The Power Plant Contemporary Art Gallery in Toronto is hosting 'Colourful Parachutes: Imagining Alternative Futures Through the Power of Play,' a group exhibition that centers children as active participants rather than passive observers. Curated by Frances Loeffler, the show features interactive works by artists including Temitayo Ogunbiyi, Leisure (Meredith Carruthers and Susannah Wesley), Claire Greenshaw, Rivane Neuenschwander, Harold Offeh, Sassa Linklater, Tobias Linklater, and Robin Rhode, with installations that invite climbing, drawing, playing, and touching. The exhibition draws inspiration from a 1968 show at Moderna Museet in Stockholm that transformed the museum into an adventure playground.
This exhibition matters because it challenges the traditional museum model of 'do not touch' and passive viewing, arguing that children's agency and free play can coexist with serious contemporary art. By treating the gallery as a space for making, moving, and testing, the show reflects a broader institutional desire to become more accessible and less elitist. It also highlights how world-class artists are engaging with ideas of childhood, collaboration, and open-ended creativity, potentially reshaping how families experience art institutions.