Posts Tagged ‘planters’

intersections – Yonge & Empress Walk

Posted: November 19, 2023 in construction, graffiti and street art, public art, reflections
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After a very warm October, colder November days aren’t always easy to get used to!  The solution?  There are lots of paces to walk in Toronto where indoor pathways can be used to warm up!

below: Loblaws at Empress Walk, our starting point that day.

Looking down from mezzanine level to lower level Loblaws grocery store

looking down from above to the produce section of Loblaws at Empress Walk, people shopping for apples

below: Glass ceiling at North York Centre.  Before amalgamation of the six Toronto boroughs into what is now the City of Toronto, this was a busier place as it is adjacent to North York City Hall where City Council offices and meeting spaces were.

large glass ceiling over walkway down centre of mall, North York Centre

below:  Interior of the library

interior of central library on Yonge, with rounded balcony sides on three levels

below: The next two photos are taken from the south entrance to the library. First is looking south along the edge of North York City Hall. A  sliver of Mel Lastman Square is on the left.

view from the back entrance to the library, looking south along the edge of North York City Hall towards Sheppard Ave

below: Now looking east towards Yonge Street with Mel Lastman Square on the right.

view from back exit of library, looking east along edge of North York Centre to Yonge St

below: West side of North York Centre (& library)

below: “Green Between” (1994) by Peter Hide stands beside Meridian Arts Centre on North York Blvd (not to be confused with Meridian Hall which is downtown at Yonge & Front)

metal sculpture beside sidewalk, brown, rusty, looks a bit like a face,

below: Also North York Blvd., the south entrance to North York City Hall as well as the Board of Education building.

North York blvd street scene

below: Benches! On Yonge Street

benches along the sidewalk on Yonge street

below: Fountain in the small park by Joseph Shepard Building (federal government).  Now dry for the winter season.

dry fountain in front of brick building, along with some trees with yellow and gold coloured leaves (autumn colours)

yonge street

two storey shops and restaurants on west side of Yonge Street, just north of Sheppard, with large residential building behind them

waiting for bus near Yonge and Sheppard

walking on Yonge near Sheppard

below: Hearts on planters –  These are 2 of the 19 hearts that make up the Willowdale Mosaic Mural Project.  They were created by Robin Hesse and Cristina Delago under the auspices of Mural Routes.   You can find them on West side of Yonge Street, between North York Boulevard and Upper Madison Avenue.

public art project on yonge street, heart shaped, decorated, on side of concrete planters on the sidewalk

public art project on yonge street, heart shaped, decorated with picture of willow tree, on side of concrete plan

below: The Yonge Sheppard Centre on the northeast corner of that intersection has been renovated and the the exterior is totally changed/improved.

below: A pedestrian walks beside the Yonge Street side of the redesigned Yonge Sheppard Centre

walking on yonge street beside new yonge sheppard centre

below:  Even though there are already a lot of condo towers in the area, construction continues on more of them.  This new building is just north of Sheppard.

construction site, building of new entrance to new condo, lots of glass, open door, can inside the interior

elevator on exterior of new highrise condo under construction on yonge street

below: The Legion building (dark brown, with the Canadian flag) is now dwarfed by development around it.

cement truck parked outside new condo building

below: There are still some sites that have not yet been redeveloped.

two storey brick commercial or office space, empty, for lease, on yonge street, brick building

a young woman pushes a baby stroller on sidewalk in front of a glass store front

tall glass buildings across yonge street at empress and park home

people waiting at a bus stop

below: Public bulletin board with posters of a few of the people kidnapped by Hamas in Israel back in October.

notice board on sidewalk covered with kidnapped notices of Isrealis kidnapped by Hamas in Israel

below: In an alley near Yonge & Greenfield; a joint effort by Carillo Art Studio, Cruz1, Luvs (Moise) and Zgar as part of Bit Lane 2021.

luvs and cas mural in north york alley

below: A pink and purple tiger watches the blue jay standing on the branch by June Kim and Nixo Street Art (Erika James). The orange snake is the work of Muisca (aka Daniela Rocha)

three murals on two sides of a building

below: More wildlife, a sparrow, in among the crates in a corner of the lane.

in a corner behind stores in an alley, a small doorway, some stacked crates and boxes, a mural on the wall of a sparrow

below: Lots of birds! On TTC property, Sheppard station bus loop, another mural by June Kim.

wall at Sheppard station TTC bus loop, mural of birds by June Kim, with Emerald condo development in the background

 

poster on grey wall, mostly torn off

With thanks to my mother for being my walking partner that day (which as it turns out, was one of the colder days this month).

reflections in puddle

reflections in puddle

Craven Road once more

Posted: May 23, 2019 in locations
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new leaves on a tree in the foreground, top part of a house in the background - bright green walls and old window

I went back to Craven Road this morning to see if anything had changed.   The last time I blogged about this street was in November 2016. As with many things in life, some things have changed while other things remain the same.  A quick tour of the street …..

below: Some of the cat paintings are there still.

large painting of a yellow and white cat on canvas stapled to a wood fence, outdoors.

below: These two paintings have been here since at least 2015 although the vines have started to grow over them.  Once the leaves reappear (soon), the paintings won’t be quite so visible.

two small paintings on a wood fence, with vines growing in front of them.

below: The sheep painting by Christine Kowal is still there

picture of sheep on a wood fence

below: On the other side of the fence, backyards on Ashdale.

backyard, reddish two storey house with grey added on back rood

below: There is still a section of the fence that has been decorated with found objects.

many found objects attached to a wood fence, outside,

objects attached to a wood wall, outside, small flag, musical instrument, clock, sign,

below: Parking for pirates only.  It was five past twelve when I took this picture so either it’s a functional clock or I happened past at a very fortuitous time.

a clock and a sign attached to a wall.

below: A creepy doll and boots to watch you.

below: A faded bunny from days gone by, holding a little watering can perhaps to water the metallic leaves?

metal leaf art piece attached to a wood fence, stuffed bunny that is faded and grey also attached to the fence

a stylized figurine, round head on conical body, screwed onto a wood fence and surrounded by a wood frame

below: Part of a collection of found objects in front of a house.   The gallery has expanded!

old objects arranged on a ledge in front of a house

below: Today I met Johnny, the King of Craven Road. He mentioned that he appears in a video about Craven Road so I looked it up (on Vimeo, “Craven Road – Director’s Cut). The video was made five years ago which pre-dates the collection of objects that he’s standing in front of in the photo. If you watch the video, you will see some of the cat, and other, paintings.

a man in tie dyed shirt and red bandana, and holding a can of beer, stands in front of a wall with many objects attached to it.

Johnny in a tie dyed shirt standing on the front steps of a blue house with red trim

below: A door knocker beside a front door.

old rusty white door knocker with metallic green garland beside it

small doorway

below: One of the older houses on the street being renovated.

old white house with screen door slightly ajar, signs in window that are building permits, inside of house is gutted and it is being renovated

below: Grass and dandelions in their own little enclosure.

three white houses in a row

below:  Red and yellow tulips in a small front yard that the fence is having trouble containing.

red tulips and yellow tulips growing in a very small front yard

below: Geraniums in the planters on the fence

small wood flower boxes on a wood fence, with geraniums growing in the boxes

Craven Road fence

Posted: November 25, 2016 in locations, public art
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Just over a year ago, I posted some pictures of the art work hanging on a fence along Craven Road.
Some of it is still there, especially some cat pictures like this one:

painting of a beige and light brown cat, lying with its head up and tail wrapped around its body, painted on a wooden fence outside

below: Quite a few little planters have been mounted on the wall.  Because it’s now cold November, most of the plants have died.   These are two exceptions.

4 small wood boxes have been mounted on the side of fence, as planters, a couple still have purple flowers even though it's November and most of the trees have lost their leaves,

below: Some of the things that are now on the fence.   Because there are no houses on the west side of the street, the fence can serve as a gallery wall.

decorated wooden fence on Craven Road, a road with houses only on one side of the street, fence is decorated with a faded Canadian flag, a picture of Queen Elizabeth I, some wood planters, a painting of birch trees in autumn, old shoes, and a sign that says Craven road FEnce, 100 years, 1916 to 2016

below: A close up picture of the “Celebrating 100 years” sign as well as the picture of Queen Elizabeth I, engraved by Crispin van de Passe the Elder, after a drawing by Isaac Oliver.

closer view of the fence with its Celebrating 100 years, Craven Road fence, 1916 to 2016 sign as well as an engraving of Queen Elizabeth I. Planters with dead plants and painted pine cones on sticks, painted red, silver and gold.

below: Andy Warhol’s Marilyn Munroe beside many shoes in twos, knee pads and a walking cast.

a wooden fence with many things hanging on it - an Andy Warhol Marilyn Munroe print, a painting of autumn birch trees, and many old shoes

below: Mirror, mirror on the wall…  Bird pictures to the left and trees and sticks to the right.
Scattered among them are a few glow in the dark stars.

An oval mirror with an ornate wood frame is mounted on an outdoor fence, wood, three small framed pictures hang on both sides of it.

below: Artfully arrange artifacts… mask, hockey stick, dog pictures, toy helicopter….

all kin mounted artfully on a wood fence on Craven Road - hockey stick, football, picture of Charlie Chaplin, ds of things

below:  A woman with three wolves, a young boy and dragonflies listening to your heart.

old black and white photo of a boy, a small statuette of a woman and three wolves, dragonflies on a picture frame with a photo of the word love

below: A composition of found items.  A still life made of remnants of the past.

things on a fence as decoration, guitar, pictures, clock, boxes,

below: And lastly, a couple of pictures of some of the original paintings.

two painting on a fence. One is of a cat and the other is of white flowers

a painting of a line of white sheep on a snowy field, on a fence, outdoors, with houses and backyards beyond the fence, some trees too but they have lost their leaves because it is late autumn

Croft Street facelift

Posted: September 8, 2016 in graffiti and street art, locations
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It’s after Labour Day but it’s still hot enough to be July.  I tried to walk for a while today but I didn’t last.  Air conditioning is my best friend this afternoon.  But all was not lost.  Even though I was only out for a short time, I walked along Croft Street and discovered that the south end (south of Vankoughnet) has been cleaned up and repainted.  If you don’t know Croft Street, it’s a street in name only.   It’s more like an alley in that it’s narrow with a lot of garages on it….but it’s also a lane that now has a number of residences on it.  I guess you could call it a hybrid, a little bit alley and a little bit street.

part of a garage door with a narrow wood door beside it, all covered with bright street art, abstract, mostly in red

What I really like about the street art here is that there is a cohesiveness to it.  It’s not all the same but it all works together.  Do I dare call it designer street art?

a row of garage doors in a narrow street, that have all been painted with street art.

below: A couple of murals that existed previously were left untouched.  On the left an oldie and on the right a new coat of paint.

two adjacent garage doors, one with a bright abstract design and the other with a garden scene

below: As well as a bright and cheerful coat of paint (and the occasional white wall!), the lane has been decorated with planters made of cement blocks and old plastic barrels.

a brick wall painted white with two vertical windows with metal grille in small square shapes, also painted white. between the windows on the sidewalk is an arrangement of cement blocks that have been made into planters with greenery and flowers growing in them.

an old blue plastic barrel that has been turned into a planter, with pink flowers and greenery, in front of a garage door that has been painted in abstract street art in bright colours.

close up details of two adjoining buildings, detail of where they meet, one is old rusty metal and the other is wood that has been spray painted pink, yellow and white.

street art on garages, ivy on walls, alley

abstract multicoloured street art on a wall and door, part of wall is also covered with ivy. old wooden barrel sits by wall

a rusty door on the upper level of an old garage in a lane, the lower level has been spray painted with street art and some of the paint is on the upper level too

an old beige plastic barrel that has been turned into a planter, with pink tall grasses and greenery, in front of a garage door that has been painted in abstract street art in bright colours.

The south end of Croft Street is at College Street.  There once was a mural on a wall at the corner of Croft and College that commemorated the fire of 1904.  Almost three years ago I blogged about it.   (3 years!)  John Croft died in that fire and it was for him that the street was named.  Anyhow, that mural is still there although it’s been hidden behind someone’s ugly tagging for more than a year.  Today it is also behind scaffolding.

below: Part of the John Croft mural that no longer exists.

blog_croft1

And now, because life (or, my life) is rarely linear, I’m going to jump around and look at the other end of Croft Street.   North of Vankoughnet there seemed to be an animal theme in street art that I saw.

below: birdo bunny with his ears at attention.

birdo street art of a rabbit head on a bright green garage door, grey head, pink inside of the long ears, purple and turquoise striped neck.

below: The memorial to Monty the cat is still there, again for at least 3 years, but now it’s someone’s little patio.  In case you are unfamiliar with this wall I have added a transcription of the poem written in Monty’s honour.

mural on a wall with lots of birds and fish and a poem as a memorial to a cat, with two chairs in front of it as well as a yellow planter with flowers in it. Did you know our Monty the cat?
King of Croft and all that
(Ask your dog. Ask your cat)
Did you give him a pet
Once you had met?
Or tickle his soft silken tum tum?
Did he tell you his tale in articulate meow
And share his affection with a rub of his brow?
His loss here has left us really quite blue
But remembering all of those of YOU
Who knew how to share a sweet kindness true
Who would pause on the way,
In midst of each day,
To offer wee beastie
affectionate feastie
In Memory of Monty
Thank you!

 

below: Unicorns vs Monsters.   And the winner is?

a garage door painted black with white creatures, 6 on one side of the red words Unicorns vs monsters and 6 white ones on the other side

below: Three cows standing in a field…. on a wall.

painting of three brown cows in a green field, painted on a garage door

below: No animal here…. but it must have been here recently and left its paw prints behind.

street art on a brown wood garage door, with a painting of white paw prints on blues and greens mounted near the top of the wall

below: An angular fox, or rather a triangular fox

a street art picture of a fox made of triangles in orange black and white

below: More animals but I’m not sure if it’s art, or if someone has a lot of watering cans they’re trying to keep organized.  The bottom yellow one is probably not a pokemon, right? Of course I could be missing something – it wouldn’t be the first time!

watering cans hanging along the side of a garage in an alley, many of them are in the shape of yellow rubber duckies and one is a light blue fish shape. A few are little silver coloured metal buckets.

below: Leaving the animal theme behind, mind over matter.

against an ivy covered wall a brown piece of wood sits. on it someone has written mind matter . The word mind is written on top of the word matter and there is a horizontal line between the two words.

below: 74B likes grids.  The metal stripping on the brown door has been there for at leasat three years but the coloured stripes on the garage are more recent.

a garage door painted in yellow, red and blue vertical stripes as well as two wide horizontal stripes, the walls are green shingle and the entry door is black with a grid of metal stripping on it.

below:  All stories and all blog posts need an ending so I’ll stop here.  The end.

a red stop sign to which someone has stuck a sticker that says driving so now the sign says stop driving