by Haley Cullingham
Is there ever a more intriguing invitation? This will be the sixth year of the Gladstone Hotel’s annual alternative-design exhibition, in which artists and collectives take over the rooms in the hotel and transform them into temporary escapes from reality.Traditionally working with alternative, self-taught, or emerging designers, Come Up To My Room reveals new and inspiring ideas every year, from starkly simple, eloquent designs to system-shocking room takeovers that inspire, intrigue, and delight. In addition to the rooms, lighting, seating and independent installations are featured as well, popping up around corners, in trees, and along the staircases of the Gladstone. Unlike many exhibitions, where artists send proposals for specific projects, The Gladstone ups the element of surprise by selecting designers based on their past work-and letting them roam free. The result? Come Up To My Room transcends the typical curated feel of a show where pieces are selected to balance and contrast eachother and becomes, instead, something more organic-designers choose the space and context for their art, instead of the other way around, and the curators aren’t even allowed into the rooms until they’re completed.

Come Up To My Room runs Feb 5th-8th, 2009 at the Gladstone Hotel, 1214 Queen St W
www.comeuptomyroom.com