Posts Tagged ‘baby’

Elicser and Sweetman at West Lodge

Posted: December 15, 2022 in graffiti and street art
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Along a wall beside the playground at 103 and 105 West Lodge is a mural painted by Elicser Elliot and Nick Sweetman a couple of years ago.   It’s theme is the outdoors and it includes scenes like kids playing baseball, people reading and sitting outside, as well as people planting gardens.  There are also lots of animals – a large dragonfly shows off its wings, bees fly by, squirrels hoard nuts, a robin pulls a pink worm out of the ground, and a very large hedgehog sniffs the flowers.

below: Hedgehog covered with thousands of protective spikes.

large hedgehog in a mural, painted by Nick Sweetman

below: Playing baseball and keeping an eye on the bees

outdoors theme mural on wall at west lodge ave apartment buildings, parkdale

behind some trees, elicser elliot mural

large bee in a mural, painted by Nick Sweetman

below: An encounter with a skunk

woman in blue uniform sitting on ground beside large skunk, kids watching her

below: Playing with friends.  Great dunk shot!

mural by elicseer elliott, people outside, two boys playing basketball,

part of a mural along a wall by elicser elliot, a girl with a white head scarf holds a large orange flower. winter time, snow on the ground

below: This robin has found very large worm

mural, nick sweetman, brown dog standing beside a large robin that is pulling a pink worm out of the ground

mural, boy outside, kneeling on grass and playing with large pink worm, another boy is hiding behind a tree

corner of wall, interior angle, with mural painted on it, kids outside

below: A blue dragonfly with translucent wings

blue bodied dragonfly in a mural, painted by Nick Sweetman, 103 West Lodge Ave., wall, snow on the ground, beside some large trees

elicser elliott mural, three kids outside, one in purple top and orange shorts sitting against tree, reading a book.

below: A black squirrel and a grey squirrel and thousands of nuts!

mural, outside, close up of a black squirrel and a grey squirrel and their piles of nuts

two people sitting in a garden, part of a mural on a wall, one person in a green t shirt is planting a small green twig in the brown dirt, the other person is female and has a purple head scarf

portion of wall painted by Elicser Elliot and Nick Sweetman, people outside,

snow covered playground with one wall covered in a mural painted by elicser elliott and nick sweetman

Halloween on Church, 2018

Posted: November 2, 2018 in events, people
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It was the last night of October, the rain had stopped earlier in the evening, and Church Street was closed between Gloucester and Wood streets.  It was ‘Halloween on Church’, an annual street party filled with costumes on display wanting to be seen and other people wanting to see and take pictures.   These photos represent only a small selection of what there was to be seen that night (obviously!).

below: A one night stand to remember

a person at a Halloween costume dressed as a one night stand, table up to neck, a clock, and a picture on a frame on the table, or rather, the night stand

below: Glowing red and green

two women pose with three people wearing oversized skulls on their heads, with lights inside that make the eyes appear bright, two red eyed skulls and one with green eyes

below: Japanese ghouls, dressed to kill?

two women in elaborate embroidered red silk kimonos, one with a parasol too, one with a make up gash on her cheek

below: White man on keyboard.

man in black tux with white cloth overhis face plays a keyboard that he has around his neck

man dressed in a dress that is made of yellow police caution tape, also wearing a police cap. Posing with a woman who is also wearing a poilce hat

below: A group of people went as the 3D Toronto sign.

a group of people pose for a photo. Each is holding a 3D letter and together they spell Toronto, a miniature copy of the 3D Toronto sign at Nathan Phillips Square.

below: More playing with lights, this time as stick people.

two people in jogging suits with hoods, with lights down the front so it looks like stick people

Church Street, Halloween party, a couple in costumes suitable for day of the dead celebrations, juxtapositioned with a man holding a baby

a man in an elaborate gold embellished old fashioned scuba diving mask with glittery gold coloured rays emanating from it

two people standing under a clear umbrella with little lights dangling from it, one person has a black mask on and a costume like the invincible movie character

couple posing for pictures at the corner of Church and Wood, both are dressed in Halloween costumes, night time,

below: Looking at instagram in a new light, from a different point of view.

a photographer has made it look like he's a live instagram photo

below: With a doll and a lit candle

a man in a black and white striped shirt is holding a doll and a lit candle

below: With a doll and a dog.

A woman in long braids holds a green fabric doll and a small dog in her arms. Her face is covered with makeup that makes her look like a skull with large black eyes, a black nose and a mouth with notches (stitches?)

below: This one is for Jude, something about wanting to take this one home with her…..

a topless man leans against a concrete pole to pose for a photo. He has a large tattoo that covers most of his right arm. He is wearing a rubber mask with rabbit ears and a bandana over his face as well as large goggles.

below: With pale pink hair, a shimmering dress, and a big smile

a person with a pale pink wig and shimmering fabric dress

three people in big long haired wigs, one red head and two blondes

below: Crossing light sabres with Darth Vader.

a woman crosses light sabres with darth vader, hallowwen party on Church St. in Toronto

below: Kermit only has eyes for Miss Piggy….. or else!

two people in costume, one as a life sized Kermit the Frog and the other as Miss Piggy, both from The Muppets

Toronto Marys

Posted: December 27, 2015 in galleries, general Toronto
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Marys in Toronto 
It has become one of the things I do – I look for ‘Marys’ when I travel.  For one reason or another, I started seeing Marys in Toronto too.  Perhaps it was because I spent more time in galleries and museums on those really cold days that we had last winter.    There aren’t nearly as many Marys here as there are in Lima Peru or in Malta.  Hence, finding them was a bit more difficult but that just made the hunt more interesting.

below: In the window of Sonic Boom on Spadina

A picture of Mary and Jesus in a store window. Jesus is depicted as a middle age man.

below:  a sculpture of Mary and Jesus,  from the Gardiner Museum

ceramic (or glazed terracotta?) sculpture of mother and child, Mary and Jesus.

below: ‘The Dormition of the Virgin’ by Esteban Marquez De Velasco (c.1655 – 1720, Spain).
This painting is in the Art Gallery of Ontario.  It depicts the moment before Mary falls asleep and her soul leaves her body to join Him in heaven.  The apostles surround Mary and kneel in prayer.

A close up of a painting. A young woman, the virgin Mary, is sitting up in bed, her right hand over her heart and her eyes raised to heaven. A man is standing to the right, his eyes also looking up to heaven. Men reading books are to her left.

below: ‘Madonna and Child’ by Andrea Della Robbia (1435-1525, Florence Italy).
Glazed terracotta. On loan to the AGO from the family of Murray Frum.

A white porcelain relief sculpture on a reddish wall. Mother and child, Mary and Jesus.

below:  In front of St. Clare Roman Catholic church on St. Clair Ave. West

White statue of Mary and Jesus outside a church, a vase of red and white flowers is beside her feet. The words Sancta Maria Mater Dei are on a bronze plaque under the statue.

below: In the window of Crows Nest barber shop, Kensington Market

A figurine of the Virgin Mary with her light blue shawl stands piously in the window of a barber shop. The building is painted a light blue colour.

below: Figurines for sale at Honest Ed’s

seven figurines of Mary painted with long white, light blue and gold robes. They are about 20 cm high, all with downcast eyes except the one on the left looks like she's looking at the camera.

below: Holographic cards with images of Mary Jesus in a red plastic tub.
You can buy a card at Honest Ed’s for 69 cents.

postcards with holographic images of Mary and Jesus.

below: Sagrada Familia, by the front door of a house in Little Portugal

A ceramic plaque of Mary, Joseph and Jesus on the exterior wall of a house beside the front door and above the mailbox

below:  Hiding amongst the drapery sits Mary and her child.

from the outside, the lower part of a window with white shutters and a stone window sill. Lace curtains are in the window and a statue of Mary and Jesus is inside.

below: Another from the AGO,  Virgin and Child from circa 1750, once in a chapel of a Montreal church.
Wood with traces of pigment.

 In the Art Gallery of Ontario, a wooden statue of Mary holding baby Jesus. Behind the statue is a large painting of the fire in Quebec City in the 1700's.

Wooden statue of Mary standing while holding a baby Jesus.

below: Mount Pleasant cemetery

close up of part of a tombstone in a cemetery showing a small relief sculpture of Mary, Joseph and Jesus

below:  On an ofrenda at a Dia de Muertos celebration

a statue of mary with pink candles on either side of her. A yellow day of the dead paper cut out is behind her. Strings of yellow, orange and pink flowers are also on either side of her.

below: Radio Maria, una voce cristiana nella tua casa, part of the Holy Mother World Networks.

entrace to a small red brick building with a two signs, one over the door and one beside the door, for Radio Maria.

below: With other members of the Nativity scene, for sale in a vintage store on Queen West.
I think that $20 buys you the contents of the box.

ceramic figures of the Nativity scene, Mary, Joseph, baby Jesus, etc. They are lying in a box that is for sale in a store.

below: In a front yard in the Junction
I’ve put her at the end because I am not 100% sure that she is a Mary. The Virgin Mary is usually depicted with a light blue shawl draped over her shoulder or else holding a baby Jesus.

A small white statue of Mary on a makeshift pedestal in a front yard. Early spring, bare rose bush branches, a couple of small white planters with flowers in them. A white metal railing on the front porch.

And here ends that game.  This post represents almost a year’s worth of looking and while the hunt was interesting in the beginning it’s charm is starting to wear thin.   I could probably find more Marys in churches and cemeteries but I think I will listen to words of wisdom and let it be.

return of the zombies

Posted: October 26, 2014 in events
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….. they keep coming back!
  Zombie Walk 2014, Nathan Phillips Square

 zombie woman with scratch marks on face and blood dripping down her chin. Close up of just her head and shoulders. Long red hair.

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pale zombie with curly lught auburn hair, bloody chin and white dress. She is glaring at the camera with her hand poised to reach for it. .

screaming woman zombie lunging for the camera but she is restrained by chains.

drooling zombie face

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zombie boy who is staring straight ahead

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zombie from Toronto zombie walk - white face and pearl neck lace
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zombie from Toronto zombie walk - auburn wig and very bloody face, man
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zombie from Toronto zombie walk - a woman with very bloody face, vacant stare, and long dark hair

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zombie man sneering. there is a small hand behind his ear that is dangling from a fake zombie baby he is carrying on his shoulders (but that you can't see much of in this photo)

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A hite haired, grey faced zombie holding a pink stuffed animal, and wearing a gold crown is posing for pictures for a guy with a large camera. Another man is holding a light source beside the zombie.

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zombie from Toronto zombie walk - white hair, white face, vacant stare and holding her hand up in front of her chest
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zombie from Toronto zombie walk - close up of zombie clown with yellow curly wig and a big red nose .

zombie with a zippered face
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zombie from Toronto zombie walk, woman with large bloody gash on her cheek, blood running down her chin and eyes of different colours
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Three clown zombies are posed over a man who is lying on his back on the ground and holding a camera. There is a small crowd around them, many with cameras.

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close up of a male zombie with reddish sunglasses. He is screaming with his mouth wide open.

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zombie from Toronto zombie walk
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close up of zombie nose, eyes and forehead. Eight safety pins are keeping her forehead together.

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zombie from Toronto zombie walk, woman with pink sunglasses and skull earrings.

a girl is taking a selfie of herself after she has had a handprint of fake blood put on her neck
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zombie from Toronto zombie walk, four guys with very bloody misshapen faces. One has an eyeball that is popping out
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a zombie with a large gash in her face is having fake blood applied to her face by a zombie enabler.

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zombie from Toronto zombie walk, woman giggling as she poses beside a young man with his face made up to look like a zombie
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dog, zombie from Toronto zombie walk with a cone around it's head.
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