5th annual yogathon at Yonge Dundas Square
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Archive for the ‘general Toronto’ Category
rise for a cause
Posted: August 22, 2016 in general TorontoTags: bodies, charity, event, feet, fundraiser, hands, legs, mats, men, people, photos, phototgraphy, positions, rise for a cause, women, yoga, yogathon, Yonge Dundas Square
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summer in the city, July edition
Posted: July 29, 2016 in general Toronto, peopleTags: boats, fun, games, kids, lake, Lake Ontario, men, people, police, pride, summer, sun, waterfront, watermelon, women
July is almost over – yes, summer is flying by.
So far, it’s been a good one!
below: Staying cool and having fun in the Yonge Dundas square fountains
below: A giant bite from a giant watermelon slice
below: A Bay Street hug and kiss.
below: An impromptu serenade
below: Watching the entertainment at the waterfront – it’s magical
below: Making comfort at Afrofest, Woodbine Park
below: A Canada Day kiss.
below: Leave your message by the outdoor facilities!
below: A mother and daughter stroll on the waterfront
below: Posing, Pride fun
below: Blowing bubbles by the lake.
Happy August everyone!
pieces reconstructed
Posted: June 22, 2016 in general Toronto, graffiti and street art, peopleTags: Albino Carreira, alley, animals, ants, backbone, beetle, bird house, butterfly, champagne cork, decorated, eclectic, garage, golfer, insects, lane, marbles, pool cues, SAnta Claus, scorpion, screws, skull, slices of wood, snake, spider, spine, stone, vertebrae, wasp nest
The best walks are those where you discover things that you weren’t expecting.
Slices of pool cues and wood, toy figures and animals, as well as small bits and pieces have been put together with patience and imagination. The methodical, artistic work of Albino Carreira covers his garage in a lane. It looks like a work in progress.
below: Rising above the garage is a sculpture that resembles a spinal column with its stacked vertebrae. Albino Carreira was a construction worker who came to Toronto from Portugal in 1972 as a young man. In 1993 he fell from scaffolding on a job site, cracked his skull and broke his spine. Albino survived the fall and doctors were able to fix his skull with metal plates and reconstruct his backbone with pieces of bone from his leg.
below: As you can see, one side of the garage is painted bright red, blood red perhaps.
But it is also a vibrant red, full of life.
below: The north side of the garage (the side you can’t see in the first picture) is covered with slabs of polished stone with marbles in the grouting between the stones. All parts of the pool cues were used, including the rubber bumper ends in the pattern seen here.
below: The wasps have found it and they must like it too.
below: Some examples of the eclectic assortment of objects that have been used…. skulls, Santa Claus, beetles, butterflies, gold golfers, figurines, and champagne corks. I spent quite a bit of time looking at the details, but then again that’s the sort of thing that I like to do. I find it rewarding to discover little things that other people might pass over.
As I wrote this blog post, I kept thinking that I should go back to see if there was anything that I missed… and then I learned that his house is also decorated in a similar manner so now going back is definitely in my future!
Hi!
I haven’t blogged much this week because I have been busy redesigning my website, As I Walk Toronto. It is now online. I still have photos to add to it, but I think this version of the site provides a better foundation on which to grow.
All feedback is welcome! If you find any links that don’t work, please let me know.
Thanks
spring has sprung
Posted: May 12, 2016 in general Toronto, nature, waterfrontTags: blossoms, CN Tower, fake flowers, garden, leaves, muskoka chairs, outdoor, outdoors, plastic flowers, red chairs, spring, trees, urban, waterfront, wave deck, weather
There is time between winter and spring that is a dreary time of greyness and dullness. It is a time when the the snow is gone but nature hasn’t come out of hibernation. It is also a time best forgotten.
Luckily we don’t have to wait long.
… just a little longer ….
or if you can’t wait, there’s always plastic!
From the time the first spring flowers start to show
until the time they are in full bloom is usually only a matter of days.
Trees too soon show their colours. The yellows of the willow trees usually appear first.
Almost daily the trees are greener…
… or full of flowers.
And for another year we forget the last grey days of winter
weaving a trail
Posted: May 4, 2016 in general Toronto, locations, old buildingsTags: construction, hospital, Inner City Gate, Jimmy Mount Rushmore, Jimmys Coffee, Kosso Eloul, outdoors, Princess Margaret Hospital, redevelopment, sculpture, sidewalk, spring, streets, trees, University Ave., Womens College Hospital
There is no theme to this blog post. I never really had a purpose in mind as I walked yesterday. I walked to enjoy the spring day. I walked wherever my feet took me… and they took me on a route that wove between Bay Street and University Avenue and from Grenville south to Dundas.
below: “Jimmy Mount Rushmore” mural on the side of Jimmy’s Coffee featuring four famous musical Jimmys: Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Jimmy Buffet and Jim Morrison.
below: ‘Inner City Gate’ by Kosso Eloul. 1978. A balancing act of stainless steel boxes on the lawn of the R. Fraser Elliott building (part of the old Toronto General Hospital), Elizabeth Street.
below: A blight on the sidewalk, so-called information pillars that are really just a sell-out to Astral Media. They needlessly obstruct the sidewalk and obstruct the view of cyclists and motorists. Unfortunately they are part of a 20 year contract that the city has with Astral Media which doesn’t expire until 2027.
below: Incised into limestone blocks on the Edward Street side of McClelland House (originally the McLean Hunter building) is half of an artwork by Elizabeth Wynn Wood (1903 – 1966) called “Communication”. The woman is sending a message to a man who is apparently shown on the other side of the building. Sadly, I missed the man so there is no photograph of him here. When the work was completed in 1958, the incised lines were inlayed with gold colour.
below: Across the street from the ‘floating woman’, 480 University Avenue is getting a facelift.
below: This picture shows most of the front of 480 University and you can see the different stages of the recladding process. At the top of the building, the precast concrete grille that was part of the original 1968 Global House office tower is still in place while new glass panels have already been installed on the lower floors. It is interesting to watch the metamorphosis of an 18 storey office building into a 55 storey condo tower. Four levels of underground parking have also been added to the site and a new indoor entrance to St. Patrick subway station is in the works.
below: Abstract in blues and greys
There is a lot of building and redevelopment in the area where I walked.
below: Womens College Hospital is totally new.
below: The corner of College and Bay, looking southeast, is now a wall of glass.
below: The new wing of Sick Kids Hospital dwarfs the older buildings on Elm Street.
below: The old and the new integrated into one building, Princess Margaret Hospital.
below: Even the street is being redone. The center of Bay Street from Dundas to Elm is torn up because of TTC streetcar track replacement.
below: Little quirky details: First, the cross shapes made of contrasting brick on the back of the Red Cross building. Second, the workings (or barrier?) of the compressed gas tanks that have been made to look like ice.
below: Another piece of public art, ‘Liquid Echo’ by Catherine Widgery, 1999, is in front of 750 Bay Street. They look like stiff and lifeless frozen metallic fountains… or maybe just 12 pencils 🙂 . Circular vent shafts for the underground parking have been incorporated into the artwork.
below: A lovebot watches over the people passing through the bus station, unaware that he is there.
below: And last, a colourful collection of squares and rectangles. Blue and green. Red and white.
tim’s cups
Posted: April 19, 2016 in abstract, general TorontoTags: abstract, barrels, coffee cups, cups, empty, everywhere, garbage, snow, street art, Tim Hortons, Timmies
Behold, I give you the Tim Hortons cup. Empty.
Always fresh. Toujours frais.
They even come in a number of handy sizes, usually small, medium, large, and extra large.
They are found all over town, compositional elements splashed onto the urban canvas.
Some are carefully placed little art installations. They certainly didn’t get there on their own!
And others are willfully abandoned. Often left on their own. Alone. Empty. Lidless.
Sometimes they are found in groups. Carried away and then forgotten.
Sigh. The Tims cup. The omnipresent Tims cup.
One day I got tired of trying to decide whether or not to photoshop out a coffee cup that had been discarded on a sidewalk. Maybe it would be better to take on a “if you can beat them, join them” attitude. Instead of avoiding or removing cups, I should focus on them. Make them part of the picture. The redness of the coffee cups that Tim Hortons has been using recently adds to the appeal of making them the subject matter and not the subject of scorn and cause of exasperation.
Toronto Marys
Posted: December 27, 2015 in galleries, general TorontoTags: AGO, Art Gallery of Ontario, baby, blue cloak, dormition, Gardiner museum, icons, Jesus, Mary, mother and child, Radio Maria, RC, religious, Roman Catholic, statues
Marys in Toronto
It has become one of the things I do – I look for ‘Marys’ when I travel. For one reason or another, I started seeing Marys in Toronto too. Perhaps it was because I spent more time in galleries and museums on those really cold days that we had last winter. There aren’t nearly as many Marys here as there are in Lima Peru or in Malta. Hence, finding them was a bit more difficult but that just made the hunt more interesting.
below: In the window of Sonic Boom on Spadina
below: a sculpture of Mary and Jesus, from the Gardiner Museum
below: ‘The Dormition of the Virgin’ by Esteban Marquez De Velasco (c.1655 – 1720, Spain).
This painting is in the Art Gallery of Ontario. It depicts the moment before Mary falls asleep and her soul leaves her body to join Him in heaven. The apostles surround Mary and kneel in prayer.
below: ‘Madonna and Child’ by Andrea Della Robbia (1435-1525, Florence Italy).
Glazed terracotta. On loan to the AGO from the family of Murray Frum.
below: In front of St. Clare Roman Catholic church on St. Clair Ave. West
below: In the window of Crows Nest barber shop, Kensington Market
below: Figurines for sale at Honest Ed’s
below: Holographic cards with images of Mary Jesus in a red plastic tub.
You can buy a card at Honest Ed’s for 69 cents.
below: Sagrada Familia, by the front door of a house in Little Portugal
below: Hiding amongst the drapery sits Mary and her child.
below: Another from the AGO, Virgin and Child from circa 1750, once in a chapel of a Montreal church.
Wood with traces of pigment.
below: Mount Pleasant cemetery
below: On an ofrenda at a Dia de Muertos celebration
below: Radio Maria, una voce cristiana nella tua casa, part of the Holy Mother World Networks.
below: With other members of the Nativity scene, for sale in a vintage store on Queen West.
I think that $20 buys you the contents of the box.
below: In a front yard in the Junction
I’ve put her at the end because I am not 100% sure that she is a Mary. The Virgin Mary is usually depicted with a light blue shawl draped over her shoulder or else holding a baby Jesus.
And here ends that game. This post represents almost a year’s worth of looking and while the hunt was interesting in the beginning it’s charm is starting to wear thin. I could probably find more Marys in churches and cemeteries but I think I will listen to words of wisdom and let it be.
Bloordale to Brockton
Posted: November 29, 2015 in general Toronto, graffiti and street art, locationsTags: alley, altered signs, architecture, Bike Pirates, CN Tower, dragonfly, fake leg, fences, garages, graffiti, Haven Espresso Bar, houses, lane, laneway, love yourself, mural, park, poppies, protest posters, residential, skyline, spudbomb, stickers, Susan Tibaldi parkette, tracks, Union Pearson Express, UP Express, walls
A walk down Brock Ave, well sort of. I don’t think I’m capable of walking in a straight line.
Brock Avenue, just north of Bloor, the Haven Espresso Bar, a tiny little place with good coffee. I don’t usually start my walk with a cup of coffee but I was intrigued by the smallness of the space.
below: This is the mural on the wall beside the coffee bar. It’s just the word Haven but there are some interesting details in the letters.
below: The local park is called Susan Tibaldi Parkette, named for a woman who was active in the community. This cheerful toucan overlooks the park.
There are a few painted walls and garages in the area around the park.
below: Including this spud bomb covered garage door.
below: On a wall, ‘Building with the Gods, James Massey R.I.P’
below: I spotted this on a pole just before I headed south. A little bit of sparkle to brighten the day.
The area south of Bloor was once the village of Brockton. Back in 1812, one hundred acres of land from what is now Queen Street, north to Bloor Street, and west of Dufferin Avenue was granted to James Brock (yes, a relative of Sir Isaac). After James died, his widow Lucy had a road built that run down the center of the property. This road was Brock Avenue. She subdivided the property and sold the lots to smaller land holders. This settlement became Brockton. In 1884 it was annexed by the city of Toronto.
below: Colourful cat and mouse games on a wall just south of Dundas. I couldn’t find any ‘signature’ on the wall and I haven’t been able to find out who painted this. I’d love to know.
below: Malabar Ltd. It looks unkempt and I thought it was abandoned. The gate to the parking lot was open and there were a couple of cars parked behind the wall. A quick search online and I discovered that this site is still operational, but only serves the professional opera and theaters industry.
After passing under one of the greyest, dingiest railway bridges, I came to a street – not sure what it was!
I checked a map – it’s Cunningham Ave.
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But it afforded me an unobstructed view.
I looked around a bit but there wasn’t much of interest on my side of the tracks and I wasn’t about to cross over! I did notice that there is graffiti on the track side of the wall around the Malabar parking lot. Something to explore another time… when I don’t have to dodge trains!
As the leaves fall off the trees, the houses are hidden less. I like looking for older and/or unique architectural details that are now easier to spot (and take pictures of!)
below: The first time I saw one of these “half houses” I was quite surprised (it’s behind the large tree). I now realize that there are a number of them in the city but it was still a fun find.
below: Brick and wood trim details being preserved and restored on an old house.
below: There are a number of old square houses in the neighbourhood.
below: A house with an old second storey wooden structure. I don’t think it can be called an oriel window but I don’t know any other architectural term to describe it.
below: Although it’s not as easy to see in this picture, this house also has an old window and wood structure. The fence around the neighbour’s yard is probably not as old as the porch, but it to is from a bygone era. Is it from the 1960’s? I suspect that they were very trendy at one time although I have seen this sort of design more as balcony railings than as fences.
below: Symmetrical but not symmetrical
below: The back of Bike Pirates, a DIY bike workshop on Queen West, has a mural by Jonny Cakes.
below: Someone’s got a leg up!
Up over a door that is…. this door in fact.
below: And there were a few other little amusements along the way.
a walk on Eglinton
Posted: November 23, 2015 in general Toronto, history, locations, transportationTags: architecture, bite me, buildings, bus bays, concrete, dolls, Eglinton, glass, historical, reflections, shadows, signs, street, Toronto Hydro, Toronto Hydro-Electric System, TTC, windows
The plan was to start walking westward from Eglinton subway station.
below: The first photo I took was right after I got off a bus at the station. With the ongoing reconstruction at Eglinton, there is now easy access to the old bus bays. There is still a fence around them, but at least they can be seen and photographed. These bays have not been used since 2004 and the area has been fenced off and unused since then. Now they sit empty in the shadow of the ever increasing tall buildings around them.
below: Looking west along Eglinton Avenue after the completion of Eglinton station in 1954. The street running north-south just beyond the bus bays is Duplex Avenue. There is now a police station on the SE corner of that intersection. On the NW corner you can see the brick Toronto Hydro-Electric Building with its large front ‘door’. It is still there.
source: City of Toronto Archives, online
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below: (taken later in the afternoon, on the way home) The intersection of Eglinton and Duplex from west side with the brick Toronto Hydro-Electric building now between glass buildings.
below: After leaving Eglinton station, this caught my eye. The glass cube-like building on the NE corner of Eglinton and Duplex reflects the afternoon sun onto the walls of the Toronto Hydro-Electric building across the street.
below: On Duplex, right behind this brick building is an intriguing building. The highly textured concrete exterior and the 3D patterned wall are suggestive of the 1960s although I could be wrong. It’s ugly yet fascinating at the same time. Now that the leaves have fallen from the trees in front of it, the pattern of trapezoids, diamonds and rectangles is revealed…. as is the dirt and grime on the concrete. The fact that there are no windows and doors facing the street provides a clue that this is yet another Toronto Hydro building.
Somethings old
below: A sign with an old Toronto HU (Hudson) exchange phone number. HU1 would be 481. This number is probably from the late 1950s. In the early days, Toronto phone numbers had only 6 digits. In the mid 1950s a seventh digit was added and then between 1961 and 1966 the letter prefixes were phased out, replaced by numbers.
below: The Eglinton Grand, art deco building from 1936; National Historic site since 2003.
Somethings new
And some window ‘shopping’ to do
below: Marbles wedged between glass make an excellent decorative touch.
below: little Japanese wooden dolls in the window of the Sake Bar
below: And even a lovebot hangs out here
below: A little chuckle at this sign….
below: And then later I saw this.
Rather than wait for a bus I decided to keep walking home but unfortunately it’s that time of year when the daylight hours are just too short. One last look at where I had just been before putting my camera away and heading home.
as I walk Toronto 