Posts Tagged ‘graffiti’

a lap around the tracks

Posted: July 27, 2016 in graffiti and street art, locations
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But not a running, or even a jogging, track!  No, yesterday’s walk was an oval-ish loop at walking pace from Dundas West station, up one side of the railway tracks and back down the other.

below: Just past the subway station I saw the mural on “The Friendly Trini’s” which is now closed.  If the mural is telling the truth, they once served butter chicken, curried goat roti, jerk chicken with rice and peas, as well as drinks in coconuts and pineapples.  Feeling hungry already, and I’ve only just begun my walk.

a mural on the side of the Friendly Trinis restaurant that is now closed. Two women are walking on the sidewalk by the restaurant, a sign for Jennys bar and restaurant is in the background. The mural has drinks in coconuts and pineapples as well as a list of some of the food they served

below: Also on Dundas West, the King’z Convenience and Dollar Store which sells Filipino products and delicacies is adjacent to the Slovenija meat & delicatessen.  Multicultural.  I regret not taking pictures of the window of the Slovenian store – juice and beer brands that were unfamiliar to me.

two storefronts on a street, one is a slovenian grocery store and the other is a convenience store

below: Detail, boy riding an old fashioned bike on a little hook above a door.

a decorative ornament hanging high on a brick wall, a hook that extends from the wall about 8 to 10 inches, on top is a flat rendition of a boy on an old fashioned bicycle

below: And someone has decorated their balcony.

a balcony railing has been decorated with different colours of fabric that has woven between the rails

below: Just before I reached the bridge over the railway tracks I saw these words on a wall.

graffiti on a wall, in white paint on grey wall, the words "I have a dream'

below:  The dream theme continues on the metal steps up to the bridge.  This one was small and I almost missed it.  I’m not sure if it was painted black to blend into the background, or if the painting was an attempt to “clean up” the graffiti when prying off the letters proved to be too difficult (the D is broken so maybe someone tried).  Insert words about killing other people’s dreams here.

a raised word, 'dream' in cursive that has been stuck on the side of a set of stairs and then painted black to match the steps

below: From the top of the steps looking south.  The minimalist new Bloor GO and UP (Union Pearson) station is finished, top left of the photo.  Don’t you think we should call it ‘Get UP and GO’?  The street is Dundas West and yes, that mural is new.

view from a bridge, a street, and a railway and some buildings in between. There is a mural at the bottom of the steps.

below: Helping to hold up the bridge, west side of the tracks.  He’s carrying the weight of the world, or maybe just the bridge, on his shoulders.

mural on the concrete base supporting metal struts bridge supports.

After crossing the bridge, I walked north along the West Toronto Railpath. The fencing along the path has all been upgraded.  There used to be some spots where you could get through the fence (non-railway side) but those are gone.  Between the tracks and the path there is a new clear (glass? plastic?) fence.  Of course it has already been ‘vandalized’ or ‘tagged’ – choose your verb.  Because I was there on a sunny afternoon, the sun was shining through the ‘artwork’ and making interesting designs.  A few thistles and other weeds added some compositional elements.

glass that has been spray painted yellow and orange, with some black that has run, weeds are growing in front of it, the sun is shining from behind it

a bright red heart has been sprayed painted onto a glass wall, weeds growing front, train tracks behind, the sun shining through the glass.

There were quite a few hearts on my route, especially around the Dupont exit of the Railpath.

below: Many hearts on the fence.

two street art pieces painted on a glass wall. the first is a red and black heart with a white banner across it on which the word love is written. the other is 8 little red hearts on white stems growing from the ground below.

below: A heart for Hex and Nish wherever, and whomever, they may be.

a bright red heart painted on a man made boulder, words hex and nish written on it

below: Three heart balloons on the Dupont sign.  You can get a good view of the fence here.

glass fence beside railway tracks, path, trees, also a metal sign on which three red hearts on white stems have been painted.

below: Part of the West Toronto Railpath runs alongside Planet Storage, an large old brick building.  There used to be a lot of street art along the side of the building but it’s all been painted over.   A few tattle tale remnants remain.

wall, part of an older brick building that has been painted a rust colour, with windows, some of which have metal grilles over them. Remnants of old graffiti on the metal grilles.

below: My favorite, little details like the bright yellow giraffe looking at the clouds.

looking into a window, toy yellow giraffe on the window sill as well as two toy trolls, one with yellow hair and the other with orange. Reflections of clouds in the window

below: There is one mural on the Railpath, the back of Osler’s Fish Market is covered with a fish and fishing themed mural.

back of Osler Fish Market covered with a fish and fishing mural

below: Fish heads in the weeds.  Queen Anne’s lace, that plant with the white flowers, was growing in abundance along the path.  You might know it by its other name, Wild Carrot.

detail of a mural, fish heads, on a wall with Queens Annes lace and other weeds growing in front.

mural with fisherman bringing in a load of fish to the shore, boat in the background, more fish in the foreground.

mural, man sitting, mending fishing nets, woman on the shore carrying a bundle towards some fishing boats.

below: A splash of red on a street just off the railpath.

the top part of an old Victorian brick 2 storey house, painted red with white trim

below: The sign on the table says: “Hi! La Witch Cat here.  Enjoy the space, but PLEASE do not litter.  I provided a garbage can. Use it!  This includes cigarette butts.  Put in trash once extinguished.  Thanks!  XXO”.  Marvellous!  I sooo agree with the part about cigarette butts.  Why do people who don’t litter still consider it okay to throw cigarette butts wherever they please?  I smiled but I didn’t stop to rest.

In a veryshady spot, against a metal fence, two old chairs with a white table between them, a sign on the table and a small garbage can to the left.

below: At one point I found myself at this intersection.  What is a pedestrian to do? It’s possible I walked where I shouldn’t have, or at least where foot traffic is rare.  All the roads in the photo are Dundas West; it’s where the street splits as it approaches Dupont and Annette.  There was a small park behind me, called Traffic Island park.  The name sums it up I think.

wide intersection where two roads meet in a V shape. not much else in the picture, only the nose of one car, no other traffic. hydro poles and wires in the picture

two old Toronto street signs, slightly rusted, on a hydro pole, one for Dundas St. WEst and one for Dupont street

below: A lament for the streetscape.  One more line in an elegy to public spaces.  The result of a half hearted attempt.  Massive hydro poles on the narrow sidewalk.  A large ad. A green space that needs attention.  If you look carefully, you can see  a plaque on a small stand.

sidewalk right beside a road, with hydro poles on the sidewalk, a small stretch of green space (about a metre) befoew a large fence that is concrete on the bottom and glass on the top. A couple of small trees that are dying are in the green space.

below: This is the plaque.  According to the words, this strip of land was replanted in 2001-2003 with a number of native species with the plan that they would spread and “create an oasis in the middle of the city”.   It mentions three plants – Nannyberry tree, Staghorn sumac, and Bottlebrush grass.   Disconnect alert.

plaque describing the railside garden with words about its history and some picture of the plants that grow there

below: On my way back to the subway station I spotted this 24 hour lovebot.

a lovebot sticker on a TTC bus stop pole, between the sign that says 24 hours and the symbol of a bus, older industrial building behind it.

…. that was where I walked yesterday but before I leave, a few small details.  Ciao!

graffiti on a grey metal door of a girl's head with lots of pink hair. A pink heart beneath her with the word love under that

red background, silhouette of sumac leaves

blue background, graffiti drawing of man's head, wearing large crown, sad eyes, heart in word bubble

a plate in a window that says Good Morning Sunshine, also two small ceramic figures of cats, and one ceramic dog

singing birds, the devil, and more

Posted: June 21, 2016 in graffiti and street art, locations
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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

The side of a building is painted with a mural of birds sitting on a wire. Purple, black and blue are the colours in the mural.

part of a mural, blackbirds sitting on a wire, dark blue background, on a brick building in an alley

below: The back of the building

Under the Radar mural on the back of a building in an alley, featuring birds, with baseball caps, with colourful shoes and sitting on branches of a large tree

Under the Radar mural on the back of a building in an alley, featuring birds, with baseball caps, with colourful shoes and sitting on branches of a large tree

a blue and purple bird sings while standing on the branch of a tree, it's wearing a baseball cap. Part of a mural

part of a larger mural - a cat chases a bird, under a tree branch, tire rope swing on the tree in the picture too, the cat looks a bit like Felix the cat cartoon character

below: “Painting to the artist is like flight to the bird. Freedom”

part of mural, a dark blue bird sits in a tree. The words "Painting to the artist is like flight to the bird. freedom"

below: West side of the building

brick building in a laneway. At the top is an old sign that says IDA Hanin Drug Mart. Below, a large mural with birds.

below: White on black, a mural signed as @oskwong @release852 (2 photos)

mural on the side of a one storey building, black background, white line drawing, balance, good and evil, angel and devil, @oskwong, release852 as the signature on the mural

below: The central portion – it looks like the devil and maybe an angel? Good vs evil?

detail of a white drawing on black mural, ceter portion, devil and angel, by Oscar Kwong, release852

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.

back of a row of stores, lane view, air conditioning unit, garbage bins, a mural of a man wearing a suit and hat. Sign on mural says The Loft, by

below: A bicycle riding alligator.

a wood fence with a graffiti painting of a black alligator or crocodile on it. in an alley

below: White fish bones contrast with a bright orange garage door.

graffiti, white spray paint line drawing of fish bones with head and tail, large, on an orange garage door in a laneway

below: It’s not very often I have to watch out for a Mercedes AND a Ferrari in the lane!

a red Ferrari and a beige Mercedes drive past each other beside a coin laundry in a lane.

Bloordale, north of Bloor

Posted: June 18, 2016 in graffiti and street art
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below: “Stop and we’ll build” in Bloordale Village, an area along Bloor St. West between Dufferin St. and Lansdowne Ave.

Street signs on a metal pole. The top on is a Bloor St. West sign with the words Bloordale village on it as well. Below that is a stop sign that someone has written "and we'll build", altered sign

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.

A woman stands in her front yard talking to a man and his daughter who are on the sidewalk. Her frontyard is full of items that are for sale in a yard sale.

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.

A large graffiti face covering the side of a garage in an alley. Line drawing in green and orange.

below:  We are Starlight, we are golden…. **

some green weeds growing in front of an old garage in an alley with a black door on which someone has spray painted the word starlight.

below: … and it seems that we were all born in outer space.  Lovebot and some friends.

mural on a garage door in an alley. a green giraffe, a blue lovebot, and a purple goose, with the words "We were all born in outer space"

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.

two faces, mural, painted on the side of building, both women, a multicoloured face in profile by Shalak on the left and a woman with purple hair by Fiya on the right.

below:  The mustached man and his fish was painted by Bruno Smoky.

mural of a man's face, eyes closed, wearing a hat, mustache, older man

part of a mural, a gold fish swimming, it is also reflected in the windows of the car that is parked beside it.

below: Remnants of old Rob Ford graffiti still remain around the city including this doorway.

an old doorway in a red brick building in a lane. There is an old graffiti face of Rob Ford painted on the door. R I P has been written on his forehead.

below: This building on Brock Street on has been empty for years.

the back of an old three storey brick building that is empty. The doors and windows have been boarded up. Some tags have been painted there, cinq, dfine and stud.

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.
ghost sign, Salvation Army, across the top of an old brick building, number 668 Brock St., three storeys with fancy brickwork across the top of the roofline. boarded up, metal fence in front, concrete covered front yard, yellow fire hydrant.

a metal box on a wall, both painted a yellowish brown, on the box someone has written woof woof woof woof woof meow vertically so that meow is under a pile of woofs. The house across the street is in the background.

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?

metal fence on the corner, on two sides of a large 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.

a chainlink fence with some metal cut outs of flowers and pigeons on it, with weeds growing up in front of it, and a few real pigeons on the ground.

below: Lansdowne carhouse, 1996, photo credit: Robert Lubinksi, TTC collection, found online.

historical picture of Lansdowne carhouse, 1996 with old TTC buses in front of the building

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!

large mural of a tiger cub playing with two balls, one red and one blue. The cub has one green eye and one blue eye. Covers the whole of the side of a building

part of a large mural of a tiger cub playing with two balls, one red and one blue. The cub has one green eye and one blue eye. Covers the whole of the side of a building - head of the cub and part of the blue ball

part of a large mural of a tiger cub playing with two balls, one red and one blue. The cub has one green eye and one blue eye. Covers the whole of the side of a building. - tail and red ball

below: Dasdardly Whiplash in his latest role as a graffiti artist near Lansdowne subway station.

street art painting on a doorway and wall in an alley, of cartoon character Dastardly Whiplash with his mustache, black cape and top hat spray painting a tag on a wall.

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.

low, one storey brick building with a pink double door, metal fence and gate in front, ornate cross above the door.

below: Not your average patio!

back deck of a light industrial building, no railing, two canvas chairs, steps down to ground level where there is a couch
two old cars, one red and one dark grey, are parked in an overgrown backyard on an alley.

large black letters sprayed onto a light grey garage that say Love But Think

And last, let’s finish with a splash of bright summer sunshine!

two large yellow flowers attached to the handle bars of a bicycle

** yes, I know I’ve misquoted

Frank Kovac lane

Posted: June 8, 2016 in graffiti and street art, locations
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Frank Kovac Lane is a short alley just south of Christie subway station.  Some of the garage doors were painted with murals in past years and, as usual, there were plenty of tags.  Recently, the lane was the scene of a community mural painting session thanks to the 4th Toronto Rangers (Girl Guides), StreetARToronto,  artist Nick Sweetman, and some local residents.  Now some of the tags are gone and more importantly, some more garage doors are home to bright and cheerful murals.  A few of them are included here.

below: At the north end of the lane is this large, colourful mural by Nick Sweetman.
Two large blue bears have found a plethora of honey.  Will the bees share?

large mural by Nick Sweetman on a wall in Frank Kovac Lane, two very large blue bears are eating honey from honeycombs while a few large bees buzz around.

part of a large mural by Nick Sweetman on a wall in Frank Kovac Lane, two very large blue bears are eating honey from honeycombs while a few large bees buzz around - close up of one bear's face

below: The new murals continue the animal theme, “Urban Wildlife”, starting with this fox.

garage door in an alley painted with a mural of a fox head beside a bicycle wheel with trilliums growing up in front of it.

below: A common Toronto animal, a raccoon, beside a red fire hydrant.

view in an alley, a lavendar coloured door. to the left of the door is a garage door painted with a mural of a raccoon and a red fire hydrant.

below: A blue jay eyes some blueberries.

mural on a pale yellow garage door of a blue jay sitting on hydro wires, also a bunch of wild blueberries is in the image

below: Several monster faces have lived in this alley for a while and they still remain.
This one looks like he needs a hair cut.

garage door painted with a monster face, big mouth and teeth, orange nose, in tones of blue, grey and orange, ivy is growing over the top of the garage and it looks like green hair.

three garages in a row in an alley, all painted with a large monster face

a skinny blue graffiti figure on the edge of a garage, between two garage doors with stylized and abstract faces painted on them. One is black and green and the other is black and white

An old garage and concrete fence with a door in it. The fence is cracked above the door. The door is painted black with bright colour scribbles, the garage door has a black and white mural on it

a painting in grey tones of a young boy in old fashioned shorts and long sleeved top, standing.

below: This graffiti is actually on Harbord Street but I couldn’t resist taking a picture of it
– a camera and an “oh snap”

Above Guan's auto service shop, a graffiti on an upper storey wall, a small camera and turquoise lettering and words in pink that say Oh snap. Above that is a red billboard for Bud and Burger

anatomy lesson, and more

Posted: May 31, 2016 in graffiti and street art
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Today’s blog starts with an anatomy lesson as illustrated by vampz on a wall in Graffiti Alley – the arterial and venous blood flow of the head and neck.

street art painting of a larger than life, realistic depiction of the blood supply to the human head. Skull with eyeball, teeth, some neck muscles as well as arterial and venous blood vessels. In profile.

I walked the alleys behind Queen St West today to see if there was anything new.  The biggest new pieces were the above head and a new birdo creation, pictured below.  A realistic looking blue jay and a floating pink gem.

a garage decorated with a mural by birdo, of a realistic blue jay and a pink cut gem floating in front of the bird.

  below: The back part of the blue jay is on the side wall of the garage
which produces an interesting 3D effect.

a garage decorated with a mural by birdo, of a realistic blue jay and a pink cut gem floating in front of the bird. The front part of the bird is on the garage door and the back part of the bird is on the side wall.

below: This tribute to the basketball Raptors and their appearance in the 2016 Eastern Conference Finals is also a new addition.  DeRozan is pictured on the left and my apologies for not knowing the player on the right.  Unfortunately, it was too close to garbage day and the bins were overflowing so I couldn’t move them out of the way.  Next time.

streetart mural in tribute to Toronto Raptors basketball team and their presence in the Eastern Conference Finals in 2016. The heads of two black basketball players on a red and purple background.

below: And unfortunately, garbage was an issue today.

a bin of garbage plus a pile of garbage bags in front of a street art piece, a face and a tag in green and red, signed hangman, detroit.

below: The face isn’t new to the alley, but the words are.
Written by a woman with priorities!

Pretty female working retail falls in love with guys who need bail
the sweet smell of lust or love
you mean well, but money can get her a new car and clean nails.
The Lady”

number 669 in lime green letters above a stylized woman's face with yellow hair and a blue top. Someone has written words on the brick wall beside the painting.

below: Love Department featuring Phoebe.
You can find more of her on instagram @phoebenewyork

A little paper paste up of a large headed girl with black hair and a large red heart on her head. on a pink background with the words Love Department. Stuck on a garage door painted in pink and blue shapes

below: Even a simple smile will do most of the time.

under the rusted metal of a wire grill over a window, on a wall that was painted in black and orange street art, there is a small white line drawing of a girl's head

below: Cloud Monet and the woman in white, or Who you lookin’ at Mr. Fish?

small vertical drawing of a woman, drawn in white, wearing a long form fitting dress, standing, on brown, tied to a wall with a mural laready painted on it.

a painted piece of street art has been partially covered with many vertical lines in black marker, producing an interesting pattern over the colours below.

Three hinges have been bent forward so they are flat, multicoloured graffiti behind them, words written on the hinges except for the bottom one which has a question mark on it.

below: A couple of stikmans.  No anatomical realism here!

a little wooden stikman with only one leg on a green concrete block wall, with white stencilled daisies above him, street art in an alley

a very pale blue stikman on a very pale blue window and wall.

below: A bit of mystery.  I’m not sure if it’s a stikman or if it’s a newcomer to the alley

orange coloured stikman, double, foot to foot, in a pink wall with foam insulation on both sides of him

below: Pull up a seat and rest a bit, we’re almost done.

cast off furniture in a lane, two chairs, a TV, a small yellow set of drawers, a mop,

below: The final words on today’s walk.  Someone’s not happy!

graffiti wods on a red and white wall, "Graffiti Sucks"

a flock of birdos

Posted: May 17, 2016 in graffiti and street art
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This blog post is about a flock of birdos, meaning that I found a lot of alley garages decorated with paintings by street artist birdo.  Or maybe ‘a menagerie of birdos’ would be a more accurate description as most of the pictures were of different animals such as elephant, cat, dog, coyote, and mouse along with a number of different birds.

These photographs were are all taken in alleys behind the south part of Dovercourt Road (between Queen and Sudbury streets).  The majority of the paintings that I saw were result of birdo’s work but there were examples of  and I have included them in this post too.

 below: Two birdo birds with eggs, with a slice of mushroom and pepperoni pizza by Shalak.

Three garages in an alley, with trees growing between them. The first two have garage doors with birdo murals on them and the third has a pizza street art painting by Shalak

street art mural on a garage door in an alley by birdo - a large bird with blue head and orange beak sitting in a nest looking down at a large white egg

street art mural on a garage door in an alley by birdo - a parrot holding a large blue egg

An old wood garage in an alley that is painted by Shalak, a slice of pizza with pepperoni pieces flying off it (or onto it!)

a person is sitting on a kerb in an alley, beside a wall with a large mural by birdo of an elephant and a mouse

street art mural on a wall in an alley by birdo - an elephant with a green head

below: Howling at the moon, with a cactus and a scorpion too.

street art mural on a garage door in an alley by birdo - a coyote howling at the moon in the desert with a large cactus in the picture as well as a scorpion. words: birdo homes spud

below: Blue dog, pink lava lamp

street art mural on a garage door in an alley by birdo - a blue dog beside a pink lava lamp on a table. words: birdo dmc, phil pans tense

street art mural on a garage door in an alley by birdo - a four legged animal looks to be growling at something

street art mural on a garage door in an alley by birdo - a large multicoloured cat. words: tense phil pans

below:  A rooted turtle and cool owl with sparkly shades

street art mural on a garage door in an alley by birdo - a lavendar turtle and an owl with blue eyes and orange beak

street art mural on a garage door in an alley by birdo - a creature with a green and purple body and head that looks like a parrot

street art mural on a wall in an alley, a girls face, two little brown pigtails, 2 hearts and a turtle head

an old mattress leans against an old brick wall that has two pieces of graffiti on it. One is a blue and yellow egg shape with a blue arm and hand sticking out of a crack in it. The words "It's alive" are written beside it. The other is a small blue creature like shape

On a gararge door in a laneway, painted like the Canadian flag except there is a pineapple in the middle instead of a maple leaf. On the right hand side red stripe are the words "have a nice day"

A mural by bruno smoky on the side of a white container. It is a purple faced creature with blue tag like shapes around it.

below: “Just a robot that doesn’t like technology”

a lovebot on a silver garage door with the words "Just a robot that doesn't like technology, I'd rather be free"- signed Tasha

number 66 in a lane, garage door, door and walls covered with circles and triangles in different colours.

A door covered with a very abstract face painting and another graffiti face beside the door.

from Riverside to Leslieville

Posted: April 22, 2016 in locations
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A walk along Queen Street East from Broadview to Greenwood.

A no smoking sign written on a piece of paper that is upside down, as viewed from the other side of the window. Looking out onto a patio.

below: Welcome to Riverside, mural at the corner of Queen and Grant streets featuring the sign on the Queen bridge as it crosses over the Don River.

People walking past the intersection where there a mural for Riverside area of Toronto, TTC streetcar in the mural. It is on the upper floor of a two storey brick building.

below: Farther east on Queen Street, at Curzon,  there is this ‘Greetings from Leslieville’ mural.

One of the Leslieville murals. Greetings from Leslieville with a postcard on it.

There are many interesting little stores on this stretch of Queen Street.
All the benches have been painted in cheerful colourful stripes.

Looking across the street at a man sitting on the edge of a concrete planter for a tree as well as a multicoloured striped bench with two women sitting on it. They are in front of two storey brick buildings with stores on the bottom level and apartments on the top. One of the stores is Bronze.

Rubiks cubes and large red and white dice in a store window, some real and some reflected in a a mirror on the wall.

looking into the window of a pharmacy, a toy troll is in a white mug. The mug has red lettering - Yours pharmacy. Also a mortar and pestle in the window along with a box with medicines for influenza

below: On the 21st of April (yesterday), Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her 90th birthday.
A number of stores and restaurants had displays in her honour.

items in a store window. A Canadian flag, a mountie figurine that waves, two mugs featuring Queen Elizabeth and a container of tea.

A picture of Queen Elizabeth hangs on a wall in a cafe, seen through the window with reflections of the sky. There are red chairs in the cafe

Queen Street East was developed as long ago as the mid 1800’s and remnants of various decades can be found as one explores the area.
below: … details such as this fading Canada Dry sign.  The formula for Canada Dry ginger ale was developed in the early 1900’s by John J. McLaughlin, of the same McLaughlin family whose early automobile factory led to the start of General Motors.  This ginger ale was patented in Toronto in 1907.  Usually the words ‘Canada Dry’ are written in red, not yellow.   Is there a time when Canada Dry used yellow lettering?

An older Canada Dry advertisement sign hangs over the entrance to Eddies Convenience Store on Queen St East.

below:  At the corner of Queen and Coady there is also a ghost sign for Coady Sweets as well as an advertisement for Coca-Cola.

On a corner, Edjan Convenience Store with people walking past it. On the side of the upper floor of the two storey brick building is a ghost sign advertising coca cola and Coady Sweets. At the corner of Coady and Queen St. East in Leslieville Toronto
  below: Call it luck – even a vintage car drove past while I was there.

A black vintage car drives by on Queen St East

below: An old KitKat advertisement on the side of Boston Discount Store.  If you look closely, there is also an original Boston Ave street sign at the top right of the KitKat ad.

Side of a convenience store with an ad for KitKat, have a break, is painted on the side. Boston Discount Store on the corner of Queen St. East and Boston Ave

below: Even older are the buildings in the mural of Queen St. East circa 1926.  I am not sure if this an accurate depiction of a particular stretch of Queen Street.  It might be interesting to do some research to find out if the picture can be retaken, 90 years later.  So far I have been unable to find out anything about a Jackson Brothers store on Queen East.

Black and white mural of historical picture of Queen St East

below:  A sign of the new, some of the new TTC streetcars are now running along Queen Street.

The side of a new TTC streetcar behind a striped bench on a sidewalk

below: A mural depicting Frank Zappa along with the words
“Stupidity has a certain charm.  Ignorance does not.”

A mural of Frank Zappa on the upper floor of a two storey building. Also includes the words Stupidity has a certain charm, ignorance does not.

below: Like so many places and streets in Toronto, there are condos going up here too.

reflections in the shiny black hoardings around a condo construction site. buildings, car, people

A young man walks past the Value Village Donation Center that has a large window with 3 mannequins in it. A bike is parked in front.

below: The railway tracks pass over Queen Street.  A number of years ago the underpass was decorated with paintings of different animals and those paintings remain in good shape.

A small section of the railway bridge over Queen St. East near De Grassi. The far wall is painted light blue and there are picture of animals on it.

below: Once upon a time trains served this area.  There was a railway station here but it is long gone.

historical plaque describing the history of Riverdale train station at Queen St. East and De Grassi St in Toronto

transcription:

“In 1896, the Grand Trunk Railway opened its Queen East Station to serve Toronto’s growing east end.  Renamed Riverdale Station in 1907, the building stood here on De Grassi Street at Queen Street East.  Its dramatic turret, bay window, and a deep overhanging roof were defining features typical of small railway stations of the period.

In 1904, a streetcar collided with a freight train at the level crossing on Queen Street East, killing three people and injuring 18.  This and subsequent accidents led to the elevation of the new Union Station railway corridor above city streets and sidewalks.  The station was moved in 1927 to accommodate the new embankment for the underpass, the first of nine to be completed.  Dwindling passenger numbers during the Great Depression led to the closure of Riverdale Station in 1932 and its demolition in 1974.”

below: Looking west from under the railway bridge.

Photo taken from under a bridge, looking west along Queen St. East, cars on the street, a restaurant on the corner, and some women on the sidewalk.

below: A train themed mural in an alley just off Queen Street.

Street art painting of a brown train boxcar, with a yellow and orange tag on it, on the side of a building in an alley.

board outside Fuzz salon.

graffiti, white stick drawing of a man with a beard pointing his finger, or giving someone the finger, hard to tell

Two brick stores on Queen St East, two storey. One is the OKOK diner with a mural on the side of it that features an older version TTC streetcar.
reflections in the window of a cafe. Red benches are outside the window. People, TTC streetcar

Looking into a store window. A small model of the Statue of Liberty, a fire extinguisher, a pump and some PVC pipe parts. Reflections of sky, buildings from across the street and a yellow set of lights above a cross walk.

The painted sign on the door of Dangerous Dan's restaurant that says, No bathrooms, no change, no outside food, no kidding.

the latest word on the street

Posted: April 10, 2016 in graffiti and street art
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Anyone with a marker and a bit of gumption can leave their mark almost anywhere but most of us don’t.  What makes some people write?  The stupid and/or juvenile scrawls I can do without but I like encountering words that make me smile or make me think.  Below is a small collection that I have seen in the past week.  Some are stupid and some are witty, but all are the result of someone’s thoughts and actions.

below: Keep it civil; keep it underground.

an orange diamond shaped construction ahead sign

below: “MyFace  – I vote for a date with you!  Currently searching for my 2017 Valentine.”
Brought to you (maybe) by someone called James and seen around Ryerson University.

a poster taped to a pole on a street with the heading "MyFace", a picture of a young man pointing at the camera. Words on the bottom say:

below: What is more tempting than a blank wall?  If a sign requests you not to paint on the wall and you draw on it with marker, have you disobeyed the request?

An off white coloured wall on which someone has printed the words "Please do not paint wall". In answer someone else has drawn a picture (very faint so it's hard to see)

below: These posters on the wood hoardings have been up for many months now.  Someone has written “communist garbage” on one of the posters.  I’m not sure of the ideology, but if you believe in the freedom of movement are you really a communist?  The Soviet government certainly didn’t allow it.

posters that have been on wood hoardings for quite a while and they are starting to fray at the edges.

below: Let’s call this photo ‘Garage Heavy Metal in the Bike Lane’.
I’m not sure if this is a list of good things?  or bad things?  Or maybe some sort of poetry?
What does Elizabeth May have in common with Lucy DeCoutere?  Or the TD CEO with Desmond Cole?

a list of things and people written in capital letters, in different colours on a light blue garage door

below: “Do not place any materials here”…..  just a lot of words instead.
A few words about someone called Sarah.

A yellow sign in an alley that says "So not place any materials here" on which someone has written in black sharpie

below: “Drink coca-cola get fat”.  Probably not what Coke intended!?

A large poster coca-cola ad. In the red circle with the coke logo, has been written in black, drink and get fat, such that the sign now says, drink coca-cola, get fat.

below: “I use stickers because I’m too afraid of getting caught to spray”, wabishabby

A very small hand printed sticker that has been stuck to a sign on a wall, top part of sticker is picture of a cat, bottom half of sticker are the words: "

April flurries

Posted: April 5, 2016 in graffiti and street art, nature
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April showers bring May flowers, or so they say.

painted on a garage door, bright green background with black roses with red leaves and white daisies, also with black leaves, a red butterfly and a blue butterfly

BUT, wait just a minute!  You know it always snows in Toronto in April.  Always.

young man's face painted in pink with white features (stylized, not realistic) with orange hair and orange shirt. beside him is the word no written in large pink letters with an exclamation point after it.

And this year is no exception.

drawing of two eyes and a mouth on a grey wall. There is fear in the eyes and the mouth seems to be screaming. Beside the drawing is a window with green metal bars and a small leafless tree growing in front of the window. Snow on the ground.

It’s cold enough that even the poles are wearing scarves.

an old scruffy yellow metal pole in an alley has a black knitted scarf tied around it. There is a bit of snow on the scarf.

But why should that stop us?  There’s always a silver lining and there’s always lemonade to be made.
In this case, it is the opportunity for one last look at the city in winter (we hope!)

backyard, entrance off alley, little red car parked on snow covered parking lot. blue sky, backs of two storey houses

looking through a backless garage where the garage door is open. The garage is empty. you can see the backyard, covered in snow as well as snow covered steps leading up the second storey

looking down a narrow lane to a large two stroey red brick house across the street, a woman is riding past on a bicycle.. winter scene

eyes open, watching for spring

Posted: April 3, 2016 in graffiti and street art
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Faces in the alley, Graffiti Alley

As March turns into April and winter sort of turns into spring.

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below: Looks like someone has already started his spring cleaning.

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below: He says, “See you in hell”.
She thinks, “I’m already there. You should try living beside this smelly thing.”

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below: Jarus has painted a young man

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below: It seems that even Lovebot needs to eat…  Not sure about the purple hamburger bun though!

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