Written in big bold letters – STRONG SMART UNITED
Those three words are what you see first as you walk down Lansdowne just north of Queen Street. This striking wall is the beginning of a group of murals and street art paintings that now adorn some of the walls and doors in an alley on the north side of Queen Street West. The paintings were done last weekend by a group of women artists. The walls had been primed previously by four high school students (and organized by the Toronto Police Services).
below: Shapes and colours by controlartdelete (aka Rachel Wilmshurst)
below: Emily May Roses’s women
below: Abstract houses and greenery by Jieun June Kim
below: Two kneeling women and a long necked bird with wings spread by Caitlin Taguibao
below: Monica on the Moon, “Over the mountains under the stars”
below: A colourful mural by _muisca_ (aka Daniela Rocha)
below: Unfortunately, this one has already been defaced, including the signature.
below: Desert woman theme, by mska
below: Geometric shapes, colours, and patterns, by hellokirsten (aka Kirsten McCrea)
below: Left – by originalsmilez (aka Julieta Arias).
But on the right, help! I don’t know (do you?)
below: Looks a bit like a brightly coloured Picasso – the work of huntoland (aka Renato Hunto)
below: My apologies but this another one where I don’t know who the artist is
below: … and this one as well I’m afraid
below: A elicser figure outside the door. Elicser is definitely male – was this mural already here?
below: Shades of pink with blue lips, by toest (aka Sarah Gilmore).
below: On a seriously cracked wall there is now a pink flower inside a green triangle surounded by a circle, by CVBinns (aka Courtney Binns)
below: Long flowing hair and with eyes closed, a mural by carolannapilado
below: A collaborative effort between auralast (aka Monique Aura) and chiefladybird (aka Ogimaa Kwe Bnes) – mother and child with the city beyond.
below: Also in the lane there are two urban ninja squadron paste ups by Tbonez
below: Looking east along the alley. The first road is Macdonell Avenue. Lansdowne is in the distance.
This project was supported by the StreetARToronto program, Toronto Police Services and the Drake Hotel. I talked briefly with a policewoman who was in the alley at the same time that I was – there is hope that the lane to the east of Lansdowne can be painted in the future.
Before then, a second all women street art jam and mural will be happening in Little India (1460 Gerrard Street East) at the end of August. The street art jam will be on the weekend of August 26th and 27th and will showcase the Woman in the Walls mural being painted at that time.
#womenpaintTO
as I walk Toronto 