Li-Hill on a garage

Posted: September 18, 2017 in alleys, graffiti and street art
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Tucked away on a garage in an alley near Brunswick and Harbord is a garage with three murals, at least two of which are the work of Aaron Li-Hill.

a two car garage in an alley, murals on both garage doors as well as on the side of the building

below: This mural is not new but I am not sure how old it is.  I am not even sure if I have seen it before.   I can’t believe that I found an alley that I haven’t walked before in this area, but anything’s possible.   This mural is by Li-Hill for sure.

a mural in two pictures of two women and a large tree by Aaron Li-Hill on the side of a garage in an alley

below: This too is the work of Aaron Li-Hill as you can see from the signature.

women with sohort dark hair from the neck up, side view, eyes closed, mural on a garage door by Aaron Li-Hill

below: This seaside town scene has no signature.  I like the little people, one with a surfboard, some playing in the water, and a couple hand in hand.

seaside town mural, buildings, water, beach, people, seawall, on a garage door in an alley, laneway

One more reason to wander the lanes and alleys of the city!
(With thanks to Anita for walking with me and showing me this garage.)

 

Riders at New Moon Variety

Posted: September 14, 2017 in graffiti and street art
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At the corner of Roxton and Harbord, at what was once the New Moon Variety store, there is a large and colourful Clandestinos mural.  The store is now Riders Cycle so it is apt that the mural features a large cyclist, a dapper fox with bright red cycling gloves and a wicker basket full of flowers and carrots.

 

photo of the whole mural by Clandestinos (Shalak Attack and Bruno Smoky) on the side of Riders bike store,

A blue bird at the left flying in front of the garage door.

part of a larger mural by Clandestinos (Shalak Attack and Bruno Smoky) on the side of Riders bike store, a bluebird in flight painted on the garage door, yellow triangle of light behind it

The window now looks like it protrudes from the wall and is part of the mural.

part of a larger mural by Clandestinos (Shalak Attack and Bruno Smoky) on the side of Riders bike store, around the door and window and mailbox of the side entrance of the building,

Like all good cyclists, he has a light on his bike but this light is a miniature person with a powerful flashlight.

 

part of a larger mural by Clandestinos (Shalak Attack and Bruno Smoky) on the side of Riders bike store, main part of mural, a fox in jeans is riding a bike with a wicker basket in the front

buzzzzzzzzzzzzz

part of a larger mural by Clandestinos (Shalak Attack and Bruno Smoky) on the side of Riders bike store, a large bumble bee by the front window

Another blue bird in flight, this time at the righthand side of the mural.

part of a larger mural by Clandestinos (Shalak Attack and Bruno Smoky) on the side of Riders bike store, a blue bird in flight with purplish coloured sky behind

Chasing the light along Queen Street

Posted: September 10, 2017 in old buildings, reflections, shadows
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Shorter day light hours + autumn weather (no snow yet!) = an evening of playing with light and shadow.  I came out of the subway at Queen station and decide to “chase the light”.  It was a perfect evening for a walk and I wanted to make it last as long as possible.   For the most part I stayed on Queen Street although I will admit to straying onto Shuter for a block or two.  It’s not the prettiest part of the city but every place has potential, from a photographic perspective anyhow.

below: The new (replacement) pedestrian walkway over Queen Street that will link the Eaton Centre with The Bay.

glass pedestrian bridge over a street, Queen Street, with traffic and people as well as an ambulance, late afternoon

below: City reflections in both glass and polished stone.

reflections in a stone and glass building

below: The curve of street car wires at Queen and Church.  A wall of peeling paint, as well as a ghost sign, provides the backdrop

the curve of the streetcar wires in front of a wall that was painted white but the paint is peeling to reveal the brick below.

below: The east wall of St. Michaels Cathedral (RC) with reflected light, as seen across a construction site.

one end of St. Michaels Cathedral with reflected light falling on it, new buildings and construction surround it

below: The same church from a slightly different angle.

close up of part of a church roof and window with reflected light on it.

below: Angels

wooden angel cutouts decorate the roofline of a small building

below: Pigeons, old Bell phones and the Moss Park Discount Store.  Not so much light here but I liked the wall.

two Bell telephone booths, small version, mounted on a wall with street art painted on it, beside the window of a convenience store with a 649 ad in the window. Sign over the window says Moss Park Discount Store

below: A long way from home.

people standing on a corner waiting to cross the street, including a woman dressed in blue who is using a walker, plus two Morman men in their white shirts and black ties.

below: A large double billboard is black beside the old building.   The building is at the corner of Ontario Street and Brigden Place.   It was built in 1911 as a 4 1/2 storey warehouse for the Newell Company and their Dominion Envelope Company.  It was one of three buildings that they owned in the area.   After WW2 the building was purchased by J.D. Carrier Shoe Company (the ghost sign!).  Today it has been renovated as lofts and studios.

evening light shines on an old white brick building, a large billboard as seen from the end, is in front

below: A small section of the back of the Moss Park Armoury, a Canadian Forces building constructed in the 1960’s.

part of a wall, vertical stripes of brick sections and white sections, narrow windows in the white sections, 3 windows in total

below: A quick break from chasing light…. you never know what you’re going to encounter downtown, and of course you have to stop and take advantage of the opportunities when they arise, so here we have a slight diversion!  I’m going to assume that the background of their pictures is much better than the background of this picture!

a bride and groom embrace while three photographers take their picture. on a sidewalk of a city street

below: As evening falls, the lights come on in the bus shelters.
You can thank (or curse) Astral Media for that.

a lit advertisement in a bus shelter of two men in Roots clothes, a young man sits on the bench in the bus shelter while two people walk past it on the sidewalk

below: King Street and Queen Street merge just before they pass over the Don River and the Don Valley Parkway.   The green railing in the photo below is on the bridge over the DVP, the buildings and cranes are on the other side of the river.

evening light, cityscape with many construction cranes, light poles and utility poles and wires, evening,

below:  Upstairs, downstairs.  Looking west along King Street from the Don River.

looking along King street from beside ramp over the railway tracks - light under the bridge shows someone sitting there, city scene in the rest of the photo

Once the light fades beyond a certain point, contrast is limited and dullness creeps into the resulting photos.  It’s too late for well lit photos and too early for pictures of city lights.  But it’s a great time to stop and find some dinner!

Make Good, made well

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Can you see anything in it?

details of a mural by Jimmy Chiale

The above image, with its location icon, is just a small portion of a large mural by Jimmy Chiale.   You’ll find it in the Bloorcourt neighbourhood, on the SW corner of Shaw and Bloor West to be specific.  ‘Make Good’ it says.

large colourful mural by J. Chiale on the side of a building. Large white letters that say Make Good.

I  think that its fascinating to look at and I suspect that you would see something different in it each time you passed by.   Here are a few more close up pictures of the details in the mural.  Thousands of shapes all outlined in black some of which seem to make eyes, faces, and a bird’s beak.

shapes, lines and patterns in Jimmy Chiale mural

below: …. a totem pole, an owl and a horse head….

totem pole and horse and other details from Jimmy Chiale mural

below:  … and a camera shutter and a fish?
It wouldn’t surprise me if we saw different things!

Bloorcourt mural details, colours and shapes all outlined in black

Aside  —  Posted: September 6, 2017 in graffiti and street art, locations
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shout, shout, let it all out

Posted: September 5, 2017 in alleys, graffiti and street art
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I’m talking to you….

Well, I’m not the one doing the talking.  In fact, no one is talking, or shouting for that matter.  The words are silent, present..  but quiet.  They are written on the walls; scrawled on the walls.  They’re rarely beautiful and they’d rarely qualify as being profound.

below: But “Sometimes it doesn’t matter”.  I love the ambiguity and flexibility of the word ‘it’ in this context.  Write your own story. Develop your own plot.

below: … even if the plot doesn’t make sense, like Trump himself.

blue spray paint graffiti words on concrete by a chainlink fence surrounding a school playground and parking lot that say I shot Trump and I'd do it again and again and again

below: From Trump we jump to conspiracy theories.  That was easy wasn’t it?

on a red door, number 911, someone has added in white letters, was an inside job

below: I have no segue for 911 conspiracies to love.   A jump in the plot?

blue spray paint graffiti words on concrete by a chainlink fence surrounding a school playground and parking lot that say Love Yourself Kids

below: Sentimental feelings – dripping with sentiment.  Oh dear.

graffiti words stenciled on a garage door that say sentimental feelings.

below: .. or wishes for feelings of being loved

small square around these words, love me plz, written with black paint on a white garage door,

below: Pull yourself together and get it together….  But.. but..  Buddha once said: “Life is suffering; suffering is just part of life.”  Sooooo if you start suffering do you stop living?  Yes, I can be insufferable, just like philosophy and psychology and a few other ologies.

below: Did I mention that sometimes the words make no sense?

black sharpie words on a concrete utility pole, says Virgin Armour

below: These words, on the other hand, make sense: Bew Are!  (not technically graffiti but my editor didn’t question it!)

And that’s the end.   No more words.  I have no more words. Fini.

Elvis has left the building.

a man is walking past a wall with street art, a construction sign is leaning backwards against the wall blocking part of the art. THe picture can't be seen but the words that went with the picture are still visible. They say The artist isn't present

women in the walls

Posted: September 4, 2017 in alleys, graffiti and street art
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Women in the Walls was/is a mural project where most of the painting was done on the last weekend in August. Twenty women participated to create murals in the alley behind the north side of Gerrard Street East near Craven, Rhodes and Woodfield. One van and one car were also painted.

below: Courtney Binns and Kerry Marie (kairo) work on their murals.

two women painting a mural, one mural each, one on the back of a building in an alley and the other on the side of the same building.

a woman sprays paint, light blue, onto the background of a mural that she's painting, blue, green and pinks that merge together with no defined lines or edges

street art painting of a fuzzy orange fox, lying on the ground by C V Binns

a woman is in the beginning stages of painting a mural portrait of a woman outside

below: Princess Nokia

portrait of a woman on a wall, a mural by kairo, long dark hair, a blue bow on the top of her head, some blocks of the concrete block wall are painted in shades of pink

below: Caitlin Taguiboa paints her mural starting with the black and white background that will turn into ripples and reflections on water.

woman spraing black on a black and white mural, standing beside a ladder, on a garage door in an alleyy paint

pink white and orange flowers by a black pool with with and pink reflections and ripples

below: Kim adds some blue to the background of her mural.

a woman is painting a street art mural

on a garage door, a painting by Kim, blue background, close up of two yellow women pilots in a green airplane

below: The deer mural was preserved (it’s been on this wall for a number of years).  You can just see the faint outlines of a salamander that @mmnador is creating.  That’s Kim working on her pilots (astronauts?) in the background.

two women painting murals, Kim is in the background painting on a garage door while another woman is outlining a picture of a chameleon on a wall

a dark purple salamander in a street art painting on a background of orange, yellow, and light blue polygonal shapes with 3 to 5 straight sides on a wall with a tree to the left

below: Rolling on the pink, background that is.  Anya Mielniczek’s latest mural is a woman’s face in shades of pink and green.

woman rolling paint to make pink background on a mural

street art mural of a woman's face in greens and blues on one side, moving to pink on the other, lots of black hair. red lips, yellow eyes

partially finished mural on black background in an alley, green stripes near the bottom, blue circles beside brown squiggles, milk x weed

below: Painting a tribute to Smokey the cat, by Stacey Kinder.

a woman is crouching beside a wall where she is painting a picture of a blue cat, on the wall beside her is a large black section that has just been painted in preparation for another mural

a woman with long blond hair, Stacey Kinder, is painting a picture of a blue cat on a wall,

finished mural of Smokey the blue cat, with a sunflower behind his head,

below: Up close to the central portion of a mural painted by Chief Ladybird and Auralast.

detail of center of mural of an indigenous woman with long braided hair and feathers

below:  The words in the stripes are “One Voice”.  There is a blue and a pink stripe that didn’t make it into the photo, on them is written “Powerful”.

part of a mural by chief ladybird and aura of an indigenous woman with a feather in her hair, in front of the sun and circles of colour, red and blue flowers on the outer layer of colour (light blue)

below: A shout out to Debbie who lent her car, Lightning, to the cause.  Here, a black stenciled dog adorns the back door panel – in memory of Harley.

side of a car that has been prepped, for painting partially painted with turquoise section and pink splotches, also a black stenciled dog, called Harley, by the back wheel,

below: Lightning is now fueled with flower power!

back of painted car, large flower and many colours in the background, a bumper sticker that says Honor Diversity

below: And the last, a van.  It was parked behind the Flying Pony while one side was painted by Erika James….

a woman is taping stencils onto the side of van. The stencils are of words, Don't worry you haven't hit your stride yet

below:  … and the other by Jieun June Kim.   When I went back later in the week to take pictures of the completed murals, the van wasn’t around.  If you see it, let me know!

a woman spray paints on the side of a van that is being covered with street art, masking tape to keep the spray paint in straight lines.

below: Hands and stylized florals

black background mural with stylized floral in bright colours, also a hand in the middle in many colours

part of a mural with magenta background, green arms reaching up from foliage and weeds at the bottom, hands open, revealing a large blue eye on each hand

This project was supported by StART program at StreetARToronto as well as Cultural Hotspot 2017.  The latter is a summer-long initiative whose aim is to encourage art, community, and culture in the east end of the city.

below: Monstawall by Monica Wickeler (aka monicaonthemoon), one of the principal organizers of the weekend.

small street art mural of many stylized abstract goofy faces in bright colours, on a wall. a car is parked in front of it and some is reflected in the windshield

Let’s go to the Ex!

Posted: September 1, 2017 in events, people
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Late August in Toronto means that the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE)  is in town.  Today, since Labour Day weekend is upon us and summer is drawing to a close, I thought that I’d post this year’s crop of photos from the Ex.   Food, games, rides, and people watching fun!

evening photo, darkness, bright lights of the signs for curly fries, spiral spuds and fresh cut fries, food for sale at the ex

below: Elsa parades through the CNE grounds

a float in a parade shaped like Elsa from the movie Frozen, passes through the exhibition grounds.

below: Family games

a young boy throws a ball ina Skee Ball game while his sister and parents watch

young man concentrating as he shoots water into a target at a game at the CNE

woman running a game at the CNE, she is surrounded by prizes such as stuffed minions and other animals

woman running a game at the CNE, she is surrounded by prizes such as stuffed minions and other animals

below: An arm down, and just three feet, on number 21

from below, two people riding on the Skyride, an arm hangs over the side, and there appear to be only three feet

below: The excitement (and terror?) of CNE rides.

two young women on a ride at the ex

two young women on a ride at the ex

below: On the Skyride with the CN Tower in the distance

on the Skyride at the Ex, overlooking the CNE below, people walking around, booths selling food such as mini donuts and spiral spuds

below: Riding high above the minions.

two people ride on the Skyride above the midway at the ex, a large minion, stuffed toy prize, hangs below them

Whac-a-mole game prizes on the CNE midway, people

the eyes of a large blue stuffed bear peaking from behind a woman's arm

people walking past games atthe CNE, stuffies hanging from the roofs of game stalls

muslim woman in burka stands by a small tree with a stroller laiden down with parcels and bags, other people at the Ex are in the background

below: Elvis Stoyko carried the Canadian flag at the closing of the ice skating & aerial acrobatics show at the Ricoh Centre.

Elvis Stoyko carries a Canadian flag at the end of the ice skating show at the Ex, some of the crowds in the seats can be seen in front of him

below: Choose a ducky to see what prize you’ve won!

reaching for a yellow rubber ducky with black glasses and bright red lips, ducks are floating in water, a game of luck on the midway at the CNE

below: Beer bottle targets and the mess that results.

rows of empty beer bottles as targets at a midway game of throwing balls at bottles, broken glass below, stuffed animal prizes hanging above

a man with a pool cue playing a game at the CNE midway, with a woman with an armful of large stuffed prizes behind him

below: Rainbow coloured versions of the poop emoji were very popular this year.

a young girl in a hat that is a rainbow coloured poop emoji

below: Some people have more luck than others!

a woman carrying two stuffies and a skateboard, one is a large blue dinosaur and the other is a large pink creature

below: Gathering the spun cotton candy

a man collected cotton candy that is spinning in vats in front of him

two young men sit on stools beside a midway game at the ex while they eat

people around a food vendor at the CNE, fries,

below: Only a few can sleep through the crowds and noise of the Ex!

a baby is asleep in a stroller while the adult bets at a game of chance at the Ex. The baby has a large stuffed brown bear

concourse art deco

Posted: August 31, 2017 in doors, old buildings, public art
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The 16 storey Concourse Building at 100 Adelaide Street West was built in 1928. It was an Art Deco building designed by Martin, Baldwin and Green.  Recently, the building as amalgamated into a new 40 storey office tower.  The Concourse Building was gutted but the south and east facades were saved.  Also saved was the entranceway (portal) that was designed by J.E.H. MacDonald, one of Canada’s Group of Seven painters.

entrance to 100 Adelaide West, a stone building, with brass decorated doors and mosaic pictures decorating it. The concourse building, with stone relief work between the third and fourth storey windows as well

below: The entrance is 2 storeys high, topped with a Roman arch.   The rectangular panel above the door contains the four elements, earth (produce from the fields), air (stars and birds), fire, and water (fish swimming).

entrance to 100 Adelaide West, a stone building, with brass decorated doors and mosaic pictures decorating it.

below: The mosaics under the arch represent Canadian industry and nature.   Here, ship building and aircraft are depicted.

two of the panels designed by J.E. H. MacDonald on the Concourse building, a ship with sails, and an airplane

below: On the other side, a steam shovel and what looks like lightning in the sky.

two of the panels designed by J.E. H. MacDonald on the Concourse building, a steam shovel in action, and a panel with a lightning bolt

below: The stone panels surrounding the door are carved with motifs of grapes and grape vines.

a square panel of stone carved with grapes and grape vines

below: All seven mosaic pictures under the arch.

the panel of mosaic pictures under the arch, a lamp hanging down from the center,

This is a #Thursdaydoors post.  Lots of other blogs participate so if you are interested in doors of all kinds, check out this link.

 

 

Pedestrian Sunday, August 2017

Posted: August 29, 2017 in graffiti and street art, landmarks, people
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Once again, the last Sunday of the month was Pedestrian Sunday in Kensington Market.  There was a large turnout this past weekend!  Lots of people, music, food, sunshine, and good times.

below: Dancing in the steet

a small group of men are playing instruments and singing Spanish songs, a crowd of people have gathered to watch, outdoors, on a street, some of the people have started dancing on the street

Two men stand beside their bikes talking, a woman in a straw hat an dsunglasses sits behind a table with a yellow table cloth with items for sale on the table

a large number of people in an alley. A banner over the alley says Kensington Flea Market and Beer Garden

below: A song, a mandolin, and a Polish Boy Scout belt buckle?

two musicians, one is playing a mandolin and singing the other is just singing, they are both sharing the same microphone

below: She is showing lots of courage!

a mannequin sits on an upper balcony but only her legs and feet show in the picture, hanging from the balcony are some pieces of paper with the word courage written on them

a young man drills out the center of a pineapple while two women blend the chunks into juice. The juice is then poured back into the hollowed out pineapples and sold as a drink

a head mannequin in a store window, with an orange piece of fabric wrapped aroungd her head. Other fabric in the window. also two people reflected in the glass

two men with baseball caps are sitting on yellow Muskoka chairs on a sunny afternoon. One is facing the camer - he is holding a piece of paper in one hand, he is yawning.

below: A quiet corner for a good book

double entrance to semi-divided house, both doors are open, there are bookcases beside the doors. In one of the doorways, a boy in a green t-shirt sits and reads

looking into the window of a bakery/restaurant. Three people are sitting at a table that looks out the window. One is one his phone and the other two are looking out the window. The sign on window, in red lettering is Ricas tortas,

items for sale on a table outside, three shoes (no pairs), one gold, one red velvet and one patterned, on a purple table cloth. Also for sale, two round orange lamp shades

below: Numbers on the alley by #whatsvictorupto

an alley in Kensington with a painting by #whatsvictorupto on the ground - numbers

below: Drinks – the changing nature of Kensington market is reflected in the food and drink that is available.  There is now a large South American influence in the area so products like Inca Cola and Chicha can be bought.

sample of drinks for sale at a food stall at a street festival, nestea, coke, water, some soft drinks as well as south american products like chicha (purple) and

below: A poser bunny still lurks in an alley.  Everything around him as changed be he remains.

an old poser bunny on a wall in an alley

below: Sign on phone – Stop busting our phone!  Outside the Moonbean Coffee Shop

a small phone booth outside a coffee shop with a patio. Some people are sitting on the patio, Moonbean coffee. On the phone is a round white hand written sign that says Please stop busting our phone

a man looks at sunglasses at a table outside where they are for sale. The sign says Pedstrian Day Sale, sunglasses ten dollars, straw hats ten dollars

an old green and white pickup truck parked in a driveway in Kensington Market, beside a store with a very faded sign that barely says King of Kensington

below: Who you callin’ a pretty boy?

an ugly white dog, on a leash, is looking at the camera, outside, on the street, with the legs and feet of some people

items in the window of a store, as well as on a table set up outside the store

below: The Joker and a friend.

in an alley, two graffiti pieces. One is a pasteup, realistic and detailed drawing of Heath Ledger as the Joker and the other is a quick black line drawing of a man's face

Sonya remade and rejuvenated

Posted: August 28, 2017 in graffiti and street art, locations
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Close to Kensington market is a small park called Sonya Parkette.  Two of the sides of the park are walls.  A few years ago the walls were painted with historical murals that were subsequently tagged over.   More recently, the park has undergone some renovations including new murals on the walls.

Many of the murals are by P.S (aka Phillip Saunders).  If you are familiar with some of the graffiti and street art in the Kensington area, you will recognize the style.

multicoloured face with red text tag beside

orange face, blue eyes, short black hair, mural on a wall at Sonya Parkette in Kensington

mural, face in grey tones, on a background of water, trees, sky and clouds.

below: This mural, and the one below, are obviously by the same artist who painted the two murals of naked women in Milky Way.

mural of an orange naked woman reclining, wall is golden yellow colour

mural on a wall with green plants growing in front, mural is a blue person from the chest up, no hair. Some plants are part of the mural too.

below: A realistic painting of a sleeping man.

a man in green pants and white t-shirt is sleeping on the ground, a mural on a wall. the ground is green with small circles and semi-circles in other colours.

below: Peace and an abstract.

a mural with two parts, on the left is an abstract design with rectangles and a few curves. on the right is a realistic hand giving the peace sign

The Kensington area has a problem with taggers – many street art pieces get vandalized.  Let’s hope that these don’t suffer that fate.

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