Posts Tagged ‘industrial’

more streets and trails….

Posted: December 2, 2024 in history, locations, nature
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A circular walk to explore the Don Mills trail south of York Mills Road… but how to get there…. We decided to start by walking south on Scarsdale Road to Bond Avenue.

Scarsdale is a nondescript street in North York with a few churches, private schools, some light industry, offices, and all in all, a lot of lowrise late 20th century architecture.

below: Don Mills Baptist Church looking very un-church like.

below: Unmarked

below: Once at Bond, the buildings are mostly residential.

below:  There is a walk-through to the neighbourhood behind

below: The old railway bridge over Bond is now part of the Don Mills Trail.  Originally it took 6 years to build (1912 to 1918) the bridge – using six 2-foot-thick beams that span the 15-foot-wide opening, spaced to handle the weight of locomotives and heavily loaded railway cars.

Don Mills trail access point at Bond Ave.,

below: Also under the bridge is an entrance to Bond Park.

looking under a bridge to a parking lot in a park

below: Another entrance to Bond Park, this time from the trail via a hole in the fence.

leaf covered path down a small hill to a hole in a chainlink fence, and a park with seating beside a baseball diamond in the background, lots of trees

below: “Responsible alcohol consumption is allowed in this park”….rules and responsibilities are then listed along with health information about alcohol.

notice about alcohol in parks, and all the rules

autumn colours in the weeds and wildflowers beside a fence

below: A few remnants of its former life.  Once upon a time this multi use path was a spur line for the CNR, the Leaside Spur.  One of its functions was to connect the CNR main line (now also used by GO to Oriole station and beyond) to the CPR line near Eglinton.  The CPR tracks are those that cross Eglinton just east of Leslie and then cross the Thorncliffe trestle bridge over Wilket Creek Park.  The path ends just before the CPR tracks – there is no connection any more.

old rusted railway sign, small trees have grown up around it

below: Abandoned and rusting.  CNR stopped using this spur line in 1999.  The city bought the property ten years later.

old piece of metal, remains of railway switch? or some piece of railway equipment, lying on the ground

below: Crab apples and dead leaves litter the path

autumn leaves and little red crab apples cover the ground

below: Storage in bins and barrels, on the other side of the fence.

two old blue barrels, behind a fence, lots of undergrowth and weeds too

below: Left behind

discarded pair of boots, and some clothing, left on metal girders stored beside a railway track
stacks of rusty metal girders beside a railway track

below: The north end of the Don Mills Trail runs beside the live CNR line.  Not much of a view is it?  No trains passed by.  Very quiet.

looking northward up the CNR railway tracks from a hole in the fence by the DOn Mills trail.

old white barrels, behind a fence, weeds and small bushes growing up around them

below: Many, many large satelite dishes (and many small ones too).  I was feeling like a spy as I tried to take pictures through the fence… but I didn’t see any surveillance cameras…

satelite dishes behind a fence

below: Approaching York Mills Road

looking north up don mills trail towards york mills road, where there is a bridge over the railway tracks, a large pair of billboards on a tall pillar, dead leaves beside path, shrubs and weeds along the fence

below: The north end of the trail runs beside the bridge York Mills over the railway tracks (on the right in this picture).  From here there is an access road to Scarsdale on the south side of York Mills, or an exit through to Longos Plaza on the north side.

below: Have a seat!

below: Rogers has a large property on the east side of the CNR tracks and has access to this area.

With thanks to my mother for walking with me – she didn’t hesitate to climb through holes in the fence!  She also doesn’t like this picture, but it’s the better of the two that I took that morning!

Bonus section! Just in case you are interested in what’s on Scarsdale Road….

below: Colonel C.O. Dalton CSO and Colonel H.E. Dalton CSO Armoury

sign in front of building,

below: Greek Orthodox Education in Ontario – Metamorphosis Greek Orthodox School.

flags on flagpole, Canadian and GReek, in front of Greek Orthodox Education building

below: Korean Presbyterian Church

side view of front of Toronto Korean Presbyterian church, large roof over entrance, small white steeple, light grey brick building.

 

 

Dupont Street – the western end

Posted: October 26, 2023 in construction, locations, old buildings
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For the whole length of Dupont Street, from Avenue Road to Dundas West, the street runs parallel to, and south of, Canadian Pacific railway tracks.  The proximity to the railway was a major reason that the street was home to many industries.  Back in June I walked a section of Dupont east of Ossington (see Dupont Street Scenes).

A couple of weeks ago I explored west of Ossington and I’d like to show you a few pictures from that walk.  The last part of the walk was a wander through some of the streets and alleys south of Dupont.

the word dupont written in upper case block letters, black, on an old metal truck, barbed wire in front of it

below: There are still a few reminders of Dupont’s industrial past…

old light industry building behind chainlink fence

yellow front end loader in front of building, large green storage tank behind

red truck parked behind chainlink fence, sign on side of truck, on passenger door, says Supont Construction Supplies, building materials, ready made concrete

  Dupont has always been a very mixed street with residences

a front porch on Dupont, white wrought iron chair, also white metal railing, greenery in front, new condo development in the background

semi detached houses, two storeys, one large window in the upper storey, fire hydrant in front, parked motorcycle with cover a well in front

and businesses side by side.  A working class street.

old cars and trucks outside house and mechanic workshop on dupont

an orange vinyl padded chair on a porch with black wrought iron railing and a small white bookcase

food truck and two slush trucks parked beside empty commercial building

below: A more recent addition to the street – Sovereign Smoke (cannabis) sits beside the tire store (or mechanic).

line of tire shops and mechanics, with sovereign cannabis there too

red brick two storey building on Dupont, railway bridge in background, CIBC ad on billboard on roof of building, Sound PX

below: Looking west along Dupont towards Dufferin – where the Galleria Mall used to be there is now a wall of glass.

looking west on Dupont towards Dufferin, tall cranes and new condo highrise construction

Same site, different angle

construction site at dufferin and dupont

below: On the west side of Dufferin, the street is being reconstructed.

looking east on dupont towards redevelopment project at dufferin, many workmen making new sidewalks

below:Re-routing the sidewalk on the south side of Dupont at Emerson

south side of intersection of dupont and emerson, houses, new sidewalk route, black and orange traffic cones

below: Looking west on Dupont at Emerson.  The two tall buildings on the right are on the north side of the railway tracks.  The apartment building in the center of the photo was built in the 1960s or 1970s.

looking west on dupont towards lansdowne, pioneer gas station, apartment building from the 1970s

a row of two storey houses, one painted turquoise, in front of an apartment building of about 20 storeys

below: A colourful mural by Jacquie Comrie

below: Under the tracks near Lansdowne.

mural on underpass wall, construction on railway track above

part of Suitman mural on Dupont Street, 3 men in black suits, white shirts, and black ties, standing together. they all have large yellow halos, or circle auras around their heads

 The “Suitman” Mural was first painted and funded with $2000 received from the City of Toronto’s Clean and Beautiful program. But after Rob Ford was elected mayor of Toronto in 2010 and began his own “clean up” campaign, it was painted over with dull grey paint. Not a bright move considering that Joel Richardson was paid by the city to paint it in the first place. Late in October 2011 it was replaced with a similar mural as seen here. It took six weeks to repaint, 25 gallons of paint were used along with 100 large cans of spray paint.  Photos of the whole mural (on both north and south sides of the street) from 2011 and 2013 are on a previous blog post.

below: “And do thy duty even if it be humble, rather than another’s even if it be great. To die in one’s duty is LIFE: to live in another’s is death.” [quote from the Bhagavad Gita, a 700 verse scripture that part of the Hindi epic ‘Mahabharata’]

mural on underpass wall, construction on railway track above, along with elevated tracks being built above that

below: A GO train passes over the new elevated section of the tracks as it crosses Dupont Street. This is the Davenport Diamond Grade Separation project on the GO line to Barrie.

green and white GO train passes over new elevated section of tracks as it crosses Dupont Ave

below: Looking north from Wallace Ave (towards Dupont) at the south end of the 1.4 km of elevated track.  Although the tracks are functional, the streets and paths below are still a work in progress.

looking north from Wallace Ave along new elevated rail tracks just west of Lansdowne, construction underneath

below: (On Wallace by the new elevated tracks) A bull and a maze makes me think of the story of the Minotaur, a creature in Greek mythology with the body of a man and the head of a bull.   The maze, or labyrinth, was made for King Minos of Crete to hold the Minotaur.

mural, bull in pinks and purples, 2 large horns, ring through nose, in front of a maze, like minotaur

below: Around the corner from the bull is a mural by Emily May Rose. It faces the tracks on what is now a vacant piece of land – shall see what becomes of it.

mural by Emily May Rose on wall by new pathway on east side of elevated rail line, just south of Wallace Ave

below: An old “Stop Harper” sticker – topsy turvy but still hanging in there.  Almost as old and worn as the railing below it.

old stop harper sticker on a no parking sign, that is upside down,

The “Strength in Numbers” mural at the next  underpass to the west (by the West Toronto Railpath) has been tagged over.    The link leads to a blog post from July 2016 if you are interested in what it looked like when it was newer.

white words written on a red brick wall Jesus, blesses, immanuel, also a white cross

below: Dovercourt signs with a maple leaf in the center.  “Since 1985” refers to the founding of Dovercourt Village which is south of Dupont to Bloor between Christie on the east side and Dufferin on the west.

two Toronto street signs, both with Dovercourt top parts, Hallam st and Salem Ave

below: Alley infill – a tiny house!

small house in an alley, alley infill housing, or a large shed

and other small houses too.

two narrow bungalows side by side, 2 dark cars parked on street in front of the houses

below: Santo Antonio Coin Laundry

Santo Antonio Laundromat

a woman stands beside a store, in window of store is a yellow sign that says come in and try our delicious hot veal sandwiches

 

below: The red brick building was built in 1909 and it’s shape suggests that it was once a store.   Back in the late 1800s and early 1900s, these stores were very popular and could be found in most neighbourhoods.   With changing lifestyles (cars, larger grocery stores) and laws (only residences in residential areas) these old stores became houses. Last year Toronto City Council passed a new by-law allowing small scale retail and service businesses in residential areas.

two houses, one on right is red brick with three upper storey windows, also a large green shutter, or covering over front window, square roofline

below:Lucky Convenience Store

man unlocks his bike in front of Lucky Convenience Store

glass window in door of closed variety store, Canadian flag hanging inside some notes and posters, door frame is pink

below: St. Ephrasinia Orthodox church (American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox).

rectangular two storey grey brick building, with a small silver dome and cross on top

red, white, and blue, barber pole on a wall painted orange with primary colour dots,

white stencil graffiti on a brick wall, image of a security camera

graffiti on a wood utility pole made from a vinyl LP record

below: Development notice – what appears to be an older building with three apartments might disappear to become a three storey building with ten units.   Nice to see higher density without the ego of the developers vying to see who can build the tallest building.

three mailboxes by a door along with a blue and white development notice sign

below: Making use of the tiny yard space – melon vines covering the fence and running along the walls.

melon vines

below: Another use of a front window! Whenever I see a house like this I always wonder if there are sentimental reasons why it is those particular items that sit there.  The roses with their purple ribbon were probably important as Mary now watches over them.  But one of these ducks has a dead plant – why?  What is on your front window sill?

ornaments along the front window sill, exterior

bright red flower growing in a front yard

It’s getting close to Halloween so don’t be surprised if there are some creepy folks lurking around!

Halloween decoration on a porch, a fake man with a chainsaw

a front yard full of halloween decorations such as skeleton, ghost, hands, eyeballs

But not everyone is scary…  Fatima and the scarecrow

on a pinkish red painted brick wall, a plaque for Lady of Fatima religious icon and a little scarecrow autumn decoration

blue stencil on sidewalk, graffiti, words that say be kind to yourself

A shout out to Cats Eye Coffee where we started that day.  Also, a thanks to Nancy who was my tour guide and walking partner!

coffee cup from cats eye coffee shop on dupont

intersections – St. Clair and Danforth

Posted: October 30, 2021 in intersections, locations, old buildings
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Toronto’s old industrial buildings are disappearing.   So when I saw the tall brick chimneys near St. Clair and the Danforth I had to stop and take a closer look.

brick chimney with CLM painted on it, beside other industrial buildings

CLM stands for Canadian Line Materials, also known as CLM industries.  It was a division of McGraw-Edison Ltd and they manufactured electrical equipment.   One of their contracts was with the Canadian Government to build air raid sirens.  CLM was sold in 1985 and no longer exists.

below: Back in behind, part of the parking lot has been given over to the Scarborough Community Garden.

Scarborough Community Garden, raised boxes for growing vegetables, lots of produce, in parking lot of industrial building, church across the street with solar panels in the shape of a cross

below: In the above photo you can see the solar panels on the roof of the Scarborough Church of God that is across the street from the old CLM buildings.  Construction of the church began in 1958 and it was dedicated in March 1960 as the Scarborough Junction United Church.  The blue sign indicates that this is also the home of the Scarborough Grace Harvest Church (Korean).

A frame brick building with brown roof, Scarborough Church of God. Solar panels on the roof in the shape of a cross

below: Side windows on the church

coloured and textured windows of a church

below: A reminder of how diverse Toronto is – Workers rights in many languages

poster on utility pole advertising workers action centre, and new employee rights, in many languages

below: “Known as best psychic and spiritual healer in Toronto”

poster advertising Indian psychic

below: Arsenio’s Kitchen has chicken and rice for $5.99

metal barrels beneath two signs. one advertising chicken and rice for 5 dollars and 99 cents. The other sign says space for lease in a strip mall plaza

below: Fuel stop – gas for the car and a roti for you

Gulf service station at Kennedy and St. Clair. Gas at 1.43 a litre, also butter chicken roti fast food with roti of the week sign

Just to the west, Kennedy Road crosses both St. Clair and Danforth and forms a small triangle.  Immediately south of the Danforth, Kennedy goes over the railway tracks.

below: The view east from Kennedy, looking towards Scarborough GO station.

railway tracks, looking east from Kennedy Road towards Scarborough GO station

below: The view west from the bridge

houses on Raleigh and Glasgow Avenuesview west from Kennedy Road bridge over railway tracks near Danforth,

below: A bit of country in the city.

backyard in Scarborough with a barn shaped shed and a small coop for chickens or pigeons

below: An elephant hiding in the bushes.  Any idea of what flag that might be? Trinidad and Tobago?

graffiti painting of an elephant head on a wood fence, behind some bushes, behind a brick house with a black and red flag

below: Anime-like on a bridge railing.

black and white drawing pasteup graffiti on a black metal railing of a bridge

below: Standing on the platform at Scarborough GO station and looking east.  Here the tracks split – the GO train line to Kennedy and Agincourt stations (and beyond) splits to the left and heads northward.  The other tracks are the main CNR line as well as eastward GO line to Eglinton GO station

looking east from Scarbourgh GO station, tracks,

As I walked, it soon became apparent that there were a lot of commercial buildings now sitting empty. It’s becoming a bit repetitive but once again I found myself in an area that is about to undergo some profound changes.

below: An empty building waiting for demolition.

blue and white city of toronto development notice on an empty auto parts store

Scarborough Junction redevelopment plans involve a 26 acre plot of land adjacent to Scarborough GO station – what has become known as the Scarborough Junction Masterplan.

below: Drawing of the Masterplan. It covers a large chunk of the triangle created by the CNR tracks, Kennedy Road to the west, and St. Clair to the north. It will create about 6620 residential units in 17 buildings with the tallest tower being 48 storeys high. The CLM building is on this site (blocks C & G?). (image source: Urban Toronto).

drawing of plan for Scarborough Junction Masterplan redevelopment at Kennedy and St. Clair, from Urban Toronto,

below: View from the Scarborough GO station.   At the moment, most of the land along the northwest side of the tracks is unused.

behind a broken chainlink fence is a parking lot of an abandoned business, overgrown,

white house, now a commecrial business on St. Clair Ave with a blue and white development notice in front

below: Outdoor seating arrangement

old car seat sitting outside of Sultan Auto Service, closed garage doors

cars parked in front of empty abandoned auto store, with blank black electric sign

exterior of Spee and Dee Auto Service with garage doors covered with photos of cars in the interior of the garage

three piles of old tires blocking the driveway entrance to a light industrial site

below: Truck for sale

a white pick up truck parked behind a black sign with an arrow pointing left

older brick house turned into a business, beside Carmen and Frank's Collision centre

graffiti on the side of a one storey brick building

white car parked in front of white building, Cordi Signs, one light blue door and no windows

below: On the southwest corner of Kennedy and St. Clair is a small plaza from the 1960s.

sign at the corner of Kennedy and St. Clair, stip mall plaza, sign is for Wimpys Diner, Greek Cuisine and East West Pest control

old Canadian flag in the back window of a pick up truck

below: Another empty building behind a fence – Some clothes in cases all that remains of what was once a thrift store (and probably something else before that). There is a weathered sign suggesting a condo development but I haven’t been able to find anything about it (or I missed something).

side of empty building with condo sales advert, also four display cases with clothes that are no longer held up properly

small plaza from the 1960s with Yaffa restaurant, now emppty, Roti Lady restaurant, and another empty store front. Chainlink fence around part of it

empty Yaffa Restaurant and old thrift shop. brick building with a sign that says Fresh coffee,

billboard by fenced in lot, for sale, gas station site available, Kennedy Road street sign

below: One corner that is in no danger of being redeveloped is the northwest corner of St. Clair and Kennedy. This is Pinehills Cemetery.

adornments by a tombstone in Pnehills cemetery, red flowers, a small metal bike old fashioned style, a cross, and a photo of a man, and a small white candle holder lantern

It’s heart warming to see that people care enough about those who have passed away that they find ways to celebrate that person in creative ways.  Insert jokes here about how we’ll all be dead before the Maple Leafs win a Stanley Cup.

objects left by a tombstone, Maple Leafs sign, and their bear mascot figurine about 8 inches high, pink flowers, and a small white cross with words on it

flat ground level memorial in a cemetery with three cigarettes and 2 small Canadian flags

old Parkhurst windows

Posted: March 5, 2020 in old buildings, windows and walls
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Until a few years ago this was part of Parkhurst Knitwear but today it sits empty. Today when I passed by the lighting was good for taking pictures of the south exterior wall.  There is a fence between the street and the building but there is ample room for photography.   I am now on many surveillance videos (if the warning signs were for real).

20 Research Road in Leaside, the Parkhurst factory, previously Dorothea Knitting Mills, built in 1942

This building started its life as Radio Stores Building No. 16.  It was constructed in 1942 and the chimney was added in 1946.  Building No. 16 was part of a complex of buildings occupying 55 acres of land east of Laird Drive and south of Eglinton that was owned by Research Enterprises Ltd. (REL).  During WW1 this land was an aerodrome.

horizontal window in a brick building made of rows of small rectangular panes of glass

In 1940 REL was incorporated in response to the outbreak of World War II; it was a Crown Corporation created through the Munitions and Supply Act of Parliament in September 1939.

looking along the exterior wall of two storey brick building with long horizontal ribbons of window panes, many glass pieces are broken or cracked and then fixed with tape

REL’s mandate was the production of technology equipment such as optical instruments and radio and radar equipment to assist with pilots with night flight.  During its 6 years of operation, REL employed 7,500 people.

broken and patched panes of glass in a larger horizontal window

After the war, this building was sold to Dorothea Knitting Mills (1947).  Dorothea ultimately became part of Parkhurst Knitwear.

smokestack at east end of old Parkhurst knitting mill building, now abandoned

This building is part of a larger story – the slow disappearance of industries in Leaside as commercial and residential developments proliferate. Prior to 2010, the area was zoned industrial but developers fought for, and won, changes to the zoning in the area.

south wall of Parkhurst knitting mills, empty and abandoned, many glass panes cracked or broken, old curtains in the window

I can’t remember how long this building has been empty. If was still a functioning knitting mill in 2013.  In 2019 the city of Toronto moved to have the building listed as a Heritage site.  Last year there was a large sign on the building advertising the fact that it was soon to be a self-storage facility.  Is that still its fate?

old brown pipe inside, looking through old window

 

Max Dean’s “Still Moving”

Posted: May 6, 2018 in galleries
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Tucked away in part of the old Lever Brothers (then Unilever) soap factory there is a small exhibit now showing.

below: Follow the yellow caution tape to find the installation…..

yellow caution tape marks a path through an old industrial space, sign on a post that says Danger no pedestrian traffic.

below: This is the sight that greets you when you first walk into the room…..   A large industrial sized funnel left behind when the factory was decommissioned dominates the room.  A few figures stand on the other side of it.

mannequin automatons as part of an art installation in the old Unilever soap factory, concrete floor and walls - three of them stand around a net on a circular frame, a large industrial funnel above them.

below: Moving closer.  Above the figures is a bubble making machine – how appropriate for a soap factory!

mannequin automatons as part of an art installation in the old Unilever soap factory, concrete floor and walls

As it turns out, these figures – mannequins or automatons – were originally made back in the 1980’s as props for the Wilderness Adventure Ride at Ontario Place.  When Ontario Place closed, these guys were abandoned.

below: He looks very intent on something. .. like destroying my camera if he could.

mannequin automatons as part of an art installation in the old Unilever soap factory, concrete floor and walls - solitary man with half an arm missing, staring straight ahead, beside a net to catch soap, a large soap bubble dropping from above him

Toronto artist Max Dean rescued their remains, cleaned them up and brought them back to life.

below: … and into the 21st century.  Playing Candy Crush to pass the time? Or checking his Tinder messages?

mannequin automatons as part of an art installation in the old Unilever soap factory, concrete floor and walls - sitting on a stool with a phone in one hand, a real woman behind him with a phone in her hand taking a picture

mannequin automatons as part of an art installation in the old Unilever soap factory, concrete floor and walls - an older man standing on the stairs and looking down

mannequin automatons as part of an art installation in the old Unilever soap factory, concrete floor and walls - the likeness of Andy Warhol, white hair, glasses on head, hand up, finger pointing

The Unilever factory site is now owned by First Gulf (a development company). Access is at 21 Don Roadway which also the DVP ramp from the Lakeshore. There is parking. Getting there by public transit is not easy as there is no access directly from the north (the railway tracks & DVP are in the way).

 

“Still Moving” continues until the 3rd of June.

strength in numbers

Posted: August 3, 2016 in graffiti and street art, public art
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Just before Dupont Street ends at Dundas West, it passes under a set of railway tracks…
and of course another underpass means another mural.

It is an Art Starts project “honouring the Junction and paying homage to its industrial past rooted in the railway and celebrating its development as a diverse neighbourhood oriented community. ”  Lead artists Joshua Barndt and Jamie Bradbury along with 5 youth artists took 4 weeks to complete the mural.

mural on a concrete wall beside a sidewalk, just before the road goes under an underpass - large purple triangel, drawing of a locomotive and a couple of gears

The mural was funded by the City of Toronto’s Graffiti Transformation Program.

mural on a concrete wall beside a sidewalk, just before the road goes under an underpass, gears, plus a stylized industrial machine in black and blue

mural on a wall showing a picture of worker in a hard hat, reaching upwards, standing on a pile of bicycle wheels.

mural on the wall of an underpass, in the Junction, on Dupont, a line drawing of a railway car, with a large blue bike superimposed on top of it, a person holding a stop sign,

Cycling is used as a theme and as a way of traveling from the past to the future in the mural.

mural on the walls of an underpass, orange metal bridge, mural of cyclists riding their bikes

mural under a bridge of people riding bikes

a wall of an underpass curves as it exits the railway bridge. on the curve is the continuation of a mural that was painted on the walls of the underpass. Windmills and bikes.

mural on a curved concrete wall, beside an intersection, showing windmills with bike parked in front, and a forest with some animals in it, fox and wolf

below: The final panel in the mural, a future friendly city.

part of a mural, the word city is used to make a futuristic urban scene in blue tones. The future is friendly.

logo of two black gears side by side with the words Art Starts written across the middle of them. a small graffiti painting of a girl's head with a heart above it

Tower Automotive Building

Posted: September 2, 2013 in graffiti and street art, locations
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Standing alone in a vacant lot on Sterling Road is the Tower Automotive Building. It was built by Northern Aluminium  in 1920 and at some point became the property of Tower Automotive who used the site to build car parts.  In 2005 it was declared a heritage building but it was closed shortly thereafter when the company declared bankruptcy.

 

The ten storey Tower Automotive bulding. In the foreground is the land left vacant after the demolition of the sheet casting machining buildings in 2010.

The ten storey Tower Automotive building. In the foreground is the land left vacant after the demolition of the sheet casting machining buildings in 2010.

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Looking up the spine of the building. North side of Tower Automotive.

Looking up the spine of the building. North side of Tower Automotive.

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along the west wall

walking along the west wall

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Faccio Sempre la Brava, translate from the Italian as I always do the good.

Faccio Sempre la Brava, translates from the Italian as, I always do the good.

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blog_girl.

Loopy Le Loop with tags

Loopy Le Loop with tags

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blog_eye_hole.

graffiti of a girl with a watering can. The girl has a tottoo of an anchor on her upper arm. She has purple hair and she is wearing a hat with a feather in it. She is also wearing a green skirt. .

two wire gates. One has a sign on it that says 'protected by' but the name of the company is obscured by a tag

ungated

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blog_ta_1988.

blog_tag.

blog_no_smoking.

interior, doors

interior, doors

 

When I was researching this building, I found a site that has a collection of great photos of the interior of the building that were taken in May of this year:

jermalism.blogspot.ca/2013/05/abandonment-issues-tower-automotive.html

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Art Spin

Posted: September 2, 2013 in events, galleries
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Fourth Annual Art Spin Exhibition,
Tower Automotive Building, 158 Sterling Rd.,
Aug 29 – Sept 1, 2013

18 artists, one old vacant heritage industrial building.

Interesting lighting.  Interesting use of the space.  Interesting relationships between the installations and their surroundings.

I have not included photos of all the art in the exhibit.  My apologies to the artists whose work I haven’t shown.

looking at 'Sound the Alarm' by Caroline Larsen' with the video installation 'I,I,I,I' in the foreground

looking at ‘Sound the Alarm’ by Caroline Larsen’ with the video installation ‘I,I,I,I’ in the foreground

space2

'We Are Happy' by Michael Toke. Like a visit to the dentist's office.

‘We Are Happy’ by Michael Toke. Like a visit to the dentist’s office.

a group of people looking at a piece of art. They are in a large open space that once was a factory. Concrete and brick walls.

The painting on the wall to the left is ‘Exit Enter’ by Celia Neubauer.

'Sterling Caer Observer' by Noel Middleton

‘Sterling Caer Observer’ by Noel Middleton

A sculpture that is composed of three tall vertical pieces of shiny metal. A yellowish brick wall is in the background.

‘Untitled’ by Jinny Yu. Three shaped pieces of metal by brick wall.

 

artist:  Mary Grisey

art installation in front of an old green door. There is a lot of frayed rope.

Art installation with a lot of rope, especially frayed rope.

‘Floating in the Eye of the Storm’ by Lois Schklar.

  wire sculpture

Wire sculpture in the foreground with an oil painting in the background

part of a wire sculpture including a star

part of a wire sculpture showing a little gold trinket in the shape of a hand

‘Stillnessence Vivarium’ by John Oswald. 

This installation lent itself to a many interpretations.

projection of life sized picture of a group of people

people2

life sized projection of a group of people, male and female, young and old,

more information about Art Spin  http://www.artspin.ca

a wall, part concrete and part tile.

The video installation ‘Melting Bricks’ was in small room where it was shown fairly high up on the wall. It was the only source of light in the room. I focused on the relationship between the room and the light when I was taking pictures of it. (my apologies to the artist as I seem to have forgotten his/her name).

 

blocks1

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