Behind Dundas Street West near the Junction, there is alley with one old garage building that has been painted with street art.
At one end, there is a black and white drawing of a faceless person in a baseball cap holding a very large cassette tape. His/her shoe laces are undone.
This is a view of the whole west side of the building. All of the people are faceless.
At the very end, a colourful rendition of the skull and cross bones.
I like the camera part but I’m willing to prove the “no fun” part wrong. The other day I went meandering with a friend. We started near Christie station (at a coffee shop of course) with no particular destination in mind. Generally south was the consensus… and with a pinch of playfulness (forget that no fun nonsense!) and a dash of distraction that’s more or less what we did.
below: As you may know, Bloor Street east of Christie is Koreatown with lots of Korean restauants and tea shops.
below: … including cheese tea. This seems to be a new trend, or at least new to me! Apparently it is black or green tea with a foamy topping made from cream cheese, sugar, and whipping cream (or variations thereof). Next time I may indulge.
below: “Imagine your Korea” mural on the side of P.A.T. Central, a large Korean store.
below: A fire breathing dragon and many scared people trying to run away. It’s a pity about the garbage though.
below: By Bathurst street the Korean restaurants have disappeared. Once upon a time (it seems so long ago!) Honest Ed’s dominated the SW corner of Bloor and Bathurst. Now there is just hole there, and a very big hole at that.
below: This picture is just a small part of “Utopic Isles, Neon Nights, a Flowery Future”, which consists of three panels of images by grade 11 and 12 visual arts students from Central Tech high school. They are part of the hoardings around the construction site here.
below: Another section of hoardings feature collages of old pictures of Honest Eds – a project by Jessica Thalmann called “To Dwell is to Leave Traces”
below: To try gluing pictures on hoardings is also to leave traces! Its’ another “no fun” find. All rather cool until you learn that no fun is a branding thingy. Stickers as promos for businesses are now very common, posters like this on, not so much.
below: Construction makes room for the two buildings on Bathurst that refused to sell to the developers. You can still see the ghost sign on one of the buildings – baby carriages repaired
below: Looking west from Bathurst Street across the big hole to the backs of the houses on Markham Street that are empty and boarded up. Some of them will be retained in the new development.
below: A concrete lovebot hides in the corner. He’s missing an arm and has three bricks instead of a leg.
below: Near lovebot is another ghost sign – Coca Cola, sold everywhere (Bathurst Street)
below: This frog has four points on his crown and lips made of plaster. Looks like he’s found a home on top of the garbage pin.
below: ‘Keep hustlin!” Don’t linger and watch out for cars. I was going to make some comment about Toronto becoming increasingly dangerous for pedestrians but I decided that I needed some documentation to back me up. I learned the acronym KSI (killed or seriously injured). Toronto has the research on the KSI stats for 2005-2018 as part of their Vision Zero plan and the results are “mixed”, i.e. the trend isn’t upwards. In fact, I don’t think there is a trend of any sort.
below: [Can we stand two social issues in a row? LOL.] What I didn’t realize was there was a “worldwide “Nobody Pays” call to action on November 29 for fare evasions” (source). Chile in the poster is a reference to Chilean high school students protesting transit fare increases with a series of mass evasions starting on the 7th of October. I don’t recommend burning your Presto card just yet.
below: The very small print at the bottom of the poster gives references to two documents (from 2012 and 2014) that outline the funding of the TTC and where the money comes from.
below: Well it is December after all…..
below: Well it is December after all…..
below: Conversation on a garage door.
below: Sometimes Mother Nature endures. There was no stopping this tree and it seems to have thrived even with the metal of the fence embedded in it.
below: The omnipotent metal fence strikes again. This time flamingos in love and an Al Runt mural are in danger.
below: Continuation of the mural by Al Runt around the corner of the building
below: This mural has suffered a different fate, that of the creeping billboard posters. As much fun as “procaffeinating” is fun to read about, I’ve seen more than enough of them around the city. I’m not sure that it was someone’s sense of humour that resulted in Holt Renfrew posters being displayed beside those for Pathways to Education that play on poverty and lack of education.
below: But…. [one day I will do a post where only the words in the photos do the talking. There are some great stories out there]
below: I especially like this one, Just Keep Going.
below: A white horse in an alley
below: As well as two little astronauts.
below: Blood and bandages barber shop. Wonderful name!
When you walk across College Street in this area you can’t help but notice that you’re in Little Italy.
below: As we walked westward along College Street, we saw three of these blue areas painted on the NW corners (of Roxton, Ossington & Dovercourt)
These are the Blue Room, by Stanislav Jurkovic and they were supported by the College Promenade BIA. From the website: “Similar to a 3 dimensional ‘green screen’ in film production, the space becomes stage and canvas.” It has also won a Toronto Urban Design Award. Some photos that people have taken of these spaces can be seen on instagram by searching on #blueroomcollege (although the same photos are fed to the Blue Room website that I linked to in the first sentence).
below: In the entrance way to a store that sells a lot of things including DVD’s in Little Italy. The 4 moschettieri – the 4 muskateers! A film from 1962 with Georges Riviere as d’Artagnan (the wonder of Google!). At the bottom of the photo is the name Salvatore Samperi; I am not sure which film it is for but Samperi (1943-2009) was an Italian film director & writer. I find it intriguing that these old posters are still on this wall, torn and discoloured as they are.
below: Same store. Italian movies on DVD’s for sale. ‘Maruzzella’ (in English, ‘The Mermaid of Naples’) came out in 1956. If you are an aficionado of old Italian movies, be quick, as I think this store is having a going out of business sale.
I’ll leave you with an image that I found online, a full copy of the poster that is partially covered up above – for the R rated film Malicious/Malizia in 1973. (photo source) That’s 40+ years ago. You see, when you start wandering you start finding all kinds of strange and fascinating things – no fun? indeed not.
The Gardens of St. Clair is a mural project in an alley behind St. Clair West between Prescott and Blackthorn Avenues, just west of the railway tracks. There are lots of roses and other flowers as well as butterflies and birds.
below: A purple pansy and a luminescent insect with a shiny blue body. The dark green vine motif runs throughout the project.
below: Flowers inside the door too.
below: Wunder three times over.
The plaque on the wall says:
The Gardens of St. Clair
Concept by Mike (Wunder) Kennedy, 1973-2017.
Featuring work by: Bacon, Kane, Rony, Wales, Kwest, Baler, Tensoe2, Flown, Vinse, Whysper, Adore, Miles, Sight, Elwal, Emes, and Nick Sweetman
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.
A blue bird at the left flying in front of the garage door.
The window now looks like it protrudes from the wall and is part of the mural.
Like all good cyclists, he has a light on his bike but this light is a miniature person with a powerful flashlight.
buzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Another blue bird in flight, this time at the righthand side of the mural.
I found myself on a sunny Friday afternoon with time to spare. I haven’t walked Graffiti Alley in the warmth for quite a few months so off we went, hunting for new things, forgotten things, and special ‘are they still there?’ things.
below: Vitality at 505 “It’s showtime baby girl, own it”
below: I guess that it’s painful to have your face stuck on a wall.
below: Some black line drawn figures on top of text street art.
below: Arty strings by lek_gold
below: This little giraffe has aged well.
below: It looks like he has a strawberry beard and I’ll assume that that’s a can of spray paint in his hand, not a can of shaving cream!
below: A yellow monster rises from the barrels.
below: I didn’t touch it. I just took a picture of it.
below: Anyone seen a guy running around in his underwear?
The Roden in the title of this blog post refers to Roden Public School. In their schoolyard they have this colourful mural, a fairly accurate map of the area with the school in the center. The original school on this site was built in 1907-1908 as Ashdale School. In 1910 it was renamed to honour Mr. E.P. Roden a long time school trustee. The present school was built in 1969.
below: The school is just north of Gerrard St., between Coxwell and Greenwood, and south of the railway tracks. I suspect that the 100 in the circle that marks the school has to do with the 100th anniversary of the school although I haven’t been able to find any information about the mural online.
All day Sunday, and well into the early hours of Monday morning, it snowed. It’s been many months since I’ve walked on a snowy day. It was a bit grey and there wasn’t a lot of contrast (as in light and shadow) in the scenery yesterday afternoon when I walked, but the novelty of white snow kept me interested (and warm!). From Roden school I wandered westward.
below: Walking home after school.
below: A cosy brown scarf and red hat, an avocado smile, celery arms are two doggie treat buttons on his tummy – a snowman living the easy life. No standing around in the snow for him!
below: This was my friend who accompanied me for part of my walk, meowing loudly most of the time. I’m not sure what it was trying to tell me. Maybe it was out enjoying the snow? More likely it was looking for a warm place to snuggle.
below: Busy steps, quiet steps.
below: Keeping an eye on the garage. Eye spy!
below: Bikes and deer in the alley. A mother deers keeps watch over her fawn.
below: On one hand, I want to say that for those who want to look, there are many little surprises to be found in the lanes and alleys of this city. But on the other hand, there are an incredible number of old cars parked in city backyards. Some are neglected and clearly not roadworthy while others still have some life left in them.
below: Another car.
below: Clowning around in a window.
below: I think it’s dub monkey, duh?
below: Looking south to Gerrard Street. Snow and slush, very Toronto in the winter. The orange construction sign is also very Toronto, but in all seasons these days.
below: Someone added some colour to the alley when they shouldn’t have.
below: A mural by kairo, on a pink that packs a punch on a grey winter day.
below: More alley colour to brighten the day.
below: Someone loves their bike. I find it a bit creepy that the picture is a skull.
below: Wall art of another kind. Shades of yellow.
below: Little ups and downs in the lane. A large majestic winter tree stands over the lane.
below: A peacock mural. Lahore Halal Meat store on the corner of Gerrard is a reminder that this part of Gerrard was/is referred to as Little India because of the large number of Indian (Southeast Asian) shops and restaurants.
below: This photo is from the entrance to Lahore Halal Meat store in the above photo. The material on the inside features brides and grooms within heart shapes and surrounded by white flowers. Not what you’d expect in a meat shop!
below: Textured concrete, broken bricks, and the remnants of a black stencil.
below: Sunflowers reach for a sunny place.
below: A fork in the alley. A jumble of lines.
Exploring streets and lanes I don’t think that I’ve walked before… or at least I don’t remember them!
Following every possible alley.
Then one turns a corner and becomes a dead end.
Frustrating to have to turn around and retrace my steps but rarely is it a waste of time.
below: There really isn’t much to this graffiti but at least there’s a creative (albeit gruesome) use of the garage door knob. The poor guy is shocked and probably in pain as he’s stabbed in the eye. I’m not sure if the other fellow is screaming or laughing loudly.
below: Flash, glare and a happy light bulb.
below: A blackburn giant squirrel covers a garage door.
It’s after Labour Day but it’s still hot enough to be July. I tried to walk for a while today but I didn’t last. Air conditioning is my best friend this afternoon. But all was not lost. Even though I was only out for a short time, I walked along Croft Street and discovered that the south end (south of Vankoughnet) has been cleaned up and repainted. If you don’t know Croft Street, it’s a street in name only. It’s more like an alley in that it’s narrow with a lot of garages on it….but it’s also a lane that now has a number of residences on it. I guess you could call it a hybrid, a little bit alley and a little bit street.
What I really like about the street art here is that there is a cohesiveness to it. It’s not all the same but it all works together. Do I dare call it designer street art?
below: A couple of murals that existed previously were left untouched. On the left an oldie and on the right a new coat of paint.
below: As well as a bright and cheerful coat of paint (and the occasional white wall!), the lane has been decorated with planters made of cement blocks and old plastic barrels.
The south end of Croft Street is at College Street. There once was a mural on a wall at the corner of Croft and College that commemorated the fire of 1904. Almost three years ago I blogged about it. (3 years!) John Croft died in that fire and it was for him that the street was named. Anyhow, that mural is still there although it’s been hidden behind someone’s ugly tagging for more than a year. Today it is also behind scaffolding.
below: Part of the John Croft mural that no longer exists.
And now, because life (or, my life) is rarely linear, I’m going to jump around and look at the other end of Croft Street. North of Vankoughnet there seemed to be an animal theme in street art that I saw.
below: birdo bunny with his ears at attention.
below: The memorial to Monty the cat is still there, again for at least 3 years, but now it’s someone’s little patio. In case you are unfamiliar with this wall I have added a transcription of the poem written in Monty’s honour.
Did you know our Monty the cat?
King of Croft and all that
(Ask your dog. Ask your cat)
Did you give him a pet
Once you had met?
Or tickle his soft silken tum tum?
Did he tell you his tale in articulate meow
And share his affection with a rub of his brow?
His loss here has left us really quite blue
But remembering all of those of YOU
Who knew how to share a sweet kindness true
Who would pause on the way,
In midst of each day,
To offer wee beastie
affectionate feastie
In Memory of Monty
Thank you!
below: Unicorns vs Monsters. And the winner is?
below: Three cows standing in a field…. on a wall.
below: No animal here…. but it must have been here recently and left its paw prints behind.
below: An angular fox, or rather a triangular fox
below: More animals but I’m not sure if it’s art, or if someone has a lot of watering cans they’re trying to keep organized. The bottom yellow one is probably not a pokemon, right? Of course I could be missing something – it wouldn’t be the first time!
below: Leaving the animal theme behind, mind over matter.
below: 74B likes grids. The metal stripping on the brown door has been there for at leasat three years but the coloured stripes on the garage are more recent.
below: All stories and all blog posts need an ending so I’ll stop here. The end.
Running east from Christie subway station behind the stores on Bloor West is an alley. There are a few murals there, either in the lane or visible from the lane. Below are pictures of five of them, although the last one is more graffiti than mural.
The largest of these murals is ‘Under the Radar’, or at least those are the words painted on the mural. It is on three sides of a building that backs onto the alley.
below: East side of the building
below: The back of the building
below: “Painting to the artist is like flight to the bird. Freedom”
below: West side of the building
below: White on black, a mural signed as @oskwong @release852 (2 photos)
below: The central portion – it looks like the devil and maybe an angel? Good vs evil?
below: This mural is signed, ‘the Loft’ which is an acronym for Life Opportunities Food and Technology, a program run by the Christie Ossington Neighbourhood Centre.
below: A bicycle riding alligator.
below: White fish bones contrast with a bright orange garage door.
below: It’s not very often I have to watch out for a Mercedes AND a Ferrari in the lane!
below: “Stop and we’ll build” in Bloordale Village, an area along Bloor St. West between Dufferin St. and Lansdowne Ave.
Last Saturday was Bloordale’s third annual community garage sale and laneway crawl. Many front yards were full of items for sale. A couple of families were selling homemade food and there was at least one lemonade stand.
I walked the area fairly early in the morning so many of the activities were just getting set up. There were things to do and games to play in the alleys and in Susan Tibaldi park. I have blogged previously about this area so last Saturday I only took pictures of things that were new. There weren’t very many changes in the alleys.
below: We are Starlight, we are golden…. **
below: … and it seems that we were all born in outer space. Lovebot and some friends.
Along the side of a building on Jenet Ave I found a large mural of three faces painted by Shalak, Fiya and Bruno Smoky. It faces a parking lot and there were cars in the way. I took some photos anyhow; I think you should be able to see the faces reasonably well.
below: Two women, the one on the left was painted by Shalak while the one on the right is by Fiya.
below: The mustached man and his fish was painted by Bruno Smoky.
below: Remnants of old Rob Ford graffiti still remain around the city including this doorway.
below: This building on Brock Street on has been empty for years.
below: The front of 668 Brock Ave with its Salvation Army ghost sign. In 1921 it was home to the Brock Avenue People’s Mission while next door at 666 Brock Ave., the Number 16 Corps of the Salvation Army was stationed. Its history since then is still a mystery to me.
below: At the not so picturesque corner of Lansdowne and Paton Rd., I found a metal fence. A sign on it says that it is the ‘Lansdowne Fence Temporary Artwork’ by artists Scott Eunson and Marianne Lovink, commissioned by the TTC in 2010. But why is the TTC involved with this vacant lot?
below: And as you can see, it’s a large lot. As it turns out, this was the site of the TTC Lansdowne Carhouse up until 1996. Although the carhouse was classified as a heritage building, it was demolished in 2003. The land has been vacant ever since.
below: Lansdowne carhouse, 1996, photo credit: Robert Lubinksi, TTC collection, found online.
below: A new mural has been painted on the side of the South Indian Dosa Mahal restaurant at the corner of Emerson and Bloor. It is the creation of SPUD and his team with the support of StreetARToronto and the Bloordale BIA. It’s probably the biggest tiger cub in Toronto!
below: Dasdardly Whiplash in his latest role as a graffiti artist near Lansdowne subway station.
below: Small places of worship are scattered all over the city. Many are in buildings once used for other purposes, including (by the looks of it) this one, the Belarusan Autocephalous Orthodox Church, Parish of St. Kiryla of Turau. Trivia #1 of the day: autocephalous is “self-headed” and in this context refers to a church whose bishop does not report to any higher-ranking bishop. Trivia #2: St. Kiryla (c.1130 – 1182) was an eloquent and poetic preacher in Turau which is south of Minsk and east of Warsaw. And on that note I will move on before I end up writing a treatise on Eastern Orthodox religions.
below: Not your average patio!
And last, let’s finish with a splash of bright summer sunshine!
** yes, I know I’ve misquoted
as I walk Toronto 