The Power Plant Opens 'Owner of a Lonely Heart' Exhibition in Toronto

The Power Plant and The Vega Foundation present Owner of a Lonely Heart, a program of recent moving image works by contemporary artists Haig Aivazian, Stephanie Comilang, Alia Farid, Hope Pearl Strickland, and Yuyan Wang. The exhibition features an 80-minute program that cycles on a loop, moving from documentary, narrative, and archival approaches to filmmaking toward increasingly associative, musical, and rhythmic forms. This structure allows for a diverse exploration of cinematic techniques and viewer engagement.

The artists’ works trace the movement of raw materials drawn from the earth, transformed into products, and transported by waterways. These materials include petroleum, pearls, and plastic plants. Through these journeys, the works examine the complex processes by which natural resources are extracted, processed, and circulated globally.

Each work portrays a dense web of relations linking labour, ecosystems, and global economies. The exhibition foregrounds the interconnectedness of human activity, environmental systems, and economic structures. By focusing on these relationships, the program encourages viewers to consider the broader implications of resource extraction and distribution.

By tracing the transformation of raw matter, the works reveal how people are bound by circumscribed geographies and unevenly shaped by global networks of extraction and circulation. The exhibition explores how individuals and communities are affected by the specific locations and flows of resources, highlighting disparities and connections across different regions.

Together, the artists consider how geopolitical histories shape social and collective identity, and how individuals locate themselves within an overwhelming present. The program raises questions about responsibility and vision, especially when prosperity and stability in one place are enabled by exploitation and scarcity imposed elsewhere. Owner of a Lonely Heart invites reflection on these global dynamics through its selection of moving image works.