About
Illustration by Robb Mirsky
We Made a Deal with the Devil was a dynamic cultural expedition helmed by six brave Toronto-based artists who, as agents of the social art arena Methinks, made a collective deal with the Devil to soar across Eastern Canada by way of a flying canoe-houseboat-tour van-hybrid. From Toronto to Halifax, throughout August 2009, these six intrepid travelers were on a mission to promoted a portable art show, conduct personal artistic projects, explore creative exchange opportunities and shoot a documentary video of their experience on the road.
This expedition was inspired by “La Chasse-galerie”, a cautionary Quebecoise legend about a group of 19th-century voyageurs who made a deal with the Devil to ride a flying canoe home to their loved ones for the holiday. Just as the voyageurs [in the story],” says expedition leader Ryan Ringer, “we put our souls on the line to make this journey happen.” The portable art show component of this project was a multisensory storytelling event that featured drawings, zines, installation art, performance, live music and other creative work by over 100 artists from around the world. With fourteen scheduled dates across Eastern Canada, the show transpired in lofts, inns, campgrounds, public parks and other sites throughout August. (An additional date was added – in New York City.)
We Made a Deal with the Devil was supposed to culminate in the public presentation of a multimedia document and artist talk; however, these plans are uncertain as one of the project’s main deal-makers mysteriously disappeared – along with most of the video documentation of the project – somewhere along the way. However, plans are in the works for a photo-journal that tells the story. …
Methinks has been a progressive arena for the collaborative production of radical independent, community-focused cultural activity since 2003, locally and internationally, and has been featured in Canadian Art Magazine, CBC’s Metro Morning, CBC’s The National, The Toronto Star, The National Post, BlogTO and other news outlets.