Archive for the ‘graffiti and street art’ Category

Behind the Toronto Reference Library that is…..

The passage between Asquith and Church streets has been renamed Sherlock Holmes Walk and it now  features a large mural honoring the fictional detective first brought to life by British author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

hoardings, decrated with panels with sherlock holmes theme, painted by various artists. title sections,

“I am a brain Watson. The rest of me is a mere appendix”, section by Bernice Lum

The mural was developed in partnership with the TTC,  the City of Toronto’s StreetARToronto (StART) program, the Toronto Public Library (TPL) and the Friends of the Arthur Conan Doyle Collection.  It differs from most street art in that the panels were produced elsewhere.   They also have a shiny finish on them so there are many reflections.

 

pathway behind library, with hoardings on right side, painted with images with sherlock holmes theme

The hoardings surround a construction site for the TTC’s Bloor-Yonge Capacity Improvements Project. The site will be home to a future fan building to enhance air circulation at the newly renovated station.

below: The Palace of Westminster (England’s parliament buildings) as Sherlock’s “Mind Palace”, an image created by EGR.  Other London scenes can be found in the background.

EGR image for Sherlock Holmes mural, Holmes with Westminster Palace in London as the top part of his head

below: A younger Sherlock Holmes playing with toy soldiers and toy dinosaurs, Jeff Blackburn

boy in blue pith helmet lying onthe grass playing with toy dinosaurs, painting in a mural by jeff blackburn

below: A collection of images from Heidi Berton,

mural by Heidi Berton, Sherlock Holmes related images

part of a long wall of hoardings around TTC property, at left is mural by Heidi Berton, Sherlock Holmes related images

part of a larger mural, fountain pen lying on white piece of paper, words written, ink blots on paper and table

below: Niiwin Binesi (Four Birds) – Brent Hardisty

part of a mural about sherlock homes, a section by indigenous artist,


A group of StART artists provided artwork for the mural – I haven’t been able to match all the artists to the sections (and I missed a panel or two?) As well as the artists named above, the following were also involved in this project:  Artists: Adrian Hayles, Annwin Arts, Fatspatrol, Brian Jiang,  Jasmin Pannu, Keitha Keeshig Tobias, Megan Oldhues, Melika Saeeda, Poser.

below: An image that makes me think of  “The Hound of the Baskervilles” novel.

 

After a very warm October, colder November days aren’t always easy to get used to!  The solution?  There are lots of paces to walk in Toronto where indoor pathways can be used to warm up!

below: Loblaws at Empress Walk, our starting point that day.

Looking down from mezzanine level to lower level Loblaws grocery store

looking down from above to the produce section of Loblaws at Empress Walk, people shopping for apples

below: Glass ceiling at North York Centre.  Before amalgamation of the six Toronto boroughs into what is now the City of Toronto, this was a busier place as it is adjacent to North York City Hall where City Council offices and meeting spaces were.

large glass ceiling over walkway down centre of mall, North York Centre

below:  Interior of the library

interior of central library on Yonge, with rounded balcony sides on three levels

below: The next two photos are taken from the south entrance to the library. First is looking south along the edge of North York City Hall. A  sliver of Mel Lastman Square is on the left.

view from the back entrance to the library, looking south along the edge of North York City Hall towards Sheppard Ave

below: Now looking east towards Yonge Street with Mel Lastman Square on the right.

view from back exit of library, looking east along edge of North York Centre to Yonge St

below: West side of North York Centre (& library)

below: “Green Between” (1994) by Peter Hide stands beside Meridian Arts Centre on North York Blvd (not to be confused with Meridian Hall which is downtown at Yonge & Front)

metal sculpture beside sidewalk, brown, rusty, looks a bit like a face,

below: Also North York Blvd., the south entrance to North York City Hall as well as the Board of Education building.

North York blvd street scene

below: Benches! On Yonge Street

benches along the sidewalk on Yonge street

below: Fountain in the small park by Joseph Shepard Building (federal government).  Now dry for the winter season.

dry fountain in front of brick building, along with some trees with yellow and gold coloured leaves (autumn colours)

yonge street

two storey shops and restaurants on west side of Yonge Street, just north of Sheppard, with large residential building behind them

waiting for bus near Yonge and Sheppard

walking on Yonge near Sheppard

below: Hearts on planters –  These are 2 of the 19 hearts that make up the Willowdale Mosaic Mural Project.  They were created by Robin Hesse and Cristina Delago under the auspices of Mural Routes.   You can find them on West side of Yonge Street, between North York Boulevard and Upper Madison Avenue.

public art project on yonge street, heart shaped, decorated, on side of concrete planters on the sidewalk

public art project on yonge street, heart shaped, decorated with picture of willow tree, on side of concrete plan

below: The Yonge Sheppard Centre on the northeast corner of that intersection has been renovated and the the exterior is totally changed/improved.

below: A pedestrian walks beside the Yonge Street side of the redesigned Yonge Sheppard Centre

walking on yonge street beside new yonge sheppard centre

below:  Even though there are already a lot of condo towers in the area, construction continues on more of them.  This new building is just north of Sheppard.

construction site, building of new entrance to new condo, lots of glass, open door, can inside the interior

elevator on exterior of new highrise condo under construction on yonge street

below: The Legion building (dark brown, with the Canadian flag) is now dwarfed by development around it.

cement truck parked outside new condo building

below: There are still some sites that have not yet been redeveloped.

two storey brick commercial or office space, empty, for lease, on yonge street, brick building

a young woman pushes a baby stroller on sidewalk in front of a glass store front

tall glass buildings across yonge street at empress and park home

people waiting at a bus stop

below: Public bulletin board with posters of a few of the people kidnapped by Hamas in Israel back in October.

notice board on sidewalk covered with kidnapped notices of Isrealis kidnapped by Hamas in Israel

below: In an alley near Yonge & Greenfield; a joint effort by Carillo Art Studio, Cruz1, Luvs (Moise) and Zgar as part of Bit Lane 2021.

luvs and cas mural in north york alley

below: A pink and purple tiger watches the blue jay standing on the branch by June Kim and Nixo Street Art (Erika James). The orange snake is the work of Muisca (aka Daniela Rocha)

three murals on two sides of a building

below: More wildlife, a sparrow, in among the crates in a corner of the lane.

in a corner behind stores in an alley, a small doorway, some stacked crates and boxes, a mural on the wall of a sparrow

below: Lots of birds! On TTC property, Sheppard station bus loop, another mural by June Kim.

wall at Sheppard station TTC bus loop, mural of birds by June Kim, with Emerald condo development in the background

 

poster on grey wall, mostly torn off

With thanks to my mother for being my walking partner that day (which as it turns out, was one of the colder days this month).

reflections in puddle

reflections in puddle

After years of false starts, indecision re routes, and all the other consequences of being City Council’s favorite political football, the new Scarborough subway extension is underway.

on black hoardings around metrolinx site, pink subway symbol, fallen street signs on their side at bottom of hoardings

Once upon a time, the extension was to only go to Scarborough Town Centre and was derided as the “One Stop Subway”.  Now it seems to be three stops from the present Kennedy station with the end point being at McCowan and Sheppard.  In true Metrolinx style, it seems like the last station is going to be called Sheppard East.  Such imagination! … to have three stations called Sheppard!  That seems to be the situation at present…. as for tomorrow’s situation?  Who knows…..

printed on hoardings around metrolinx site, map of scarborough subway extension from Kennedy to Lawrence to Scarborough Centre to McCowan

In case you’ve never been to that intersection, let me show you what’s there…..

below: Looking west on Sheppard approaching McCowan with Metrolinx site on the right hand side.  This construction site is very large and dominates the area.

looking west on Sheppard towards mccowan, metrolinx construction on right side

below: One of the entrance gates to the Metrolinx construction site.  Note all the stacked concrete sections that will form the tunnel walls.

gate across entrance to construction site, red crane inside, also partially curved structures that will form walls of circular subway tunnel

metrolinx site for mccowan station on SHeppard subway extension, red crane,

below:  This blue object is part of the equipment needed to move dirt brought to the surface by the Tunnel Boring Machine that is working underground (There is also a TBM working out in Rexdale on the Crosstown West).

large blue piece of equipment on construction site, made for moving dirt that has been removed from tunnel by tunnel boring machine

It is a very big machine

below: Gate B

Gate B of metrolinx sheppard extension site on mccowan, watch for oncoming traffic sign,

In general, the area south of Sheppard is residential while the area north of Sheppard is industrial or commercial.   Canadian Tire is on the northwest corner.

below: Apartments on Sheppard (south side, east of McCowan)

man walking past low rise apartment building with balconies, green fence beside sidewalk

below:  Because of the angle from which this photo was taken, the exact locations are slightly unclear.  The Medical Clinic is 4651 Sheppard East.  To the west of that is a vacant lot that used to be a gas station and it is on the SE corner of McCowan and Sheppard; it is in the process of being redeveloped.   The apartment building is actually on the SWt corner of McCowan and Sheppard.

apartment building and lowrise plaza with medical clinic, sheppard east

below:  looking east on Sheppard from McCowan

TTC bus shelter beside sidewalk on Sheppard East, hoardings or metrolinx construction site Sheppard East station, are behind the shelter

 

below: Walking McCowan north of Sheppard is partially impeded by a fence across the sidewalk…. but it is easily bypassed.  Nugget Avenue is just beyond the fence.

chainlink fence across sidewalk at Nugget Ave

below: Looking southeast from McCowan and Nugget where West Highland Creek branches.  The large Metrolinx site fills the triangle formed by McCowan, West Highland Creek, and Sheppard Avenue.  The white apartment building in the distance is on Sheppard Ave.

creeks north of Sheppard

The creek’s concrete bed might make for easy management of the water flow but it makes for an ugly scene – unfriendly to both nature and people.  There are parks north of here on both branches of the creek but here where most of the land use is industrial or commercial, little attention is paid to the esthetics.

dead vines on chainlink fence beside concrete bottom creek

graffiti on concrete sides of west highland creek

below: Dufferin Concrete at Nugget and McCowan

concrete plant in Scarborough

below: Nugget Avenue crosses West Highland Creek.  The plaza at 20 Nugget Ave, with the red and white stripes, was shut down (bought out) by Metrolinx.  Apparently, the two-acre property is needed for an emergency exit and underground tail track for the future Sheppard East Station.

bridge over creek at Nugget Ave

empty two storey plaza, lower level painted with red and white vertical stripes

empty building behind construction fence, red and white vertical stripes on lower level, window on upper level, three signs for businesses, Best Housewares Inc., BestFare travel and tours, and Babhis Beauty Salon

old banners on a chainlink fence advertising boxing week specials, ads for restaurant food,

below: Spotted on a bulletin board at a bus shelter on Nugget (It’s a collection of bible verses).

on public message board at a bus shelter, 4 pieces of 8 1/2 by 11 paper with typing on them, a collection of bible verses

below: Immediately north of Nugget Avenue are train tracks. This is the western edge of the large CPR Toronto Yard.  If you are interested in this yard and some of the trains, I blogged about it previously (Around the marshaling yards – with love and peace).

black tanker cars on railway bridge over McCowan

downward arrow shape painted in yellow and white on blue concrete under a brdge

below: North side of tracks along McCowan

concrete waterway and tunnel for west highland creek as it goes under the railway tracks

a banner for welcome to sheppard east village on a pole, with an autumn tree behind

vertical banner on pole on sheppard east for east sheppard village, picture of three people on banner

traffic signs and warning signs at entrance to construction site on mccowan road

dirt track uphill to the tracks

flock of birds on a wire

A walk down Graffiti Alley on a rainy night.

below: Unfortunately, one of Uber5000’s large Toronto/Canada themed murals has been defaced (the one on the north side of the alley).

Graffiti Alley night time, light from headlights of car, walls covered with street art and graffiti

below: Doug Ford running away with the money, stencil graffiti by D. Terra. Our Premier seems rather happy with his haul. Accurate?

black and white stencil art by d terra, of doug ford in a ablack suit, white shirt, black tie, holding bags of money and smiling

below: A dope piece that bears some resemblance to Homer Simpson.

graffiti alley, homer simpson with word dope

below: A  yellow one-eyed daisy standing tall.

yellow one eyed daisy on green stem

below: This portrait has hair!

black and white portrait of a young man with glasses and headphones,

night time, graffiti alley, street art and graffiti on walls

below: For some reason, a section of one of the side lanes (McDougall Lane? or Rush Lane?) was lit by a red light.   Here there was a collection of pasteups and stickers including one with an abundance of flowers in her hair, a skater figure by drecks. She is joined by a bare breasted woman with even more flowers on her head as well as a Snoopy look alike and a cat on the telly.

slaps on a wall, graffiti alley, night time, red light

below: On the same wall as the above – Tweetie bird, from Australia, along with some friends.  Because of the red light, this photo is very low contrast and difficult to see.  Best to see this wall in the daytime!  Second best, would be to check out the instagram page of tweet_streetart

pasteups in an alley, red light, nighttime

with red lights, at night, slaps, paste ups and other graffiti

below: Another selection of slaps, mostly birds this time.

slaps on a wall, mostly birds, plus a fish

slaps on a wall, mostly birds

below: A little raccoon

raccoon graffiti in black and white, also a bird and a fish sticker

below: Mortus figure – his hands are almost big enough to hold all those skulls.

blob like figure with bald head and big hands, holding a lot of skulls, mural in graffiti alley by mortus

below: On the pavement

text graffiti on the pavement that says get off the internet

below: FP Monkey (aka Julia H), Skamoney, Monster Fan Club, and PP Spray

mural in graffiti alley, collaboration of three artists, FP monkey, aka Julia H.

below: Poser bunny

poser bunny on a column, door beside is covered with scrawls

below:  Making a rap music video

people making a hip hop or rap music video in graffiti alley

graffiti on a wall in graffiti alley

below: The east end of Graffiti Alley, the part closest to Spadina, was very dark.

view down graffiti alley at night, rainy, wet pavement, reflecting light

below: As it turns out, the buildings at this end (north side) are now behind a metal construction fence. Darkness equals empty I suspect.

back of buildings on Queen West, now dark, with construction fence, view from graffiti alley, large orek tag on building, dark, no lights,

below: Yes they matter but was there no where else to paint this?  There’s so much junk in the alley that no one would miss.

graffiti alley uber 5000 mural with a painting with the text every child matters covering the bottom part of it

below: I am going to end this post with a bit of a rant.  Yes, to some extent the art in this alley has come somewhat commercialized especially with the newer buildings on Richmond that back onto the alley.  Uber5000 has benefited from some of this as he has painted a few large (and very good) murals here.  I understand that street art by its nature is prone to “disappearing” behind the work of others but I reject the notion that one person’s tag is as good as another person’s mural.  Anyone can destroy.  Anyone can paint their “name” but if you are proud of writing it over someone else’s more talented work then you haven’t progressed beyond the preschooler phase of life.

street art and graffiti on a wall in graffiti alley

This post also appears in eyesonthestreets.blog

I heard about these silhouettes that have painted on the plywood used to board up the doors and windows of five empty houses so I went to see them for myself.  They are on Raglan Road which is close to St. Clair and Bathurst.

black silhouettes of people painted on plywood used to board up doors and windows of empty houses waiting to be demolished

black silhouettes of people painted on plywood used to board up doors and windows of two empty houses waiting to be demolished

black silhouettes of people painted on plywood used to board up doors and windows of empty houses waiting to be demolished, older woman

“Took a walk and passed your house late last night
All the shades were pulled and drawn way down tight
From within, the dim light cast two silhouettes on the shade
Oh, what a lovely couple they made”

two black silhouettes painted on plywood covering a window, parent holding up young child in air above head

row of houses boarded up and empty

I am not sure how long these houses have been empty but there is graffiti in the back too.

graffiti across the back of two empty houses

As I was in the neighbourhood, what else is there to see here?  Anything new? Back in 2015 I posted a few pictures from the St. Clair and Vaughan Road area (see Intersections).  This time I stayed within the northwest quadrant of that intersection.   Like most places, somethings have changed while other things remain the same.

Back to early October 2023 …  many other houses were empty and boarded up

behind metal construction fence, an empty house that has been boarded up

yellow fire hydrant in front of hoardings around old houses waiting to be demolished. The hoardings hava painting of a young man, a red poppy and a large orange flower

… and many other houses have already been demolished.

man walking past construction site with tall condo tower as well as single family houses in the background

vacant lot with houses and highrises bhind

red and blue barrels in a vacant lot in front of other buildings

In the above picture you can see that this area has some older smaller apartment buildings.  Raglan Road runs parallel to Vaughan Road, home to many mid-sized older buildings.

front entrance of an older brick apartment building

three storey brick apartment building on Vaughan Road

three storey brick apartment building on Vaughan Road

cement truck delivering cement to a work site beside an older brick apartment building

below: Linked buildings

elevated corridors, open to outside, linking buildings

Once it was the Happy Family Restaurant.  Now someone (a happy family?) lives there.

squarish building, two storey, lower level once a store, now a residence, two entrance doors, old yellow sign

…. other businesses are boarded up.  This was the Dutch Dreams Ice Cream shop before they moved farther south on Vaughan Road.  While it sits empty it is a space for graffti.  Dutch Dreams had moved out before December 2015.

old black Mercedes car parked beside a boarded up red brick building

below: Just wait – Not sure what we’re waiting for but I see an alpha and an omega on a death moth?

paper graffiti with words just wait, black and white drawing of a dragonfly, on red brick

below: Peeling and faded.  Sailor dude and some colourful designs.

peeling and faded paper graffiti

below: Elaborate probably female form with gown and hat beside a not so elaborate wine bottle.  The label on the bottle says Lutte Libre Bruht.

black stencil graffiti on plywood

below: They’ve been here a while – Urban Ninja Squadron’s T-Bonez in various poses including dressed as Robin, the Boy Wonder.

peeling pasteup graffiti on plywood

below: Give Love and be a Hero

paper pasteup printed in red, on plywood board covering window

In the summer of 2020 there was fire in the adjacent building that impacted the old Dutch Dreams building too.  That was three years ago.   It is a pity that empty buildings sit for so long especially since nothing good comes of it.

in alley, back of buildings that had burned, fence with no trespassing signs around them

More people – Street musicians playing on the sidewalk.

mural on a box on the street, a group of musicians playing, trumpet, bass, singing,

As I walked around the neighbourhood I noticed a mix of architectural styles and building sizes.

From single family….

tall trees and single family homes

streetscape with different shaped houses

Through midsized apartments like the older ones shown above as well as some newer ones….

midrise apartment buildings with some single family homes in the middle

apartment buildings with green space between them

… To massive apartment buildings

very large, wide, highrise residential building with white balconies

large tag graffiti that says a c k , on the side of a brick house

below: Southwest corner of St. Clair and Vaughan Road

person in wheelchair being pushed across St. Clair at Vaughan Road, southwest corner with CIBC bank in old brick building

beside lowrise building from the 1960s, a single story older brick building, Choice coin laundry

brick buildings on vaughan road, 4 storey apartment building, coin laundry, and a convenience store

mister milk convenience store on vaughan road, once a two storey house, with upstairs enclosed balcony

below: The bright yellow building of Hercules Automotive and Tire Service in an alley behind St. Clair.  The top of St. Alphonsus R C church can be seen above it.

low yellow building in alley, Hercules Automotive and tire service, parking lot in front of it, top of St. Alphonsus R C Church behind it, also three tall condo towers in the background

below: Walking westward on St. Clair approaching Wychwood Ave with yet another vacant lot.

father and son walking on sidewalk, along St clair west, towards wychwood ave

below: St. Clair Avenue Baptist Church, on this site since November 1924.

Baptist church on Wychwood ave., brown brick building

below: Beside St. Alphonsus RC Church at Vaughan Road and St. Clair.

statue of man holding a bird, a small wreath hangs beside the statue

street sign for Helen Porter Lane, with Kenwood Arts sign attached to same pole

below: Kenwood

wood utility pole in alley, painted with pink, blue, and green heart, with stripes and squares below

below: A Jack Layton quote: “Love is better than hate; Hope is better than fear.”

words written in many colours across a board on a wood fence in an alley, a quote from Jack Layton that says

hand written poem story on board, hanging next to a garage with paintings of birds in a tree

“AND people stayed home and read books and listened and rested.
… and learned new ways and stopped and listened more deeply
… and people began to think differently.  And people healed
… AND when the danger ended and people found themselves, they grieved for the dead … and made new choices … and dreamed new visions… and created new ways of living… and healed the earth as they were healed.”

below: “My Blue World – I know a place where the world is still where time and space have no hold”  Painting by Elly Dawson 2020.  Poem by Lanna M.

my blue world, a painting on a wood fence, of two boats in the water,

below: A large Canadian flag hangs over the Toronto skyline.

mural on a garage door, large canadian flag behind the toronto skyline, blue lake in front, blue sky behind

Also in Helen Porter Lane, someone has taken advantage of the space here to build new housing.

new housing built in a lane

 

The orange sign on the streetcar stop says that the 512 St. Clair streetcar stopped running early in September 2023 and will be out of service until summer 2024.   The whole line from Yonge to Gunns Loop

 

bus shelter on route 512, St. Clair streetcar, at Bathurst

below: Westbound TTC buses on St. Clair

2 TTC buses plus traffic, westbound on St. Clair in front of Loblaws just before Bathurst street

While we’re on the subject of the TTC, one very dirty bus shelter!

Stop – Take a Breath

stop sign with words and breathe added to it

locked gate, fence, vacant lot, with lowrise apartment buildings in the background

A story in three parts

 

There has been a lot of talk about Ontario Place in the news lately so I thought that I would take some time to explore that part of the city.

below: My walk started in Liberty Village where I discovered that others are trying to promote walking around and exploring here. If you are interested, Walk Liberty is online.  It is a fairly comprehensive guide to the history of the area.

small public space in liberty village with sign posted red liberty village walks

below: Cut into the back of this bench are the words “Is it not the reason we are here”.  This bench was designed by Jose Andres Mora was part of the Liberty Village BIA Artist Bench series from 2019.  My reason? …  Well, I was only passing by because it was a convenient place to have a cup of coffee before walking towards Ontario Place.

red metal bench with words laser cut into the back that say

below:  Comfortable shoes as we keep on walking

part of a large mural by jarus, someone wearing blue jeans and white running shoes

When I reached Atlantic Avenue I discovered that most of the south end of the street was now part of a construction site – both sides of the street have Metrolinx Ontario Line hoardings.

low rise older brick building, light industrial, with black hoardings in front, with signs advertising metrolinx ontario line,

below: The Liberty Trail is closed.  This sign was posted by Ontario Transit Group.  They are the group who are building some of the infrastructure for the Ontario Line.  There are a number of companies included in this group with the two leads being Ferrovial Construction Canada Inc., and VINCI Construction Grands Projects.  They were awarded the six billion dollar contract in Nov 2022 and if you want to see a list of what that money should buy us, the information is on an Infrastructure Ontario website (while you’re there, spot the typo!).

2 signs on a fence, one is a danger due to demolition and the other says liberty trail is closed, Second sign was posted by ontario transit group

hoardings and danger due to demolition sign around a brick structure

below: Looking north on Atlantic Avenue

looking north on Atlantic Avenue from the south end, a white car parked there, many buildings now empty with hoardings in front for metrolinx onstruction

below: The Exhibition GO station is at the south end of Atlantic Ave.  The new Ontario line will also have a station here. The ability to transfer between GO and TTC services here will impact a lot of people who commute from the western side of the GTA as they may be able to bypass Union Station.

a man with a backpack walks towards Exhibition station where there is a green and white GO train already in the station

path towards exhibition station GO line, from Atlantic Ave in Liberty Village

graffiti on metrolinx ontario line hoardings that says tax $ this is a real money pit

below: From Exhibition station east towards the city centre, north side.   A new street that parallels the railway tracks is being built here.  If the plans are correct, the new street will connect Strachan Ave in the east with Dufferin St in the west.

cn tower in the distance, metrolinx ontario line construction at atlantic avenue in the foreground

below: Construction on the north side of the tracks at Exhibition station where a new concourse area is being built above the tracks

construction on north side of GO tracks at Exhibition station

below: Looking eastward from the south side

looking eastward along the north side of the GO tracks from Exhibition station, looking towards downtown

After walking through the tunnel under the tracks at Exhibition GO station, you emerge under the Gardiner Expressway, right beside the Exhibition  grounds.  …. And so begins Part 2.   A quick note – when Metrolinx describes Exhibition station on the Ontario Line, they usually add “Ontario Place” to it, i.e. it’s Exhibition/Ontario Place station.

green and white GO transit sign for exhibition station rises high beside the Gardiner expressway

The first building that you encounter on the south side is the Horse Palace

below: South entrance of the Horse Palace.  Three levels of government contributed to the construction of this building which opened in 1931.  It is two storeys high and covers 4 acres.  Originally it accommodated 1200 horses.  Today it is home to Toronto’s mounted police unit.

stone work at entrance of horse palace at exhibition grounds

below: Horse in the art deco style, carved in the limestone facade of the Horse Palace.

art deco bas relief in stone on horse palace at the CNE grounds, a horse with one front hoof raised

In August it is busy here as it is the home of the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) but September is another story!  I didn’t see many people as I wandered around.  The buildings are locked up tight.

CN Tower innackground, horse palace on the left, parking lot in front

One of the dominant features of the area is BMO field which was built as a large soccer stadium.  In 2016 it also became the home of the Toronto Argonauts, the other Toronto football team.

interior of BMO soccer field, red seating, large awning over seats, green grass on field

below: Mural above the entrance, gate 6 BMO Field. This mural can be difficult to see from outside because it is behind a window. It confused me at first because why is there a hockey themed picture at BMO field? – they don’t play hockey here. As I was trying to get a closer look at it from outside, a group of men walked past and one of them asked me if I needed help…. here’s the story:  Once upon a time the Hockey Hall of Fame was here. When the building was demolished in 2006 to make way for the soccer field, portions of it were retained including the entrance and this mural,  “Face Off” by Ronald Satok.

hockey theme mural over entrance gate at BMO Field

below: The Hockey Hall of Fame building (1961-1993) at the Exhibition.  The mural is behind the glass in the entrance way.

vintage photo of the front of the hockey hall of fame at the exhibition grounds in the 1970s

below: Also at BMO Field is a Wall of Honour commemorating iconic moments and MLS Honours (e.g. coach of the year, MVP players, etc).  Red and white are the colours of Toronto FC (Football Club) whose home is here at BMO stadium.   Note: (MLS = Maple Leaf Sports, owners of the Toronto FC  )

wall of honour at BMO field, a red wall with plaques commemorating different players and events

After WW2, the popularity of the CNE was booming and more modern spaces were needed.  The Hockey Hall of Fame building was a great success so the Food Building (1954), followed by the Queen Elizabeth Building (1957), and the Better Living Centre (1962) resulted.  These buildings still stand.  All were very modern buildings for their time.

below: Food Building

low rise horizontal building with food written in large letters above the glass entrance

below: Queen Elizabeth Building

Queen Elizabeth building on the CNE grounds

below: Better Living Centre, symmetry of the side entrances.  In the 1960s this building housed exhibits during the CNE that featured different rooms decorated with the latest trends and gadgets… like colour TVs! and other consumer goods.

side entrance of better living building

below: Front entrance with its wide stairs leading to the doors as well as one of its curved walls

front entrance of better living centre at cne, low white tiles, curved wall, large staircase

below: Artwork on the roof of the Better Living Centre is a three dimensional grid of steel with different coloured plexiglass panels in some of the squares.

rectangles and squares, colours, art structure above better living building

paste up graffiti on exhibition grounds

graffiti sticker on a danger high voltage sign, exhibition grounds

We entered the Exhibition grounds by tunnel and we will leave by bridge over Lakeshore Blvd…. so to Part 3, Ontario Place

bridge to ontario place

below: Looking west from the bridge over Lakeshore Blvd

looking west along lakeshore blvd from bridge to ontario place

Ontario Place consists of three different areas, East Island, West Island, and the pods in the middle.  When Ontario Place first opened in 1971, the eastern portion was a children’s adventure playground.  Today it is Trillium Park.  I didn’t go there last week, but if you are interested, I blogged about it on two previous visits (a rainy day from June 2019, and Ontario Place 2.0 from July 2017)

The middle section of the park is where you find the “pods”, the elevated structures with water below, and the marina.

pod buildings at ontario place

The contentious part at the moment is West Island.

As far as any plan can be trusted, this is from Infrastructure Ontario, dated April 2023.    The majority of the West Island becomes covered with a 12 acre waterpark and spa to be built by an Austrian company, Therme.   The majority of that is housed in glass buildings.

map of Infrastructure Ontario's vision for ontario place

This is a conceptual drawing from Therme’s website.  That’s a lot of glass.  If you know West Island, you’ll realize that this drawing looks nothing like it.  That’s because everything is to be removed, leveled, and a lot of landfill added.

rendering of a concept of therme spa to be built on west island, from their website

Already gone is a bell, the Goh Ohn Bell.  This is the Japanese Canadian Centennial Temple Bell.   I took this picture on the 20th of Sept and by the 25th it was gone.  Despite a protest on the weekend, it was removed to storage.  The Temple Bell was installed in 1977 in a structure designed by Raymond Moriyama (1929 – Sept 2023); it was a gift to the province Japanese Canadians living in Ontario to mark the centennial of Japanese settlement in Canada.   Now it is in the way of the Therme spa.  Even though the project has not been approved, the provincial government is plowing ahead.

large metal bell in memorial structure, memorial to Japanese Canadians, marks 100 years of Japanese in Canada

large metal temple bell, Japanese Canadian , Raymond Moriyama

Some say that the West Island is under used now anyhow…..

Perhaps.  But the biggest reason for that is the neglect (negligence actually) that it’s been subjected to over the years.

graffiti on grey wall that says die slow

painting of an orange and blue fish on a white wall close to a compost garbage bin

old faded paintings on the exterior of a grey silo type structure

exterior rusted white metal stairs on the side of grey concrete building, goldenrod growing below it, some graffiti above including a black line drawn skull

Once their were restaurants here but they closed years ago.  Their ghosts remain.

below: Pizza anyone?

old pizza pizza restaurant location at ontario place. faded awning with remains of sign, overgrown,

empty structures at Ontarioplace that were used as food outlets or little stores

art exhibit from 2018 that hasn't been upgraded, defaced pictures,

Once there were amusement rides here, those ghosts too still haunt the place.

abandoned waiting area and starting place for an old amusement ride, outdoors, overgrown, neglected

below: Yellow lines to stand behind while you waited your turn for a ride.

painted on wood floor, instructions for lining up at a ride, says wait here in french and english

Once upon a time there was some attempt to make something of the place.  Then it was  abandoned and ignored.  In those quiet years the beach and paths were used by those who knew about them. It became a peaceful spot.

muskoka chairs along the top of a hill, under pine trees, overlooking lake ontario

two people sitting on the beah at ontario place, lake ontario, mississauga and western GTA in the background

Unknowns – there are many because there has been nothing transparent about any of the dealings between Therme and the provincial government.  Therme gets a 95 year lease but what are the terms?  The provincial government is going to pay for an underground (under the water table!) parking lot for 2000+ cars apparently.  They will also be responsible for all those little details that you can’t see –  like where does the water go when you flush the toilet? –  those little pesky things.  Rather than go into more detail here, I highly recommend John Lorinc’s article in Spacing magazine, Below Grade Scandal

Not everyone is happy with the plans…..

construction site, someone has written in yellow marker the words fuck doug ford

A group of stickers seen on a pole on Queen Street East recently

has an image from Catchoo combined with a perplexed Sailor dude from Ty Pro in the top place – what a cute balloon! At the bottom are three heads that you might recognize from previous posts.  In pink is T-bonez from urban ninja squadron and the chosen few; on the right is a luchadore mask from bruho.

three stickers on a pole, catchoo, and others

Here catchoo collaborates with  c_priority (a k a Christopher Piccinich )  Even within the blacks of his suit there are little catchoo symbols and characters.  I was hoping that there were secret messages written on the pieces of paper on the desk but there are just squiggly lines.

sticker on a pole, catchoo along with at priority, man on red inflatable on top of desk, pointing to picture of heart framed and hanging on a wall

Last, feelings boi joins the fun.  Is it a sword? or an umbrella?  Whatever it is, there are smiles all round.

visual noise tbonez urban ninja squadron sticker with umbrella, joined by feelings boi character with long curly hair

This large Greektown mural on Pape Avenue features two Greek Gods – Aries and Poseidon – painted by Nick Sweetman.  In the middle is the Parthenon, the work of Skewr.

 

large mural on Pape Ave in Toronto on the side of Ellas Meat Market, Greektown, mural in blues and white, with Greek gods Posiedon and Aries, one at each end and painting of Parthenon in middle

painting of greek god of war, Aries, by Nick Sweetman

below: Aries the God of War (with portions of throw up by vektr)

painting of greek god of war, Aries, by Nick Sweetman

below: Poseidon the God of the Sea.

painting of Poseidon, greek god of the sea, in mural by Nick Sweetman,

part of a mural, very large hand with webbed fingers, belonging to poseidon, greek god of the sea

Another visit to Graffiti Alley to see what’s changed…..

below: Collage on the back of a sign with contributions by many.

many stickers on the back of a traffic sign

below: An orange dragon graces a utility pole.

an intricate painting of an orange dragon on whitepaper, stapled to pole in graffiti alley, with portrait of a woman in the background

below: Sentient Cookie with “The words you’ve said to me a decade ago still echo in my brain”.

below: Another section of wall covered with the remains of stickers and slaps.

many stickers and small wheatpaste on a wall, many colourful pieces

below: Truth, It’s that simple.  Consume daily.  “Free through an earnest volition. Side effects include decreased stress and increased mental clarity….  ”  Dorian’s House.

a poster pasted on top of graffiti covered wall, picture of a bottle with yellow pills and label that says truth. words beside bottle say it's that simple

below: Who do you love?  Apparently someone loves his/her girlfriend while someone else loves, and misses,  Stephanie Ann.

graffit, red background with a little white bird, with text who do you love?

below: More ink additions, this time on a bird.  Someone has written, “no phone no wife” – either he thinks that without a phone he can’t find/attract a wife (no tindr?) or he has neither a phone nor a wife (lucky man?).  Interpret as you want.   Also, there is Kone x Roc on his wing as well as Sari D. declaring her love forever.

sticker with text glass bird, small sticker with drawing of a fat bird, some people have written in ink on the bird

below: Someone left their shoe behind… and that’s quite the reaction from Tips

a brown shoe on the ground, stickers on a metal pipe, some say postering, another is a black drawing of a face

below: 33wallflower33 whetpaste – My body my choice

wheatpaste by 33 wallflower 33 of two women and words my body my choice

below: … and another

wheatpaste by 33 wallflower 33 of two women and words my body my choice

below: Urban Ninja Squadron running away with an angry bird…. and Adopt by Praxis in bright pink

urban ninja squadron graffiti, also an adopt poster in bright pink

below: An angry white cloud seems to hover hover a drawing by catchoo

stickers on pole, including one that looks like an angry white cloud, a drawing in a circle shape by catchoo

below: More catchoo

a sticker by cathcoo of a face on shiny silver background

drawing by catchoo of many small different coloured faces mostly in shades of orange and green

below: What’s this chef serving up?

black drawing on white, man in chef hat holding a platter with what looks like a shark fin or a sailboat

below: L S and Z

below: A skull and Noah forever.

stickers on a pole, one says Noah forever, a small drawing of a skull

Photos taken June 2023

There are a series of 5 paintings by Bone Head nestled between the windows of a building that backs onto Graffiti Alley in Toronto. As the name suggests, Bone Head painted characters with large boney heads or skulls. They also have a penchant for white shirts and striped neck ties!

graffiti painting by bone head on a brick wall in the narrow space between two windows, large boney head, narrow white shirt and striped neck tie graffiti painting by bone head on a brick wall in the narrow space between two windows, large boney head, narrow white shirt and striped neck tie
graffiti painting by bone head on a brick wall in the narrow space between two windows, large boney head, narrow white shirt and striped neck tie
graffiti painting by bone head on a brick wall in the narrow space between two windows, large boney head, narrow white shirt and striped neck tie