Garden of Future Follies

 

Location: Front Street at Bayview

Date photo taken: 1 June 2019

This installation created by Canadian art duo Hadley+Maxwell playfully attacks our city's historic monuments, bringing them to the people and into the present. Their folly is comprised of over 150 unique elements copied from 80 different monumental works around the city. The original pieces are often oversized, elevated and designed to inspire awe. By taking fragments, juxtaposing them in whimsical ways and placing them at our level, the artists invite us to get personal with the pieces, and to re-examine their stories. It also makes me wonder if any monument buffs out there have successfully mapped back the various pieces. This excellent 2016 article from Spacing Magazine gives a few of them away.

Careful Infrastructures for Reassembled Lands (No.2)

 .

Location: Waterfront promenade

Date photo taken: 22 October 2022

In 2022 Waterfront Toronto and the Waterfront BIA announced the appointment of Lisa Hirmer as their new artist-in-residence. Her mandate was to "create meaningful, experiential encounters with the community, activate underutilized spaces along the lakefront, and draw new audiences to the waterfront." One theme of the residency was climate change. Hirmer took the opportunity to collaborate with writers to create a sign project for the waterfront promenade and this is one of the resulting pieces. This particular text is by Sangamithra Iyer and it was fabriated by Ocel Metal Fabrication.

Water Guardians

 

Location: Front St. E., between Rolling Mills and Tannery Roads

Date photo taken: 1 June 2019

The West Don Lands community is a still developing neighbourhood at the eastern edge of the downtown core. Home to the Pan Am Games athletes in 2015, all aspects of this community were carefully planned to create a vibrant, livable neighbourhood. A gorgeous park anchors one end, transit options abound and sidewalks are wide enough to be called promenades. Waterfront Toronto, the body responsible for the redevelopment, even incorporated a Public Art Strategy into the early stages of the work. The result is a collection of pretty amazing new works and the seamless integration of an older piece. Water Guardians, created by Jennifer Marman and Daniel Borins with James Khamsi is one of the new pieces. It sits adjacent to the splash pad and is, for the most part, endearing. I'll admit though that there have been times at night when its glowing eyes and lumbering attitude evoke a classic monster-movie vibe.

Sumach Silhouette

Location: Sumach Street, north of Eastern

Date photo taken: 23 July 2016

Running up the curve of Sumach from Eastern Avenue is a long fence-like sculpture filled with images of Toronto, past and present. Starting with forests and indigenous structures near Eastern, as you move north you begin to encounter settler ships, log houses, carriages and eventually the buildings that would come to define the city. While some call it the Sumach Silhouette, the official name is Site Specific. It was commissioned by Waterfront Toronto and created by sculptors Scott Eunson and Marianne Lovink. It consists of complimentary panels of corten and stainless steel, with lighting between the two, making this piece even more dramatic after dark.