, in that some of the art is meant to be eaten as part of the performance.

“Appetite for Excess investigates the fine line between decadence and debauchery”: Are you looking solely at food excess or will other vices be explored? How?

Yes, the Power Ball theme “Appetite for Excess” investigates the fine line between decadence, which can be elegantly opulent, and debauchery, which is a sort of over-the-top, point-of-no-return state, through visual art, music, fashion and food. From the art installations and performances to the food and drinks, every corner of The Power Plant will reveal a multitude of thought-provoking excesses. So, we are not looking only at culinary excesses. Our aim is to throw a memorable art party that everyone will be talking about and remembering, at least until next year’s edition.

Why did you choose this theme?

Excess sets the stage for an unparalleled experience and for the savouring of the special treats in life. It suggests performances at new levels of excellence, lavish food, indulgent music, people you are dying to meet, and much more. These are all trademarks of the Power Plant and the Power Ball.

Why do you think our culture has such a complicated relationship with excess?

It was not all that long ago that our splendidly with-it, tuned-in and connected city was fighting off the sobriquet of «Toronto-the-Good». Although that time is resolutely behind us, there are still fragments of modesty, moderation and conventional good taste lying about. The Power Ball helps to sweep these out of mind, if not out of existence. Out with the good, in with the baaad.

What is your favorite excessive indulgence?

A whole bowl full of cherries. And of course, the Power Ball.

Art is ______ ?

To live life.

Click here for ticket information.