Posts Tagged ‘lane’

Edna and more

Posted: January 9, 2026 in alleys, graffiti and street art, locations, transportation
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TTC streetcar pulling out f Dundas West station and onto street, intersection of Bloor and Dundas West

It had been a grey and slightly damp morning when I was out walking.  As I headed to the subway to go home, the clouds cleared and the sun came out.  So I kept walking north of Dundas West station.  Edna Avenue is the street that runs parallel to Bloor immediately north of the station.

below: Edna Avenue, looking east towards Dundas Street West.

edna avenue, residential street with tall condo at the end, looking east towards Dundas St.,

below:  Edna seems to have a Guardian watching over her.

mannequin or sculpture of a person in a helmet, sitting on the front porch of a house,

below:  There is an alley that runs north from Edna and the sunshine beckoned.

start of an alley that runs north from Edna Avenue, houses, garages, blue sky,

below: T-shirt sale at the One Stop Shop!

truck parked beside building, graffiti on back of truck

below: The sun sets and rises eternally, apparently.

old garage with corrugated metal wall, graffiti on metal that says the sun sets and rises eternally

below: A little Catchoo daisy sticker caught my eye.

cathcoo daisy sticker on a post in an alley

below:  There was also a 33wallflower33 paste-up with a few little catchoo stickers on her gorgeous white outfit.

33 wallflower 33 pasteup of woman in a white coat with furry collar

below: Faded bricks like faded jeans.  They are a little rough around the edges too.

faded blue paint on old brick wall, some bricks cracking and crumbling

below: Chairs, backyard chairs.

laneway views, back of house, two old turquoise metal chairs against house, leaves (autumn) on the ground, small satellite dish on roof,

below: Backyard picnic tables too.

view from lane, backyard with picnic tables, apartment building in the background, sunny day, leaves on ground

looking north up an alley with garages, tree with no leaves, november weather,

 

below: Raccoons on the roof!  Mural by Mel Coleman.

mural in a backyard by alywyz murals, black raccoons on top of a house, with window, greenery beside the house,

below: More backyards – or at least, backs of houses

back of 2 houses, alley view

garage door with blue, teal, and green leafy background and word chill in white cursive

below: Another chair

small table and chair outside, agains beige wall, shadows, autumn leaves on ground, sunny day, alley view

below: Cassette tape (remember those?!) and supersized pencil.  If you had tapes, you always had a pencil handy, just in case!  Back in 2020, this mural was fairly new.   You can check out “faceless in an alley” if you want to see the whole mural before the one wall was defaced.

street art painting on the side of a white garage in an alley, line drawing in black of a person sitting on a bench wearing baseball cap, body is a cassette tape

below: Another ghost from the past – a ghetto blaster proudly carried on his shoulder

part of a street art mural on a garage in an alley, white man with ghetto blaster on his shoulder

below: The mural is an Ex-Vandals piece, or at least references them.  On the left in this image are the words Dino Nod – he was one of the founding members of the Ex-Vandal crew (formed in 1971 in Brooklyn NY).

street art on the side of a garage in an alley, also a small window jutting out from roof, wood,

street art painting, grey dog pumping biceps to show off hi muscles, bulge in muscle

below: Red and green men too.

old wood garage covered with street art murals
garage door with street art, red man with arms folded, maroon man, blue and teal background,

below:  A couple of blocks north of Edna is Glenlake, and here we are looking east towards Dundas.

large tree, vacant lot, on Glenlake, looking east towards Dundas West

below:  Glenlake and Dundas.   When I was double checking Google maps for the names of these streets, I discovered that this used to be a store that sold flowers and other things.  Where there is no grass beside the building, was once a fenced in area with plants for sale.

southwest corner of Glenlake and Dundas, old brick store with large window, looking across Dundas to older industrial or warehouse buildings, brick

below: Just north of the Glenlake/Dundas intersection is the large bridge over the railway tracks that connects Dundas to the West Toronto Railpath.

bridge over the train tracks that connect west toronto railpath with dundas street west, graffiti covered

below: The concrete supports for the bridge were painted with nature scenes many years ago. The weeds have grown up and the artwork has faded.

weeds and grasses growing up around concrete supports to a bridge that once had painting of flowers on it, now faded

below: Blobs, curls (by Flips), stars, and Spy vs Spy

graffiti on building at bottom of stairs

Dundas Street west, graffiti and street art on a building

below: Looking up the stairs (but not walking up – I’ll leave that for another day).

stairs to bridge over the railway, with graffiti on the wall

below: Instead I turn around.  This is a big part of the view that you see as you walk down the stairs – a large, striking, mural by Kizmet32 .

street art mural by kizmet, red faces with white eyes, some blue highlights, 2 faces, very large

below: I now know that these metal utility poles can be used to make “music”.  All you need is a big stick or two.

man leaning against a metal utility pole on sidewalk, a stick in each hand, bicycle lying on the ground beside, banging on pole with sticks

below: Walking back to Dundas West station to finish for the day.

people on sidewalk, walking south on Dundas towards Bloor

paste up graffiti, black ink on white paper, behind a chainlink fence beside a TTC subway station, Urban ninja squadron, visual noise,

below: Slightly off on a tangent – for those of you who follow such things, the Giraffe Building on the northeast corner of Dundas West and Bloor is still there, and still empty.

people crossing intersection of Bloor and Dundas West, giraffe building on the northwest corner, TTC streetcar in the background

close up of spray paint and splotchy graffiti in many colours on an old metal garage door

behind Shaw Street

Posted: June 4, 2025 in alleys, graffiti and street art
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Like an illustration in a book with no words, the story is in the picture and its interpretation is up to you.  Raccoons in masks and red capes performing (dancing?) while other raccoons sit in trash cans watching?  A whimsical mural by Emily May Rose – if you follow this blog, or if you are familiar with Toronto street artists, you will recognize this immediately as one of hers.  These cute little raccoons appear in many places around the city.  How many have you spotted? This particular mural is in an alley behind Shaw Street (east side) and north of Queen.

mural by Emily May Rose on a garage door in an alley, masked raccoons with red capes cavorting, one in a garbage can

close up of a raccoon in mural by Emily May Rose on a garage door in an alley, masked raccoons with red capes cavorting,

Some other street art seen in the alley…

below: A legless robot effortlessly glides around although it also looks like he might be aimlessly floating through space. He was painted by Brian Porter

painting of a cubic headed robot with two arms and no legs,

below: Monotone and angular, a very large squirrel is watching you (another Brian Porter piece).

a large squirrel painted on a garage door, lots of straight lines and angles, in shades of black, white, and grey

below: A woman entwined with a creature with a bird head (but scaly legs?) lying on the ground? flying in the air? swimming in the water?  The mural was painted by Birdo, aka Jerry Rugg.

mural by Jerry Rugg, birdo, of a woman and a bird like creature entwined and lying down, in an alley

below: Flowers basking in the rays of sunshine on a summer day

street art mural artwork on a garage door, flowers with a yellow sun shine and rays of sun in the background

below: Lots of purple flowers!

street art mural artwork on a garage door, all purple flowers

below; Pikachu seems happy enough, but that cup…  I look at that and I think of Mr. Bill.  Mr. Bill had dark round eyes and a big round red mouth.  For those of you young ones who are wondering what I’m talking about, Mr. Bill was a little figure made of clay who appeared on SNL starting waaaay back in 1976.  Oh Nooooo!!

artwork on a white garage door, face, red arm, hand out, holding piccachu and a coffee cup with a face on it

below: Rainbow unicorns, just in time for Pride month.

painting on a white garage door of rainbow striped unicorns under blue clouds and an apple tree

part of a colourful mural on a white garage door, squiggly shaped creatures some wormlike, some butterflies, some with big bulging eyes

below: Home is where the heart is.  It also seems to be where the sun shines and the flowers grow profusely.

garage door in alley, painted blue, with hearts and flowers on it, as well as a bright yellow sun in the corner

alley scene, row of houses at the end,

below: Marshmallows with stick arms and army boots!

on a wood garage door in an alley, a graffiti piece that looks like two marshmallows, one for head and one for body, with stick arms, wearing boots

below: Some dragons breathe fire so I’ve been told.  This purple dragon seems to have a different trick!

on a white garage door, a purple fire breathing dragon chases a few stick figure people, there is a green vine growing over the garage and covers the fire

below: A little blue bear with a happy face balloon, a sticker by doll face one.

stiicker on the back of a traffic sign, little blue bear holding a yellow happy face balloon

below: Graffiti stickers on a TTC No Dumping sign.

no dumping sign on a brick wall, with 2 graffiti stickers on it, one is urban ninja squadron t bonez on a motorbike, the other is a black and white man's face

 

red brick wall where some bricks have been painted different colours. a couple of the bricks have been stamped with the words Citadel Made in Canada

below:  And last, street art of a slightly different, but very similar, sort…. Someone’s little gallery

bike parked in front of a black wall with seven paintings mounted on it

Dew Lang Lane and area

Posted: May 18, 2025 in alleys, graffiti and street art, locations
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Back in 2012, the city approved the naming of an alley… Dew Lang Lane.  You can find this lane just north of the Danforth near Donlands.  Prior to the legal change,  “Dew Lang” had been used as the unofficial name by local residents.  The name comes from parts of the two streets Dewhurst (Dew) and Langford (Lang) that the lane runs between.

a man walks through an alley, and parking lot

below: Omen514’s fist bump

mural of a fist bump on a garage, with a basketball hoop above it, alley,

below: “Turn the lights off and look to the sky”  by Jerry Rugg (aka Birdo) & Wales.

mural in alley,woman wearing sunglasses, text that says

alley scene, 2 murals, a wood fence, and the back of a brick house

below: Spud1 left his mark here along with the advice, “Live, Love, Paint”.

spud mural on a garage in an alley, with text, live, love, paint,

below: Signs of spring that can’t be held back

lilac bush over the top of a wood fence in a lane, full of pink blossoms, peak bloom

ivy covered pole and wires, no parking sign partially covered with vines too

truck parked in a lane, unloading from the back, lane has very tall tree, some fences and garages too,

below: In a very tight spot but bursting out.

a mature tree with large tree trunk wedged between the sides of two garages

below:  One of the latest trends in urban living is the laneway house.   They are popping up all over the place and this area is no exception.

black box shaped house, new infill housing in an alley

below: Another trend, this one in home renovations, is building upwards.  Adding a third floor or a rooftop deck is now common (and is often more noticeable from the back).

newly renovated house as seen from the alley behind, big new windows, and a new upper level

below: The repurposing of church buildings is another trend (albeit a bit older than the above two).  In this case, Temple Baptist Church, opened 1925, is now residential.   A small plaque in one corner of the building serves as a reminder of its original function.  From the application for heritage status for the building:  “Temple Baptist Church is a fine example of a revival of the Georgian Classical Style adapted for Post-Reformation churches in 18th century England.”  Not many Toronto churches were built in this style.

Temple Baptist Church, now condos

below: The central window with its leaded coloured glass and Credit Valley stone trim around the windows.

central window, with leaded coloured glass, of the old Temple Baptist Church, now condos, brick building from 1925.

old brick wall in alley, covered with graffiti in bright colours, yellow, blue and green

mural of a man bending down, lower part has been covered with a tag
two garage doors with urban art, on right is a strange looking woman with her tongue partially stuck out
mural in an alley, girl with pearl necklace and white wings

below: A beckoning summer scene, Muskoka chairs on the dock.  Have a seat and watch the sunlight play on the water.

mural of two muskoka chairs on a dock by the lake

below: Old black line drawings on old white garage.

black line drawings on old white garage
close up of black line drawing graffiti on white garage, with green vine growing over it

looking through chainlink fence to vacant lot with remains of construction site on it

looking through chainlink fence to construction site with wheelbarrow as well as black and orange cones, orange plastic rolled up

below: The new west entrance to Donlands subway station opens onto Dewhurst.

entrance to Donlands subway station, low brown building with glass front and sides

below: Inside

interior of new west entrance to Donlands subway station, white walls, wood accents, a window

interior of new west entrance to Donlands station, from landing in stairwell between street level and subway level, two women walking

sticker graffiti on a pole, a faded blue robot and a pink pigeon head

below: A second pigeon…. this one wear a cheerful bright red cap as he struts around

sticker graffiti on rusted metal, a pigeon wearing a bright red cap, standing,

stylized orange flower petals on a red wall, mural, around a window,

behind Ossington

Posted: April 13, 2025 in alleys, graffiti and street art
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Moooo…. Hey there good looking!…  Here’s looking at you!  This was painted by Poser.  Usually he does bunny rabbits but I think that he’s pretty good at painting cows too!

street art mural of a black and white cow looking at you, on a garage

For a number of years now, there has been a lot of street art and graffiti in an alley that runs behind the east side of Ossington starting at Queen Street and ending one block north at Humbert. Some of it is interesting; some is not. A few garages and walls look the same as they did 12 or 13 years ago so some of these photos may look similar to older photos used in this blog.

building in an alley, northeast corner of queen west and ossington, street art and graffiti on the walls

below: In the background, an untitled piece by Caratoes.  It was one of 5 murals painted in Toronto in 2016 for the “Sea Walls: Artists for Oceans” series.  In total, there were over 500 murals in 20 countries in this series.

graffiti on a wall in many colours, with a large grey tones mural in the background.

below: Six lit matches ready to go.  This crazy cat is up to something no good…

mural on a fence, a grey cat with matches in his mouth, playing with a bottle

below: An early Birdo piece, although the scroll names or street artists too.  The first street art in the alley dates from 2012 when a group of artists painted some of the garages here.

older mural by birdo, two creatures standing together on a rusty garage door in an alley

below: A pink rose between two women.

pink rose sprayed painted on green wood, beside a figure dressed in white paste up

below: Another oldie – this purple guy has been blowing a gust of wind for many years.

old graffiti on a wall

below: Vintage Spud bombs, some cheerful and some menacing.

spud bombs street art, little grey bombs with cheery faces, on a wall in an alley behind ossington avenue

below: A funny looking green creature with big white eyes and lots of skinny legs.

street art mural

below: A couple, together in the stream, in a mural by Elicser Elliott with the title “Swim”

street art mural by elicser elliott of two people, man and woman, in purple stream, title is swim

below: Geometric shapes with a touch of rainbow colour, by Peru

on a garage in an alley, painting by artist called peru,

part of a street art mural, man that looks ancient greek or roman sitting, holding a large pot, wearing a toga and sandals

below: Large pink and white swirls and curls cover a wall. Any time that you see swirls like these, think Flips because that’s sure to be the artist that painted them.

pink and white swirls and curls, mural in alley

below: Only a small portion of this moose painting by Aaron Li-Hill remains.  I don’t usually show the original works but I am going to make an exception here.  See next image.

old street art painting of a moose partially covered with pywood

below: This is what it looked like back in 2012 or 2013.

old street art mural by aaron li-hill of a moose with full antler rack, open mouth,

below: A newer Catchoo sticker.

little daisy sticker by catchoo on a metal pipe in an alley

below: A couple of faces taken from many faces around a garage.

below: Part of a Troy Lovegates mural (as are the next three images)

part of a Troy Lovegates mural in an alley behind Ossington, two merged heads with necks that come out of the same hole in the red and blue sweater that they are wearing. One face is yellow and the other face is half grey and half purple

part of a Troy Lovegates mural in an alley behind Ossington Avenue in Toronto. In the middle is a framed recessed box in the wall with 3 egg shapes in it

part of a Troy Lovegates mural in an alley behind Ossington Avenue in Toronto

part of a Troy Lovegates mural in an alley behind Ossington

below: Looking south. The closest garage on the right has a mural painted by Spud.

alley, with garages on one side, mural on the wall of a building on the left

below: Durothethird paints peanut butter & (probably) chocolate

street art on a garage door in an alley, peanut butter,

below: Horus, “Well and good”

street art on a garage door in an alley by horus

garages covered with street art and graffiti, in alley on west side of ossington avenue in toronto, just north of queen street west

street art on a garage door in an alley pink polka dots on red

below: At the north end of the alley

buildings in alley covered with graffiti and street art

small part of a larger painting, street art, on side of garage in an alley, three fuzzy balls, each with one eye. Balls are yellow, and a red, and one blue.

weathered street art and graffiti on a wood garage in an alley

purple line drawing in spray paint of a man, with yellow wings, graffiti added to it, alley

below: Writing on black and purple

white line drawing on black line drawing of a man with glasses and a beard, mural in an alley

below: Portrait of George Sully, Canadian designer

portrait of a young black man, with a triangle behind his head, in a mural in an alley

below: Love yourself, over and over again, and in many different colours!

on a black wall in an alley, in cursive writing, the words love yourself written in many colours, many times

below: An old stikman in a frame, weathered but still there.

weathered street art paint on wood, with a tiny wood frame, inside frame is an old stikman graffiti piece

below: And lastly…  Too extraterrestrial, which someone seems to love

black wall, with graffiti, hand drawn character with words too extra terrestrial,

below: Looking north

alley behind ossington, on the west side, garages covered in street art and graffiti

garage in alley covered with paintings of bright flowers

between West Lodge and Lansdowne

Posted: April 12, 2025 in alleys, graffiti and street art, locations
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Running west off of West Lodge Ave., there is an alley behind Queen Street West on the north side.  The upper part of this long, low building was painted blue a number of years ago.  Since then it has been tagged and used as a place to put graffiti.

alley, long low building on right hand side, painted blue, with windows,

below: T-bonez from Urban Ninja Squadron practises yoga positions.

below: A bright red door that has unfortunately been scrawled on.  Beside it is a black figure that seems to be diving backwards while holding a bunch of colourful balloons.

below: Once it was a pink cat with green whiskers

below: Holding tight to that red rose.

stencil on a wall in an alley, a fist holding a red rose

Continuing west towards Lansdowne ….

below: Faces in the alley, with a bit too much gold

below: Chubby cheeks and big fat lips…. and how many eyes?

below: Faces, many faces with their eyes closed and their hair swirling around.  Mural painted by Carol Ann Apilado

below: “Tell me its all going to be okay?  Not sure if I can do that buddy…..

graffiti on a black garage, white drawing of a person with fingers in peace sign, with text Tell me it's all going to be okay?

below: Patterns and shapes on fence, by Hello Kirsten

murals on a fence in an alley including one by hello kirsten, design patterns, also a woman in purple,

murals in an alley, a garage painted all orange, paintings on fence, face and cacti painted in side a car port under an apartment

motorcycle parked in front of blue fence, beside a garage in a lane, near Queen Street West and Lansdowne

mini cooper car parked in an alley beside a garage with street art and graffiti on it

green spray paint and black drippy paint graffiti on red brick wall

alley views

below: Enough!  Although once upon a time it said more than that…..

close up of painting on a wood fence, abstract shapes and colours, with texture

This post also appears on my street art blog, Eyes on the Streets.

Rocco Mandalfino Lane

Posted: March 12, 2025 in alleys, graffiti and street art
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Looking north up Rocco Mandalfino Lane towards Dundas Street.

looking north up Rocco Mandalfino Lane, streetcar passing by the north end of the alley, wood fences, large trees, winter, graffiti on the garages, brick houses

garages with graffiti and street art on the doors, in a lane,

wood fences, and backs of brick houses, alley views, large trees, one small wall with street art in red and blue

throw up tag street art for g h crew, with one cartoon like character with black cap, lightning eyes, also text that says blood on your hands

Looking south

fence with graffiti and street art, lane in toronto, beside red brick house with yellow brick details, looking south in rocco mandalfino lane

small black and white painting or drawing on a wood utility pole, dogs walking,

large capital G and H in reds and purples, slanted backwards, mural

in an alley, a wood fence with upper level of houses seen above it

fences and red brick buildings in alley, with graffiti and street art on them, blue man's head, fence with white curly lines,

throw up tag calligraphy street art, light blue and light purple letters on purple and green background

close up of street art on asphalt shingles, spray paint in reds and blues, texture

graffiti street art mural,

pink panther street art in alley

street art on side of wood garage

garages with street art, rocco mandalfino lane

red angular text calligraphy type street art

blue and white city of toronto street sign for rocco mandalfino lane, with large brick houses behind

Federal Street

Posted: January 31, 2025 in alleys, graffiti and street art, locations
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Federal Street is a short narrow street near Dundas and Dufferin.  Like a few other Toronto streets, it is more a lane than a street.

garage at 1 federal street, with mural on it, woman's portrait, gate beside garage, dead end street, other garages on the right side

below: Dundas Street West at Federal

on dundas west, south side, looking at entrance to federal street

below: No Exit, a dead end street

yellow no exit sign, sticker graffiti on the pole beside, mural in the background, feelings boi sticker,

federal street, south end, houses on left side, backyards of parallel street on the right, garages in front of fences

below: Wires in all directions – standing tall like a tree in winter.

utility pole in lane, with many wires going in different directions, like branches of a tree

alley view, back of houses, one with no fence, showing snow covered backyard and driveway, row houses, one green with no window and the other white with upper storey window

very south end of federal street

below: Another lane, another time.  There is another lane that runs perpendicular to Federal that looks like it might be interesting to explore but it will have to wait until another day.

snowy lane, in winter, many garages,

below: Maximum width, 2 metres.

lane, sign saying maximum width is 2 metres, garages, snow,

below: A winter cyclist.

behind a white building, exterior stairs to upper level, a parked bike, a concrete wall with graffiti, snow on ground,

below: Looking north, back to Dundas

looking northward on federal towards dundas, snowy day , mural by the half decent,

below: This mural was painted at least 10 years ago – but the tagging across the bottom by The Half Decent is more recent.

mural that has been tagged by the half decent, on federal street by dundas west
below: This is what it looked like in August 2015.

large colourful mural on the side of building, two stylized musicians, a drummer and a guitar player as well as two people dancing.

Photo Source: As I Walk Toronto blog, 15 Aug 2015

pedestrian with orange backpack walks on snow covered sidewalk on Dundas West

side of a building, including door and window, covered by large mural, now with bottom part tagged over

Out with the Dragon, In with the Snake

Posted: January 25, 2025 in alleys, graffiti and street art, locations, stores
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As Chinese  (or Lunar) New Year approaches, I thought that I would give you a quick tour around Chinatown as it appears in January after a little snow.  Most of the pictures were taken in the vicinity of Spadina and Dundas.   Some shots are ‘iconic’ views, others not so much.

below: This girl has been carrying her soup bowl for many years!  She has appeared on many Instagram pages and on many other sites.  She may even be on your phone.  The “BEST” is a more recent addition!

the word best is written on the sidewalk with an arrow pointing to restaurant with a large statue of a chinese girl dressed all in red holding a large white and red bowl. she is winking

below: Spadina Avenue

chinatown stores, with lots of signs, spadina at glen bailie

bikes chained to fence, in snowy alley, with street art on the wall and an ad too

part of a chinatown mural, elderly person in a blue cap with small child

below: Cute little red stuffed snakes for sale.

little stuffed toy snakes in bright red, for sale at a store in Chinatown

below: Yes, there is a very large black bear that patiently sits beside the door of one of the stores on Spadina.

large sculpture of a black bear sitting outside a chinese store, evening, lights on inside

below:  Looking in the window of a Vietnamese store – boxes of things, band-aids, cotton balls, eye care massagers, and many brands of green tea.

looking through front window of an Asian store, window is full of merchandise

crossing Dundas at traffic lights to northwest corner of Dundas and Huron

below: The east side of Spadina

looking across spadina avenue, trees in median, winter, line of stores on the other side, lights on, late afternoon

below: Yin Yang mural – Yin and Yang, two interconnected forces that are complementary yet opposing.  Together they are dynamic system that is greater than the sum of the two parts.

a yin and yang circle and dots mural in blues and oranges, on a brick wall,

below: On the wall to the left is part of a mural that features the Great Wall of China.

chinatown alley with mural of the great wall of china on one side, back of houses and garages at the end of the alley, snow, winter,

alley scene, back of houses, parking spaces, fence, snow, graffiti

  below: Behind Dundas

man pushing a cart along lane, in snow, with garages on his right, some with street art, utility pole with street light, tall buildings in the distance,

sign on orange wall that says no graffiti please

 

alley in chinatown, winter, snow, one building covered with street art

mural on a building in laneway in chinatown, black man, with pink boxing gloves,

below:  “The Herd-Boy and the Weaver-Girl”, a mural that illustrates a story.  It designed and painted by Allan Bender, John Nobrega, and Stacey Kinderwas  (2017)

outdoor patio, in winter, with snow on tables, beside a large mural, chinatown,

From Mural Routes website: “A very long time ago, when the King of the Sky created the heavens, he decorated it with stars and asked his beautiful daughter to help him by weaving the clouds and mists. It was a long task and when the king noticed his daughter looking tired and drawn, he ordered her to take a break and go out to play among the stars. The princess headed down towards the Milky Way to bathe, whereupon she came across a handsome herd-boy grazing his water buffalo by the banks of the stream. To this day, on the seventh day of the seventh month of every year a great King sends a flock of magpies over the Milky Way to form a bridge to ensure the return of his daughter. The weather must be clear on this evening or the lovers cannot cross the celestial river to meet each other. If it rains the pair must wait another year. On a clear night you can see their two bright stars together in the sky. If it rains it is said that the drops falling to earth are the tears of the Weaver-Girl Princess.”

bench in front of a wall with street art, snow, people passing by on sidewalk beside it

stores and buildings on east side of spadina

merchandise for sale outside a store, red and gold chinese new year items, snow on shelves, winter

front of a store in chinatown, goods on display outside

below: The next two pictures are parts of a mural by June Jieun Kim.

window of a store, with mural on wall below, woman in a pink cap and a scarf around her shoulders

mural of a chinese dragon under windows of a store

delivery truck in alley that dead ends at huron street, orange square house at end of alley

below: Pho Hung, Vietnamese restaurant at Spadina and St. Andrew, northwest corner

large red brick building on northwest corner of spadina and

below: Huron and Grange, southeast corner

block of row houses with stores at ground level, including T and C hair salon, southeast corner of Huron and Grange

below: Bay and gable houses on Huron

upper storey of a row of bay and gable houses on Huron St., one in red, one in pink and a light grey one

below:  Looking south on Huron towards the downtown core

looking south on Huron st., just south of Dundas, towards downtown. winter, snowy. large trees.,

backyards and houses seen from a wintery snowy chinatown laneway

looking down the space between two houses, graffiti on the fence, snow on the ground, multiple exterior staircases

north side of Dundas, chinatown, three buildings including Asian Legends restaurant

outside wall of a restaurant, pictures of menu items on plates, also lights in the shape of a basket of steamed dumplings, a bowl of ramen noodles, and a drink with a straw and a slice of lemon

outside asian store, door open, ceramic pots for sale, clearance sale sign in window

signs in chinatown, on dundas, spa, printers,

canadian flag on sign for canadian souvenir store on spadina

many signs on businesses in chinatown, dundas street

dundas at Jean Lumb Lane, south side, man on sidewalk pushing baby stroller, snow,, winter,

dundas in chinatown, after dark, people on sidewalk, reflections on the wall, pink sign over door that says spa

below: Shopping on Spadina

woman in side store, seen through glass in door

below: Lucky Moose Food Mart after dark

night time, moose market on dundas street, lit inside

below: Summer Sun Spa, and others

below: Yunshang Rice Noodles

night time, yunshang rice noodle restaurant on dundas, with food delivery cyclist outside on bike

below: Happy Lamb Hot Po, Zao bar and grill, and one that I can’t read.

night time, 3 large signs lit, one for happy lamb hot pot and another for zao bar and grill, third is in mandarin language only

below: Spadina and Dundas after dark

night time photo of Spadina and dundas, looking east on Dundas, traffic, pedestrians, lights, signs, snow,

Happy New Year!

from a few alleys north of the Danforth

Posted: August 25, 2024 in alleys, doors, graffiti and street art, windows and walls
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cracks in the pavement,
weeds, shrubs, trees and other green things,
windows and walls, stairs and balconies,
infill housing and new structures, rooflines,
old textures and rusty hinges,
colours, graffiti, and peeling paint.
solitude

These are a few of the photos that I took as I walked alleys and lanes north of the Danforth, shown in no particular order.

Starting with, Hey Gwan!

behind a store on the Danforth, a green compost garbage bin and a pile of 6 concrete blocks

rusty hinge on a gate in an alley

old Mercury Grand Marquis car from the early 1990s, pale yellow, parked in alley beside yellow garage

view from lane to back of red brick house, wood fence and two garages in the foreground

weeds growing in the cracks of the pavement in an alley, sewer grate too,

blue sky with a few clouds, a hydro pole with a street light on top, many wires attached to it, also a no parking sign

at the end of an alley, blue car parked behind red wood garage, houses on street facing the lane

looking down a lane towards a 2 storey house with green upper storey, row of garage, midrise brick apartment building in the background

three red chairs, outside, by a black wall with white drawing that is either angel wings or eyes,

infill housing, new residence, in alley

rear of store, 2 storeys, alley view, stairs to upper level, small balcony, wood pallets stacked beside stairs, back of billboard on the roof, pink graffiti on wall on right side, also vine growing up that wall

wood gates and greenery, behind houses, view from the alley

graffiti stickers on pole including a large eye with a pink tear drop and text that says boys don't cry....much Also a black and white sticker with crying cat and words kirby, zaku

large trees in a backyard, alley view

two black cars parked behind a building, by alley

alley view, open garage door, kids toys outside

a Tims coffee cup and a box of Heineken beer bottles, on the ground, against a wall with a mural, a pair of bare legs standing on rocks in the water

window in wall with street art that has been tagged over

exterior metal stairs run diagonally in front of a window made of glass tiles

alley view, metal exterior stairs, window in red brick building, old brick smokestack, balconies on upper level, archway over lane to exit to street

a very small window in a garage clad in fake brick shingles,

in an alley, view of back of houses, different depth of buildings, wood fence, cement block garage with red door, balcony with bright green railing,

teal coloured garage door with eyes spray painted on it

garages in alley

painting of a blur bird on pink and yellow background, on a concrete garage in alley

red brick wall with white spray paint question marks and some words written in white or black

red shovel leaning agains a concrete wall with blue graffiti

jumble of wire shapes in a gap in the fence

a laneway with wood fences, large trees, and a couple of garages

drawing with black marker on electrical boxes on outside of a building

laneway view, exterior metal stairs, garages with graffiti, trees,

text above street art says percy watters

concrete wall with street art, patched over parts of it with grey concrete

green vine growing in front of street art on garage door

paper paste -up graffiti in alley

Paul Estrela Lane revisited

Posted: March 28, 2024 in alleys, doors, graffiti and street art, locations, nature
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Back in 2017 I visited this lane for the first time and I added some photos from that visit on this blog (see Paul Estrela Lane.).   Most of the street art that I saw then is still there.  Some of it has been overgrown like the mural below.  In a month or two some of these waves will be hidden behind greenery.

below: Mural by Caitlin Taguibao, Pre-pupa moment painted in 2018.

mural by caitlin ta in an alley, a woman is sitting, blue leaves on plants around her

central female figure in caaitlin mural, green and black striped collar, or pillow, around her neck, black sky, yellow sleeves on clothing,

garages on Paul Estrela Lane, some with street art or graffiti on them

below: Another older mural that natures seems to want to cover up.  This one is the work of Kim Therese Dolan.

mural of a woman's face, eyes closed

below: Winter vines on painted particle board.

below: Icey icicles on a March morning

graffiti on wall, white on black, text that says icey, above it are 3 icicles

below: Many coloured goofy faces with impressive teeth and googly eyes.  A whimsical work by Monica on the Moon (aka Monica Wickeler).

monica on the moon mural of faces, with blue garbage bins in front, in an alley

blobby goofy faces in blue, green, and pink, part of a mural

below: Kanos, a French artist, from Paris.  More of his work can be seen under ikanografik on instagram.

black and white on red mural by kanos

below: More red, this time from Mediah

mural by mediah, geometric shapes, sharp angles, straight lines, on red background

below: Red 9 and Parlor 23 in the shadows.

below: Peeling teal paint on weathered wood.

part of a fence that was painted teal colour but paint is now peeling, picket tops of the wood forms triangles

paul estrela lane

below: Heidi Berton,

small street art in paul estrela lane painted by Heidi Berton

below: Children eating ice cream beside a hot summer sun.

part of mural, for carters ice cream store around the corner, a line of children eating ice cream cones

below: A blue man and his cat by a mystery man, Victorful.

two murals in paul estrela lane, first is a man in blue with a tiger, and the other is a line of children eating ice cream while sitting beside a sun made of concentric circles, with yellow in the center and red on the outside ring

below: More wood textures.

old wood fence, close up showing the texture of the wood grain

… as well as vines and shadows….

vines on a white garage door with black graffiti on it as well

…. and one last view of the alley

garages along the north side of paul estrela lane, large tree, no leaves, winter time, but no snow, some graffiti on the garage doors

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