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NOXTE is the first collaboration betweenZero visibility,Derooted Immersive andIC Contemporary – three collectives that want to set a new standard for experiencing and interacting with the city and art.

Billboard Canada partnered with the festival for its first edition in Toronto, giving NOXTE the opportunity to develop into new musical areas.

“All over the world we can see new media art presented in a respected way, but that is missing in Toronto,” says Ignazio Colt Nicastro, the curator of IC Contemporary in Toronto. “I am constantly trying to challenge the way audiences engage with art, and that is exactly what NOXTE does.”

The opening event will take place on July 12th from 6pm-1am at the Body Shop Studios on Geary Street as part of the Vector Festival video game art and creative media series. Themed “LumiNal Connextions”, the event will showcase work from emerging, established and experienced artists including: Ali Phi, El Ekeko, Ashorii, Alexander McLeod, Matthew Davies, Victoria Kamila and Joy.

Ali Phi and El Ekeko

The name is a play on words that alludes to the ephemeral properties of light and the boundary between different art mediums. All works play with these unique elements, harnessing the power of light through AI, 3D renderings, data analytics, robotics, and everything in between.

Ali Phi and El Ekeko have put together a light installation called Datum that changes in real time based on how participants interact with it. Viewers are asked to express their feelings in written sentences, which are then processed using AI to transform emotional nuances into light and audio patterns.

Sound is a major element of NOXTE, engaging all five senses in a unique way. Matthew Davies, a Toronto-based musician from the hardcore band Friction, has put together a project called Intertwining Currents, a digital and sonic celebration of cross-cultural connections. The left and right channels showcase his parents’ travels from Hong Kong and England, while the middle channel creates a harmony of mixed identities accompanied by sound.

“There was once a time when I felt like an anomaly, trying to find community in my parents’ respective cultures, and that led to years of dissatisfaction,” says Davies. “As I’ve grown older, consciously reorienting my perception and experience has given me a new peace with my identity and expectations. With music, I wanted to create a composition that reflected this shift in thinking; something warm and comforting, but with a touch of melancholy.”

Every part of NOXTE can be experienced as art, right down to the food and drinks. Edible art by Made of Sugar and Saffron is a “food installation” designed and created using recipes that are conceived like works of art. Celestial cocktails are an activation from Toronto’s space bar Off World.

“It was important that the experience at NOXTE was not only limited to the artwork on display, but also to the hands of all our guests,” says Nicastro.

Cycles by Alexander McLeod

Additional works exhibited by Ashorii offer an immersive experience that explores the fusion of digital art and computational creativity, leveraging the strengths of AI and deep learning algorithms.

The event is being billed as NOXTE Vol V because it has been held in Europe in previous editions, but never in Toronto. Now, say the curators, the city is ready.

NOXTE VOL 5: Luminal Connextions takes place:

July 12 | 6pm–1am

July 13 | 5pm-10pm

Body Shop Studios, 302 Geary Ave, Toronto, ON

Admission to the event is free, but registration is required.

The venue is wheelchair accessible and features flashing lights and visual effects. It is not recommended for people with epilepsy or photosensitivity.

More info:

https://noxte.com