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Intersections – Kingston Road and Victoria Park

Posted: November 9, 2026 in alleys, graffiti and street art, intersections, nature, stores
Tags: alleys, autumn, autumn foliage, Coca-Cola signs, graffiti, halloween, lanes, leaves, Love is Here, murals, Phillip Saunders, privilege signs, Rocky and Bullwinkle, stores, uber5000

…. a walk around some of the streets near Kingston Road and Victoria Park Ave on an unseasonably warm November afternoon.

below: “Love is Here”, a couple under a red heart in a mural painted by Phillip Saunders. There are a few trees in front of it so you might have to look a bit harder for this one.

below: Another mural is one by Uber5000. It’s on its way to becoming an oldie! Back in 2013 I posted more pictures of it – uber Pizza Pizza – because at that time it was a Pizza Pizza restaurant not Heffys Fried Chicken.

below: Little yellow birdies are enjoying their day at the beach – eating popsicles, playing frisbee and lazing in the sun.

below: This cat’s got the tunes!

below: Hold on tight!

below: These birdies are hanging out at number 205 including one perched on a branch of birch tree and strumming away on his guitar.

below:

below: Kingston Road Market, with its distinctive bright red Coca Cola circles, is at the corner of Scarborough Road and Kingston Road. These are what are called Privilege Signs. Brands (such as Coca-Cola) supply these signs to independent store owners for free in exchange for prime advertising space. Coca Cola started producing these red signs in the late 1930s. They were common in the 1940s and 1950s but are rare now.

below: Newer white apartment buildings just east of Victoria Park (or new cladding on older buildings?)

below: A touch of Art Deco in the alley albeit a bit rusty and in need of some TLC

below: Kingston Road looking east towards Victoria Park

below: 1922, Kingston Road west of Victoria Park – Kingston Road had a tram! The hydro poles and wires looked just as bad back then as they do now.

black and white photo, 1922 of Kingston Road, looking west from Victoria Park

Photo from City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 16, Series 71, Item 1607

below: Rocket J. Squirrel, better known as Rocky, and his friend Bullwinkle are the good guys! But look out! Boris Badenov and his partner in crime Natahsa Fatale are up to no good!

below: Purple faced

below: Giving

below: Mural by The Half Decent… a white swan? a white goose? The angle makes it difficult to tell.

below: An elephant approaches…

below: Uber 5000 also painted one of the sidewalk boxes. Another cat with a ghetto blaster but this time a little yellow bird is taking advantage of a comfortable place to sit (and sing along?)

below: Just south of Kingston Road, Victoria Park makes a sharp turn left because of the geography of the area. There is a large cliff, or ravine, that Vic Park has to detour around. At the bottom is Neville Park Blvd which can only be accessed from the south at Queen Street. You can just make out the rooftops of the houses – and there is at least one swimming pool down there.

below: Peak autumn colours have passed but a few reds, yellows, and oranges linger on.

below: Pumpkins! Or at least the remains of some. Cast out after Hallowe’en.

And last, a nod to Hallowe’en and those who keep their lawns decorated into November.

Miriam Garfinkle

Posted: October 29, 2026 in alleys, graffiti and street art
Tags: Adrian Hayles, alley, bird nest, birds, BJR, BJR artist, cedar eve, chickadee, Christine Whiteduck, Cocreation Art, Danielle Hyde, DJNU, EGR, Esky, Gimun Ryu, Gust of Wind Studio, Hyunsun Park, Joe Rich, Julia Harper, Julia Louise Pereira, lane, Mateusz Napieralski, Miriam Garfinkle, mural, Murals by Marg, Nick Sweetman, nshtsh, Ohlordyitsjulia, owls, paint, Sarah Whang, Scofy Wallz, Shalak Attack, Shoreland Arts, street art

… is an all that is north of Bloor, between Christie and Bathurst. Recently a group of artists painted quite a few of the garage doors here. “Flight of the Winged Ones” was the theme of this Laneway Mural Jam and it was dedicated to the memory of Miriam Garfinkle. The following photos are the murals that can now be seen in this lane – in no particular order.

two women painting a street art mural on a garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane

below: This is Adrian Hayles‘ contribution to the project. Miriam Garfinkle (1954–2018) lived on Barton Avenue, in a house which backs onto this laneway, from 2000 to 2018. She lived and worked in this community for most of her life.

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane

below: Sebas Perez Vicentini painted this colourful mural with two long necked birds.

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane by Sebas Perez Vincenti

below: A photographer takes pictures of birds and owls in a mural by April Grace and [sorry but I couldn’t read the name].

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane by April Grace

below: “Flight of the Winged Ones” title mural.

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, purple owl in flight

below: Birch trees by the water by Joe Rich

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by Joe rich, landscape with birch trees and water

below: Julia Harper’s thunderbird of the heavens

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by Julia Harper, stars in night sky, thunderbird in the heavens

below: An archer concentrating hard on her red bow and arrow, by Hyunsun Park

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by Hyunsun Park, female archer with red bow and arrow, taking a shot, concentrating

below: Chickadees by Nick Sweetman [This is actually an artwork from a few years ago].

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by Nick Sweetman, chickadees

below: Gimun Ryu – A woman and her birds.

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by Gimun Ryu, a woman with open hand and pink birds flying towards her

below: A very stylized graphic-like rendition of birds at a cluster of bird feeders by Gust of Wind Studio (aka Mateusz Napieralski)

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, Gust of Wind Studioak a Mateusz Napieralski

below: Garages between Clinton and Manning Streets,

street art murals on many garage doors in Miriam Garfinkle Lane,

below: EGR‘s angel with a butterfly

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by EGR, an angel and a butterfly

below: ‘Kaktukopunjej’ by Veronica Orozco, in memory of Layton Stevens.

mural by Veronica Orozco, woman sitting against tree trunk while looking out over a lake, swallow flying past, against a setting sun, or it could be the moon, red handprint on woman's cheek, bird nest in tree, stars in sky

below: BJR, aka Bradley Reinhardt with a lively collection of birds in a tree – blue jay, robin, owl, cardinal, and more. A smiling grey bear and a fox are under the tree and Canada Geese are flying by. A green snake lurks under the tree.

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, a lively collection of birds in a tree - blue jay, robin, owl, cardinal, and more. A smiling grey bear and a fox are under the tree and Canada Geese are flying by. A green snake lurks under the tree.

below: A blue Owl and a cardinal (with its foot in the door handle).

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by Bradley Reinhardt, a blue owl and a red northern cardinal

below: Ohlordyitsjulia aka Julia Louise Pereira chose a nighttime scene of blue birds flying over rooftops in the city.

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by Julia Pereira, night scene in city, with birds flying around

below: The large orange bird (Phoenix?) was painted by Esky.

below: Scofy Wallz, nature in the city.

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by Scofy Wallz, woman's portrait, Toronto skyline with lake and CN tower, birds, butterfly, milkweed

below: Faces among the hummingbirds and bright flowers, by Cocreation Art (aka Danielle Hyde).

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by Danielle Hyde, faces, hummingbirds and flowers

below: More birds! Painting by Shoreland Arts, (aka Thelia Shelton).

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by Thelia Shelton

below: A closer look at the birds perched on blue branches.

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, pink and yellow birds on blue branches, Shoreland Arts

below: A fawn prances through the night sky, a nighttime apparition among the stars.

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, night sky, stars, fawn

below: A whimsical look at a fat striped caterpillar who in turn is looking at the butterflies as they flit among the milkweed and goldenrod…. by Anderkaya (aka Sarah Whang).

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by Sarah Whang

woman taking pictures of street art murals on garage doors in Miriam Garfinkle Lane,

below: A slightly creepy winged insect that resembles a tiger face… with many eyes! As you can see, the artist was Shalak (aka Shalak Attack)

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by Shalak Attack

below: The chickadees are breaking free! … by Murals by Marg,

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by Murals by Marg, chickadees

below: Talie Shalmon painted a red wing blackbird and her nest of 3 blue eggs.

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by Talie Shalmon, s large red wing blackbird flying towards a nest withthree blue eggs in it

below: A pair of indigenous art style birds.

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, indigenous art, birds

below: A big bee checks out a few flowers

below: Cedar Eve, strawberries, blueberries and a couple of strange faces.

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by Cedar Eve

below: A very large bat flying over the garden, by Trina Moyan

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by Trina Moyan, a large bat flies over a garden

below: The purple painting on the right was the contribution of nshtsh (aka Nishina)

a few street art murals on garage doors in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, including a purple one by Nishina

below: A cedar waxwing and a butterfly, by Miguel Albino.

Miguel Albino, street art mural, cedar waxwing bird and a butterfly, on a wood fence in Miraim Garfinkle lane

street art mural, birch trees, with orange circle in the middle, faces in the circle, feathers too

two women paintingstreet art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane,

below: mmm

street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane, by DJNU, a bird with a crested head

two men working on garages and back fence, surrounded by street art mural on garage door in Miriam Garfinkle Lane,

With apologies to the artists whose names I didn’t know.

Ecology and Equilibrium

Posted: October 24, 2026 in graffiti and street art
Tags: Allan Gardens, Carleton St., Ecology of Us, equilibrium, Jarus, mural, Okuda, Okuda San Miguel, StART, STEPS Public Art, streetARToronto

As you walk west on Carleton Street from Sherbourne, this is the view – Allan Gardens on the left and downtown Toronto straight ahead. One of the dominant features of this view is the large mural; it was painted by Okuda (aka Okuda San Miguel) in 2018 and is called “Equilibrium”.

A little bit farther west, and another mural comes into view. As you get closer to Homewood, look right and look up.

A giant maple tree in autumn foliage now grows up the south wall of 140 Carleton Street. This is a much newer mural, “Ecology of Us”. Jarus painted this wonderful 22 storey tree this past month.

It is best viewed from Allan Gardens where the trees are also wearing their October finery these days. In fact, the tree in the mural is based on one of the maple trees here in the park.

The “Ecology of Us” project is part of the StreetARToronto (StART) Monumental
Program. This program funds large-scale, high-rise building murals across Toronto in collaboration with building owners (in this case, WJ Properties). This is their second large mural in the city.

“Equilibrium” can also be seen from Allan Gardens. It pokes its head up over the roof of one of the greenhouses.

To see the whole of “Equilibrium”, you have to walk over to Jarvis Street because Grace Toronto Church, and other buildings, are in the way.

Okuda was the lead artist; he was assisted by Adrian Hayles, Kayla Buium, and Stephanie Bellefleur. It was funded largely by STEPS Public Art

looking for art on a Saturday morning

Posted: September 16, 2026 in construction, galleries, graffiti and street art, locations, public art
Tags: Ailene Vrana Macdougall, art, Ballooms, David Altmejd, dogs, Figure Catching a Fly, fountain, heart, inflatables, Lu Luo, Michelle Hoogveld, Ola Volo, painting, people, Stefan Sagmeister, Stikki Peaches, The Living Atelier, Uno Prii, Yorkville

A Saturday morning walk through Yorkville.

below: Southwest corner of Yonge and Yorkville where the original brick buildings lining Yonge Street have been saved (or at least the facades have been).

Once upon a time Yorkville, and its neighbour, Cumberland, were quirky little streets. Joseph Bloor and William B. Jarvis started development here about 200 years ago as a place to escape the city. Yorkville as suburbia. It was able to hold back the developers for a while, but even Yorkville has to succumbed; glass and steel towers have arrived.

below: Looking east on Yorkville, back towards Yonge Street where the Toronto Reference Library is.

below: Redevelopment along Yorkville isn’t finished yet…..

below: Yorkville Fire Hall, Station 312, is the oldest active fire station in the city. The original station was built in 1876 back when Yorkville was a village and not part of the City of Toronto. The building has been rebuilt and updated since then but the five storey clock tower remains as it was originally built.

below: There is a large reddish fountain beside the Four Seasons Hotel (the building to the left of the fountain

below: Part of Yorkville Avenue was closed to traffic for the third Yorkville Murals event. YorkvilleMurals was presented by Taglialatella Galleries and INK Entertainment, and held in partnership with the Bloor-Yorkville Business Improvement Area

below: Typing, and creating, poetry

below: Sewing on the street, part of an exhibition of design and fashion.

below: She is posing in front of a large inflatable heart designed by Michelle Hoogveld

below: “Every day is a new beginning” and a new chance for selfies and Instagram photos.

below: “The Oxley – Adult daycare done right”

below: This Toilet Paper Magazine creation was an interactive art installation. The exterior of this shipping container structure had a mirror to encourage selfies and other photos. One could also walk through the center of it.

below: The main attraction was a large mural covering many walls that was painted by Ola Volo. It surrounded the courtyard where other art installations or activities were on display.

below: A bouquet of balloons from Ballooms,

below: That same courtyard is home to the Taglialatella Gallery where artworks by The Connor Brothers (aka James Golding and Mike Snelle), “The Story You Tell Yourself” were hanging on the walls. This “I drink to make other people more interesting” is one of them.

below: On the far right is “Fugetaboutit,” a marble sculpture of a Star Wars Stormtrooper wearing a suit and tie by Montreal-based street artist Stikki Peaches (it was one of a few of his sculptures there that day). On the wall behind him is “If you haven’t got anything nice to say come sit next to me” which is another Connor Brothers creation.

below: The other exhibit at the Taglialatella Gallery was Stefan Sagmeister’s “Before We Forgot Things Were Worse”.

below: “La Misma” 2023, Stefan Sagmeister

below: “Purple, Then Green, Then Red”, 2023, another by Stefan Sagmeister

below: Close up of part of an artwork by Zhuang Hong-Yi at Galerie LeRoyer. It is make with painted pieces of rice paper

below: “A Gentle Gesture – Thread Series 237”, 2026, by Lu Luo at Galerie LeRoyer

below: Bronze sculpture, “Figure Catching a Fly”, 2019, by David Altmejd on Avenue Road

below: Glass and sky merge and blend together.

below: ‘North Rustico, Tied to the Tide. ‘ part of the exhibit “What’s Next” by Ailene Vrana MacDougall at the Ruth Upjohn Gallery, Women’s Art Association of Canada

below: “Edinburgh – Hidden Courtyard” also by Ailene Vrana Macdougall.

below: On Prince Arthur Street, across the street from the gallery mentioned above is this mid-century apartment building. One of the architects was Estonian-born Canadian Uno Prii (1924-2000). He designed a number of buildings in the city back in the 1960s. Out of curiosity I went looking for a list of them but so far the closest that I’ve come is this article in Spacing magazine from 2013 (Mod Toronto)

below: “Austerity kills”

below: They almost had it right….

below: Ending this with a little silliness, a TTC temporary stop. A pit stop for the TTC?

checking in to see what’s new…

Posted: August 17, 2026 in alleys, graffiti and street art
Tags: 50 shades of greatt, Adam McKnight, bear, BikeDeSuro, Billy Creekwater, catchoo, ceramics, DivadogLA, Elicser Elliott, Ezpektro, faces, Fiigueers, FreshPaintDaly, Graffiti Alley, horus, MonkYi, Mopsi, murals, neem, paint, paste ups, Pokemon, Posts Collective, sentient cookie, slaps, So schoen immer weider, stencils, Sticker Eddie, stickers, Trevor Goodwin, trp613, uber5000, urban ninja squadron, visual noise

… another walk down Graffiti Alley

below: Part of a monochrome mural by Nicolas Araneda aka niko.volts that has a lot of very American feet walking all over the faces of other people as lay on the ground…. ‘Trampling’ might be a better verb than ‘walking’

below: Some walk in heavy boots, and others swim with open mouth ….

below: Looking crazed and demented, “Lobo” by Horus (aka Trevor Goodwin)

below: Not quite so crazy or so demented but certainly not cuddly and warm either.

below: “Bring your green hat” by FreshPaintDaly aka Billy Creekwater

below: Two (and a bit) of six panels, drawings by Hartshorn (or posts collective).

below: “Not today Satan”. There’s a lot going on here – the Silly Sausage Gang being front and center. 33wallflower33 in her white coat with the fuzzy collar and little decorations by catchoo . There is also a T-bonez (of urban ninja squadron fame) wearing a green shirt and a necklace with a pendant – that’s Sticker Eddie he’s wearing, apparently. The red-hearted pug’s name is Mopsi. Mopsi has something in his mouth but the donut is in the way (for more Mopsi see the Instagram page of his creator, So schoen immer weider)…. And the other dog is a collaboration between TRP613 (check out the reflections in the sunglasses!) and DivadogLA

below: “Get me out of here” and a dose of Instant Karma.

below: Free Iran

below: This painting of a woman with her headphones above and yellow birdie walking a dog below was one of the first murals in Graffiti Alley – the work of Uber5000. Not many originals still exist!

below: Elicser Elliott’s contribution to a larger mural that has been painted below the pink Poser bunny, “Don’t watch me cry”

below: Half a face. He only needs one eye to stare at you.

below: Gold… With a garland of white and blue flowers.

below: A very large and very purple bear is at the door.

below: He or she looks rather cramped in there. Signature says Neem?

below: Another flower garland and another Neem head squeezed into a box.

below: Scowling and smoking with ace in his cap.

below: Skydome forever and ALCS, as well as Vladdy’s number 27 shirt and World Series 2025…. little blue and white pieces of ceramic that celebrate the Toronto Blue Jays that someone lovingly made.

below: One Inch? … And other stickers crammed together.

below: “We are the colours of corn”

below: More stickers and pasteups including catchoo’s dumpster fire that t-bonez from urban ninja squadron is using to dry his socks and underwear.

below: A couple of contributions from Dogmaslaps here (they’re all about dogs in case you haven’t guessed yet).

below: More pasteups, some of which are quite intricate and detailed … especially the top two (vulture and jaguar?) which are both the creations of Ezpektro.

below: Sharing space with the Ezpektro pieces are a few smaller pasteups, some of which were made by artists that are new to me. There is a pink bike in the top right, the same bike that is in the Make Art Not War poster in the above image… BikeDeSuro creates stickers and wheatpaste featuring bikes. From the left, a woman by Fiigueers and then a young girl with the Spanish words, “que nunca se apague la llama de la autonomia” which translates to “may the flame of autonomy never be extinguished”… The collection is rounded out with a guitar player from Sentient Cookie and a cute little green guy from Catchoo.

below: MonkYi cat with a very real looking heart in his claws. Two carp swimming on the pavement in front.

below: Charmander, a Pokemon character.

below: Alfred E. Neuman makes an appearance in a couple of places – he’s the dude from MAD Magazine.

below: By 50 shades of greatt aka Adam McKnight – It looks a lot like Sponge Bob… maybe it’s his cousin? But what’s with that tongue? It looks like a slug is trying to slither out of his mouth.

below: Verity and a happy face.

below: Someone is not impressed…. Lame

below: Green guy says: “In one year’s time, strike your blow, I shall return.”

below: “These days will define us”

Dundas East garages

Posted: July 6, 2026 in graffiti and street art
Tags: Adrian Hayles, apples, Bareket, blazeworks, Chrissy Kuiack, dogs, emily may rose, flowers, Golden Butter Murals, hotsnackz, hummingbird, Jarus, Jeff Blackburn, Julia Louise Pereira, Julia Prajka, La Pupila, murals, Nick Sweetman, Phillip Saunders, Que Rock, raccoons, red cardinal, Ryan Dineen, skamoney, streetARToronto, timmifuk, trash pandas, Vudu, Wade Benedict

All of the pictures in this post were taken on Dundas East, just west of Jones Avenue. Along this stretch of Dundas, garages and backyard fences line the street. Most of them have been painted with bright and cheerful images of flowers, birds, animals, and other living things.

below: There is only one person who would paint a mural with these cute but mischievous raccoons, Emily May Rose

below: Sadly, unsigned and unknown. Two snakes slithering through pink flowers and green grass.

below: La Pupila (aka Valentina) has painted rosy red apples with faces, and even a bite taken out of one of them.

below: Two dog portraits by Jeff Blackburn

below: Red hearts and laughter in a mural by Phillip Saunders

below: A young child with bond curly hair holds a very large pink flower in a painting by Wade Benedict.

below: Picking oranges and watering flowers, working together in the garden in a mural by Golden Butter Murals

below: Making hearts. Long necked ducks or geese beak to beak.

below: White flowers by timmifuk

below: More garage door flowers – this time pink peonies in a vase.

below: Orange lilies by hotsnackz (aka Chrissy Kuiack)

below: Black on colour.

below: Ryan Dineen painted this little bird

below: A young looking loon swims as the sun sets in a mural by Julia Prajka

below: Two red cardinals in flight by Adrian Hayles.

below: A ruby throated hummingbird flies among the fireflies, by Blazeworks.

below: Close up of an abstract mural by Bareket (bkez)

below: Que Rock, butterfly

below: “I’ll be here until you arrive”, a portrait of an older man with a beard, in shades of red, by Jarus

below: Nick Sweetman – a pelican and a flamingo splashing in the water

below: On the right, covering two garage doors, is an aquatic scene by Jarus.

below: This spider painting is signed “Vudu” (Christine Mazzulla?)

below: Another bird flying over a garden full of flowers on a fence painted by Julia Louise Pereira (aka ohlordyitsjulia)

below: A very Toronto sight, by Skamoney

This was a StreetARToronto project

Photos taken June 2026

animals under the 401

Posted: June 15, 2026 in graffiti and street art
Tags: animals, Bathurst Street, bats, bears, birds, cat, cows, fox, frog, lizard, mural, Nick Sweetman

There are two large murals by Nick Sweetman that cover both sides of Bathurst street as it passes under the 401 highway. The murals are a collection of animals – birds, frogs, cows, cats, foxes, bats, tigers, and more. This blogpost is a selection of images from those two walls.

Coxwell and Soller

Posted: June 12, 2026 in doors, graffiti and street art, intersections, locations
Tags: Al Runt, Bowmore Road school, Coxwell Ave, doors, Emdaabiimok Ave., Flips, houses, ice cream truck, murals, residential architecture, Rowell Soller, the 6ix, trees, windows

A walk down Coxwell Avenue with a few diversions along the way…..

below: Part of larger mural painted by Al Runt that covers most of the exterior of a building on Gerrard near Coxwell.

The “Soller” part of the title of this post is a direct reference to artist Rowell Soller. As it turns out he was touching up one of his murals on Coxwell when I walked past.

below: This large painting is on the same building as the mural in the photo above. It is a collaboration between Soller and Flips. If you see a painting in Toronto that has those curls and swirls, it was probably painted by Flips.

below: “The choice is yours”

below: Coxwell and Gerrard (south part), looking southeast. A quirk in the map, a jog in the street. For reasons no longer clear (probably something to do with the history of the area), Gerrard is divided by Coxwell into a southern and a northern section. This is the southern part where it is Gerrard to the west of Coxwell but Eastwood Avenue to the east.

below: The sign says Fairford Avenue, which is partially correct as it is Fairford to the west of Coxwell, but Gerrard Street to the east. Confused yet? The 506 Carleton streetcar runs on Gerrard as far east as Main Street and west all the way to High Park… but it has to make two turns at Coxwell to stay on Gerrard.

below: Signs of summer!

below: Bowmore Road Junior and Senior Public School is just east of Coxwell. It was built in 1923.

below: Does anybody still refer to Toronto as ‘The 6ix’? It was popular ten years ago when Drake used it in a song but I haven’t heard it much recently.

below: Another Coxwell mural, another collaboration between Rowell Soller and Flips (from 2022).

below: … and yet another, this time with yellow curls

below: More Soller painting, this time on Queen East close to Coxwell, a woman in blue.

below: Emdaabiimok Avenue is now the name of the lower part of Coxwell, south of Queen. In Anishinaabemowin, Emdaabiimok translates to “where the road goes to the water”

below: There are a lot of tiny houses on Coxwell!

below: There is also this tall skinny house that has a footprint of only 16′ x 16′ (just under 5m x 5m). It has one bedroom and is built on stilts. It is accessed from the sidewalk by a bridge. Originally it was painted in blue, red, green, and yellow squares and rectangles and really did look like it was made of Lego blocks. If you hear of someone referring to it as the Lego House, that’s why. This pale blue and dark grey mix looks much better!

below: Like most other places in the city, there are always changes to be seen whether it is a complete reno of a house or the addition of a rooftop terrace.

below: If you walk (or drive) slightly farther north on Coxwell, you might see this car. Its collection of colourful and sparkly decorations has slowly grown over the years to the point where there isn’t much room left!

from oranges to little yellow birdies

Posted: May 29, 2026 in construction, galleries, graffiti and street art, history, old buildings, transportation
Tags: Bettys, Black Canary coffee, Bruno Smoky, construction, Crow Bar Cafe, Drug Trading Company, Duke Mews, graffiti, hamster, Jamaal, King St., Metrolinx, Old Town, Ontario line, Patrician grill, Power St., redevelopment, Rowell Soller, Sackville St., Shalak Attack, Sherbourne St., streetcars, TTC, uber5000, yellow birdie

subtitle: A little wander down King Street East (and area) with a look at both the past and present .

…Starting with a cup of coffee and a CONTACT exhibit – photos by Jamaal Owusu-Ansah titled “Hints of Orange” at the Black Canary coffee shop on Sherbourne Street just north of King, showing until 5th June (but coffee and goodies still available after that!)

“I don’t care what the weather says anymore, It’s iced coffee season”

below: Looking west on King from Jarvis with the steeple of St. James Cathedral rising above.

below: King Street has been a vital part of Toronto since the beginning. It was one of the original roads laid out in the late 1790s in the Town of York (which became Toronto in 1834). At that time it ended at Berkeley Street.

below: south side of King street, looking west from Sherbourne

below: The southwest corner of King and Sherbourne streets.

below: More views of the King and Sherbourne intersection – this time the northeast corner with the newer condos rising above. The old bank building became part of those condos.

below: In 1972 when this photo was taken, 230 King Street East was a branch of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC). It was built in 1908.

1972 black and white photo of CIBC (bank of commerce) building at king and Sherbourne

Photo from City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 2032, Series 841,

Betty’s (once the Betty Ford Clinic – or just the Betty Ford? – until the original Betty Ford issued a cease and desist order) has moved to Queen St East. The King location closed in 2022 after 30 years on the premises. The building, and its neighbour, 234 and 236 King Street East, are listed as city heritage sites. In 1888, the red brick building was constructed as a warehouse for a bedding manufacturer, Chaney and Co Bedding. And yes, they are empty because a developer plans to build a condo tower here.

below: Duke Mews is a short lane running west from Princess, back towards Sherbourne. It is just north of King Street, between King and Adelaide. Once upon a time, Adelaide Street was called Duke Street.

below: West end

“You are the love of my life”

below: Looking east towards Ontario Street at a view that won’t be available for much longer. The buildings that were once here have been demolished and the site is awaiting redevelopment.

below: This is the brick facade that was retained when the Drug Trading Building was redeveloped (into offices and workspaces, not condos). It was originally built in 1942 (and expanded in 1946). The Art Deco elements on the entrance were also saved. This was the administration building for the company -factories were on the other side of Ontario Street. In 2022 this was the Sun TV building even though the transition to a taller repurposed building was already underway . The Drug Trading Company had been founded in 1896 to supply independent pharmacies with medications and other products.

below: Looking northeast from Duke Mews – past the empty lot and the edge of The Shift to farther along Adelaide Street.

below: Now looking southeast from Duke Mews towards King Street. A small sliver of that property along King will become a park.

below: The facade of the three storey red brick building at Princess and King is being saved.

below: Once upon a time, the Crow Bar restaurant was on the corner of Adelaide and Princess. It closed in 2016 and in more recent years, the corner was a parking lot.

black and white photo of the Crow Bar restaurant on the corner of Adelaide and Princess street, black and white photo

This 1972 photo is from the City of Toronto Archives, fonds 2032, series 841, file 38, item 7. Fonds 2032 is from the Toronto Planning Board and series 841 is a large collection of photos taken of intersections around the downtown core in 1972.

below: Another restaurant of the same vintage nearby on King Street, the Patrician Grill, just closed

below: Interior of the Patrician Grill, at the same location since 1953.

below: Looking southeast at King and Berkeley. Metrolinx has cleared the whole block between Berkeley and Parliament for Ontario line subway construction.

below: Looking southwest at King and Parliament at the hoardings around the block that Metrolinx has taken over.

below: Brick buildings on the northwest corner of King and Power Streets. They are actually the back of 93 Parliament Street – built in 1908 for the Aluminum and Crown Stopper Company as factory and warehouse. They manufactured supplies for bottlers.

below: King and Power 1972 with a Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce on the corner.

City of Toronto Archives, fonds 2032, series 841

below: Also King and Power, but in January of 1937 when there were houses on Power Street. This photo is from a large collection of photographs taken in 1936 and 1937 of housing in this area. A large number of the houses are in awful condition, poorly built, and condemned by the city.

below: If you then turn around and face east, this is the view that you get. It’s in black and white and I bet that it could pass as a vintage photo even though I took it a few days ago (except the modern cars might give it away).

below: Another City Archives fonds 2032, series 841 photo from 1972. It’s not a direct match to the photo above, but the building on the corner of King and Power (356 King East) is the same one. It wasn’t looking too healthy in 1972! It is nice to see something that has improved with age (and some TLC). This photo happens to show the row of buildings on the north side of King adjacent to number 356.

below: There are four leaf clovers hiding in the greenery in this Rowell Soller mural beside Sackville Park

below: If you have ever walked or driven this section of King Street East, you may have noticed the bright pink exterior of Cam’s Muffler/Thruway Muffler!

below: Repairs and updates are in progress on the ramps between the Gardiner Expressway and Don Valley Parkway that cross over King Street. The concrete supports were painted by Shalak Attack and Bruno Smoky a few years ago.

In 1901 King Street was extended as far east as the Don River. Because of the curvature of Lake Ontario, King Street swings north and merges with Queen just before the river.

I’ll end this blog post with three bits of cuteness, all are sections of the large Uber5000 mural on the Queen Street wall of the Toronto Humane Society, one of the last buildings on Queen Street before the Don River. Uber5000’s little yellow birdie is such a happy fellow!

Sanko trading company

Posted: May 28, 2026 in graffiti and street art
Tags: aligator, Canada goose, cat, eyes, fish, food, gates, JapanTown mural, mural, noodles, origami, Queen Street West, Sanko trading company, sushi, wave

below: People walking on Queen Street West. Do you think that they realize that a large yellow eye is watching them from behind? This is the eye of a very large painting of a cat, probably a Japanese cat.

The mural, the JapanTown mural on the side of the Sanko Trading Company, has been re-painted. The previous mural dates from 2013/4. A blog post with photos of what that looked like in 2015 is at: Sanko Wall. This blog post should give you an idea what it looks like now.