Retail Retrospective - Honest Ed's

 

Location: TD Gallery, Toronto Reference Library

Date photo taken:2 November 2025

The richness and variety of the collections held by the Toronto Public Library never cease to amaze me. Who knew, for example, that they have a pretty remarkable collection of shopping bags? Well they do and items from that collection form the heart of Retail Retrospective, the current installation at the TD Gallery. The story behind the bags is pretty cool too. A librarian in the 1960s sent out over 200 letters and collected over 100 bags from around the world, then curated an exhibition entitled "Art of the Shopping Bag" which ended up touring to libraries across the city. Some of those bags are included in this exhibit - marked with a '66 logo - but other bags from iconic Toronto retailers are included, shifting the focus away from design to an exploration of the ever-changing retail landscape in our city. 

The Gallery is free to attend and is located on the ground floor of the Reference Library at 789 Yonge Street. This exhibit runs until January 11, 2026.

Manning Depot Memorial Plaque

 

Location: Coliseum, CNE grounds

Date photo taken: 16 August 2025

If you're visiting the CNE grounds you have to wander a little off the beaten track to find this plaque. It's located in the Coliseum building, near the offices of the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair. It hangs there because during World War II, much of the CNE grounds were given over to the war effort and this building in particular was used by the Royal Canadian Air Force as a Manning Depot. 

This plaque reminds us of this history, and thanks to efforts to collect oral histories and reminiscences there are some snippets online that illuminate life at Manning Depot. One man remembers being assigned to help clear out the stalls to prepare them for the new arrivals - prior to the RCAF coming in, the building was used for cattle and horse shows. Another man recalls that recruits were bunked four to a stall and that many of the city boys found the accommodations more aromatic than they were used to. 

Text of the plaque:

In honour of one hundred & thirty nine thousand seven hundred & fifty two members of The Royal Canadian Air Force who passed through Number 1 Manning Depot R.C.A.F. during the war 1939-1945.

Erected by the Officers.

Zombie Doll Factory

 

Location: West Bend neighbourhood

Date photo taken: 19 October 2025

I've said it before. I absolutely love the creativity that Torontonians demonstrate at Halloween. While I'm sure there are hotbeds of creative expression spread throughout the city, each year I head for the West Bend neighbourhood to get my Halloween fix. This year it did not disappoint - one yard even provided a jump scare. It's also where I found this charming display. You're only seeing a piece of it here, but  those figures top left represent a long line of Barbie and Disney princess-style dolls waiting patiently for transformation. The rest of the yard is populated with an incredible display of zombie dolls, each one waiting for their chance to star in your next nightmare.

Copper Canopy

 

Location: Ontario Square, Harbourfront Centre

Date photo taken: 18 October 2025

If you find yourself on the waterfront between now and November 16, head for the open space north of the Power Plant gallery. There you'll find a canopy of cut copper leaves, twisting and spinning and reacting to wind and light. If you're there during the day, the leaves blaze when the sun hits them, but if you visit after dark, the on-site lighting creates its own atmosphere. Do as you're encouraged to do - enjoy a moment of stillness beneath this ever shifting forest canopy. 

It was designed by RAW Works, with Roland Rom Colthoff, Suleman Khan, Elmira Yousefi, Aaron Hendershott, and fabricated by Anex Works.     

Reader at Harbord Collegiate

 

Location: Harbord Collegiate

Date photo taken: 8 February 2016

With it being back to school time, here's a figure to inspire the scholar in each of us. This rather serious looking fellow     is one of a pair gracing the doors at the western edge of the building on Harbord. 

The Day

Location: Kipling bus terminal

Date photo taken: 28 April 2025

The new Kipling bus terminal on the western edge of Toronto is a light, airy building with glass walls and large open stairwells. It also features over 220 square meters (or 2400 square feet) of vitreous tile mosaics designed by the Winnipeg-based artist Simon Hughes. The designs around the building are all different, some more abstract or geometric, but all are tied together by the colour scheme and Hughes' overall concept. The detail above is from one of the most striking murals, which wraps around one of the stairwells and presents an ever-changing view of an almost-but-not-quite-familiar city as you work your way down the stairs and around the landings. I was attracted to the DONUTS which is why I took a picture of this particular section, and was tickled to later read in an interview with Hughes that it's one of many Easter eggs that he included in the cityscape. 

Artaic, the company who made the tiles, has a wonderful description of Hughes' concept on their website: The Day was inspired by Hughes’ imaginative vision of the city. Referencing a wide variety of symbols, architectural styles, and landscapes, the installation blends fantasy and reality. Using icy blue colorways reminiscent of Toronto’s cool temperatures, Hughes collaborated with Artaic to create an inverted color gradient. The mosaic artwork features dark tones at the top of the shapes that dissolve into a white background, creating the appearance of a city emerging from morning fog, haze, or a snow squall."

Asteroid

Location: North east corner of Bloor and Islington

Date photo taken: 16 July 2025

According to the affixed plaque, this 2020 piece, titled Asteroid, is by Jean-Pierre Morin and was commissioned by Bloor Islington Place. Morin is a Quebec artist known for his large public art pieces and while you are more likely to see his art in his home province, at least three of his pieces can now be found across the city. While the form of each is unique, there is similarity in his choice of bright aluminum for the sculptural form and corten steel for the plinth.