I was going to go looking for autumn but, silly me, I soon realized that I didn’t need to look for it. It’s all around us. All you have to do is look out the window, or better yet, step out the door and you’re in the middle of it. It’s falling in front of you, swirling in the breezes and crunching under your feet.
At one end of the new sports field at Regent Park, there is a large mural by elicser.
below: The west end of the mural, waiting on the sidelines with basketball at the ready as well as watching the soccer game.
below: The cricket players are between the words ‘Regent’ and ‘Park’ as seen above.
below: The mural continues behind the basketball court.
below: Basketball players both on and off the court.
below: The east end of the mural
Cranes and construction hoardings, not much new there.
below: On Dundas East, as part of the ongoing Regent Park revitalization project, there is another crane over another construction site. The hoardings around this project feature paintings by two street artists, birdo and getso.
below: These pictures were taken back in September. The hoardings are in a covered pedestrian walkway so they are in a shaded area. The railings make it unsafe to stand in the street to take close up photos, or at least I didn’t feel too safe the morning I was there.
It’s been a beautiful October to be walking around the city! With lots of sunny days and above normal temperatures, it’s been a great autumn to be outside…. outside exploring or just sitting contentedly enjoying the sunshine.
below: Life size statue of Dr. Norman Bethune sitting outside the Medical Sciences Building at the University of Toronto (close to Queens Park Circle). It is the work of Canadian artist David Pelletier. Bethune is depicted writing in his journal. Across the bottom of his apron these words are written:
I am content
I am doing what I want to do
Why shouldn’t I be happy – see what my riches
consist of. First, I have important work that fully
occupies every minute of my time. I am needed.
Norman Bethune was born in Gravenhurst in 1890. He graduated from medical school at U of T in 1919, after taking some time off to serve in WW1. He also served as a doctor during the Spanish Civil War in 1936 and 1937. The following year, 1938, he went to China help the Communist Eighth Route Army during the Second Sino-Japanese war. It was here that he died of septicemia in November of 1939. He is credited with helping to bring modern medicine to rural China during his brief stay in that country.
Legends Row in Maple Leaf Square is growing. Last week, three more statues of Leafs players were added to the line up of statues already there. This is the fourth installment and now Turk Broda, Dave Keon, and Tim Horton have now taken their place outside the Air Canada Centre.
The unveiling of the latest statues coincided with the opening ceremonies for the 100th season of NHL hockey in Toronto. That first year, the Toronto team was the Toronto Arenas and their only competition were the Montreal Canadiens and the Ottawa Senators. The Arenas didn’t last very long; they folded because of financial problems. For the 1919-20 season, the Toronto team was the St. Pats and their uniforms were green and white. They remained the St. Pats until 1927 when Conn Smythe bought the team and changed the name to the Maple Leafs. (The NHL was formed Nov 26, 1917 so technically we may have jumped the gun by a year, but we can fudge that and call it the 100th season!).
below: Goalies Turk Broda (right) and Johnny Bower (left) have a chat while George Armstrong stands in the background. Broda (1914-1972) played goal and spent his whole NHL career with the Maple Leafs during which time they won the Stanley Cup five times.
below: Dave Keon, number 14, stands behind the bench with his teammates. Keon (b.1940) pl ayed for the Maple Leafs for 15 years during a career that lasted from 1960 to 1982. He won the Calder trophy his first year and he was the team’s top goal scorer for many years.
below: It looks like Tim Horton may have to share his stick. I suspect that he’s going to have the problem fairly often! Tim Horton (1930 – 1974) was a defenceman who played for the Leafs during the 1960’s when they won the Stanley Cup four times. Also during this period he set the record for playing in consecutive regular season games, 486.
Previous Legends Row posts
Wilson subway station is nestled between the northbound and southbound lanes of the Allen Expressway. It’s functional, but not pretty. All that concrete!
below: Wilson subway station from the parking lot on the SW corner of Wilson and the Allen.
If you look closely at the above picture, you might be able to see that one of the pillars holding up the Allen has been painted purple. That’s part of the latest mural painting project by Shalak Attack, with help from Bruno Smoky. What you can’t see is that the mural covers all of the underpass supports on both sides of Wilson Ave.
below: The mural on the south side of Wilson Ave has been painted on all sides. Here, a face is between two hands gripping the poles.
below: More pillars on the south side.
below: A large spider on a web is in the center of the mural.
below: The back side of the supports have also been painted. Just be careful not to bump your head on the road above if you want to get a closer look!
below: The north side of the underpass is being painted at the moment. Stay tuned for updates!
I first blogged about the murals and street art in Underpass Park last summer after the pillars and bents on the east side of Lower River Street (at the skate park) were painted. The newest paintings are on the west side of the street.
Street artists Troy Lovegates and Labrona are in the midst of painting 16 portraits of 16 east end residents – one on each face of four pillars that help support the Eastern/Adelaide/Richmond overpass.
The pillars on the east side of Lower River street were painted as part of the Pan Am Path and were completed before the Pan Am Games started last summer.
below: From inside the skate park, looking westward. Lots of people!
below: Looking beyond the park and out over Bayview Avenue, train tracks, and the Don River. Two faces by anser.
The murals on the pillars in the park are part of the StreetARToronto initiative.
First I heard a rumour that the Art Gallery of Ontario was going to remove that sculpture from the corner of Dundas & McCaul, you know, the one that everyone climbs on and takes their picture with, the one near the AGO entrance.
Then I read about in a newspaper.
You know, that curvy bulky slippery thing by Henry Moore, the one with a title that’s almost as shapeless as the sculpture, “Large Two Forms” although no one calls it that. Oh, what do they call it anyhow?
Then I read about it online.
It’s sat on that corner since 1974. That’s 42 years. Longer than the average Torontonian has been alive.
Can you say synonymous? …. as in synonymous with the corner of Dundas and McCaul.
Apparently it’s going to be moved to Grange Park. That’s the park behind the AGO, the one that is being renovated.
The expression “Rob Peter to Pay Paul” comes to mind.
How about new public art for a renewal of the park?
But walking the site and looking at the plans made me start to think. The sculpture is being moved into its own space in the park and as I looked at the drawings and the artist rendition of the future space, it dawned on me that the redesign of Grange Park was possibly (probably?) done specifically to accommodate the sculpture. The Art Gallery owns Grange Park after all. Toronto does a lousy job of placement of their public art so maybe I shouldn’t complain about this?
Maybe.
As I tried to take photos of the sculpture where it is, I was reminded of how the streetscape in Toronto gets short shrift.
Henry Moore competes with old poles as well as bus shelters that are designed to maximize Astral Media ads. At least there isn’t a ghastly trash bin beside the sculpture. And at least the art is solid enough and strong enough to hold its own.
But this is going to be a problem for any artwork that gets put on that corner.
Oh dear, assuming that something will replace Henry Moore?
Don’t mess it up even more AGO, don’t leave the corner empty.
We have more of a cultural memory than you give us credit for.
A beautiful Thanksgiving day, sunshine and autumn temperatures – what better time to get outside and enjoy a walk with friends? Today’s walk included the Beltline from Mt Pleasant cemetery to the Allan Expressway. Along the way we saw a couple of murals so I stopped to take a few pictures. These murals were under the bridge over the Beltline at Eglinton West. Both were part of the StART (StreetARToronto) program and were painted in 2013 by artists Viviana Astudillo and Logan Miller.
below: On one side of the underpass are scenes from the days when a railway ran along the Beltline.
below: The mural on the other side of the underpass depicts scenes of the modern day path including hawks, people, joggers, cyclists, walkers and dogs.
below: Someone has left there mark here too.
I missed Nuit Blanch this year. While I was away, I heard lots of good things about the installations at Nathan Phillips Square, including the fact that they will remain until the 10th of October.
Silly me went during the day. It didn’t look too impressive then!
There were lots of tourists taking pictures.
and schoolkids hanging out by the 3D Toronto sign.
Oh right, it’s a night time, after dark sort of thing. Come back after 7 p.m.
So last night I went back at 7 p.m. …. but last night was also the first game of the Blue Jays playoff series against Texas and it was playing on a large screen in the square. I watched the end of the game. There wasn’t a very large turnout, but the atmosphere was great. Everybody was in a good mood as the Blue Jays won 10 – 1.
Shortly after the end of the game, the large 14 metre globe that represents the sun lit up. “Death of the Sun” by Director X (Julien Lutz) began.
The sun starts as a swirling orange and yellow globe.
It then turns orange before the colours die out and fade to nothing.
At one point the sun lets off steam, gas, fog (whatever you want to call it) before it goes silent.
The end of the sun signals the start of “Pneuma”. Images by Floria Sigismondi were projected onto a wall of water under the arches in the square in what appears to be a short film full of symbols.
‘Oblivion’ is the name given to the collection of installations at City Hall. Both of the artists come from the world of video. Sigismondi has previously made videos for the like of Rihanna, David Bowie and Marilyn Manson while Director X has worked with Rihanna and Drake.
It was an interesting installation…. well done technically and fascinating to watch.
We tried to push the sun back into the sky, but we failed.
#nbTO2016 | #DirectorX | #pneuma | #floriasigismondi
as I walk Toronto 