8 Feb 2025

People Walking 2006

Large black screen on the street with walking people in LED lights

Location: 333 Bloor Street East
Date photo taken: 10 July 2019

Mirroring the hustle and bustle of a weekday late afternoon, figures of light traverse this large black screen positioned just steps away from the sidewalk on Bloor Street East. There are nine figures in total although I only know this from reading about the piece - their appearances are randomized so while watching from the sidewalk, the impression is of a much greater multitude. Commissioned by Rogers, and billed as Toronto's first LED-based piece of public art, it was created by British artist Julian Opie. On his website, I found it interesting to see what other cities feature "walking" pieces like ours. Spoiler alert - they include Shanghai and Taipei.