Toronto restaurant Gangster Burger announced today a partnership with artist Mark Liam Smith that will transform the burger joint into a fine art gallery in time for Scotiabank Nuit Blanche on October 3, 2015.

Gangster Burger is located on Queen West, just steps away from a high concentration of the exhibitions that will mark Scotiabank Nuit Blanche, the free all-night contemporary art event.

“The past two years, we’ve loved serving the masses of art aficionados who stop in during Nuit Blanche. This year, we’re looking forward to feeding their appreciation of arttoo. We see our burgers as art, and we can’t wait to see howMark Liam Smith translates that to canvas,” said Gangster Burger owner Lee Baxter.

Smith will begin painting several larger-than-life Gangster Burgers in hyperrealistic detail over the course of the next few months. The paintings represent a continuation of hisbody of work, entitled Fast Food, Slow Art, in which he elevates the iconic fast food meal to the status of subject for mindful contemplation.

“The guys at Gangster Burger are artists too. Their attention to detail, from concept to execution, separates them from the other burger joints. Together, we are blurring the lines between the culinary and the visual arts in a way that is new and exciting,” said Smith.

Smith’s body of paintings (markliamsmith.com) has already garnered the attention of gallerists: Ceci n’est pas un burger was exhibited by The Black Cat gallery earlier this year and has recently been featured alongside another painting, Big Bacon Burger, in the 2015 fall/winter Fleck Contemporary Fine Art Magazine.

Smith’s painting of The Escobar, Gangster Burger’s homage to the infamous Colombian drug lord, will be unveiled on October 3, 2015, at 607 Queen Street West. 

About Gangster Burger​

Gangster Burger opened on Queen Street West in September 2012. The restaurant, known for its gourmet burgers and gangster-themed branding, is owned by Lee Baxter, who also owns the tattoo and piercing shop FY Ink across the street and Hardknocks Boxing Club at Queenand Dufferin.

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