Nyx 2025

 

Location: Trillium Park

Date photo taken: 22 March 2025

This eerie work is one of the 14 light-based installations you'll find scattered around Trillium Park right now. It's part of the free light festival being hosted in the park until April 4. The theme this year is Neon Dreams: Light and Colour and this work is by artist Thadea Decora with Vincent Glasheen. According to the artist's statement, the sculpture "reflects the artist’s feelings about AI and technology in all its wonder and horror" and was inspired by Jean-Léon Gérôme's 1896 painting Truth Coming Out of Her Well.

Flyer

Location: Princes' Blvd, Canadian National Exhibition

Date photo taken: 24 August 2024

For those with an interest in heritage, there is always something to appreciate at the Ex. Most of the time it's in the background, like the Charles McKechnie figures in the Heritage Court or the outline of Fort Rouillé in the southern garden, but this year history is deliberately more in focus. An exhibit in the Withrow Common Gallery looks back at the relationship between the CNE and the AGO, and in the Enercare Centre, the 100th anniversary of the Canadian Association of Fairs and Exhibitions is celebrated with an exhibit dedicated to carnivals. On display are photos, ephemera and artifacts from past midways, including cars from the Flyer, a roller coaster built on the CNE grounds in 1953. The cars, like the illuminated letters pictured here, were salvaged when the Flyer was dismantled in 1992. The CNE Association refurbished the sign and restored the cars and both are now ready for your selfie moment. 

Fun at the Fair

 

Location: The Farm, Canadian National Exhibition

Date photo taken: 1 September 2022

After a pandemic-related hiatus, the CNE is back on and it seems that Toronto has really missed it. I know I have. Going during my usual mid-week evening I was shocked at the number of people in attendance. Even the Farm building, usually an oasis of calm and quiet, seemed busy. That's where this sand sculpture is located. Unlike previous years, there was no butter sculpting (a long tradition at the CNE - just search "butter" in their photo archives if you don't believe me) and no international sand sculpting competition, but Karen Fralich's oversized sculpture of the farm animals kicking back and having fun at the fair provides lots of viewing pleasure. 

Toronto Light Festival 2020 - Sydmonaut

Location: Distillery District
Date photo taken: 12 February 2020

Back for its fourth year, the Toronto Light Festival has once again brought light and colour to the darkest months of winter. The Distillery District is hosting installations from 13 different artists representing 5 countries. Some, such as the Cloud Swings, are interactive. Others like the Sydmonauts are just there to discover. Designed by Amigo & Amigo from Australia, there are 9 astronauts in total scattered around the site.

The Light Festival is free to attend and continues to March 1.

Toronto Light Fest - 2019

Location: Distillery District

Date photo taken: 21 January 2019

If you check out the website for the Toronto Light Fest, you'll discover that, in their opinion, winter sucks. They aspire to "create a positive, magical urban world that people of all ages and backgrounds will enjoy and look forward to." I certainly do. While I don't think winter sucks, there is no denying it's dark a lot of the time. I love patio lights and holiday lights and now for the next fews months I can enjoy the lights in the Distillery. I took this picture on a Monday night, when the temperature was -13C and felt much colder, but it meant that I got to stand in this structure - I dub it the aurora igloo even though its actual name is Enunciation - all alone, for as long as I wanted. It was cold, sure, but it was also very calming. 

Toronto Light Fest

Location: Distillery District
Date photo taken: 23 January 2018

The Toronto Light Fest is back for its second year. From now until March 4th the Distillery District is home to over 30 light art installations. Some, like this one, have a message. Others are pure fancy. Like the candy-coloured pyramid made from gummy bears. Or the circle of birds that fly with you while you run. Picking a favourite seems silly, but if I had to, it would probably be the giant dandelion puffs transformed by coloured lights into a fireworks display.

Butter Sculpture - Tyrion Lannister

Location: The Farm, Canadian National Exhibition

Date photo taken: 24 August 2015

Each year at this time I like to post an image or two taken during my annual visit to the CNE. Yes, I go every year. I love the Midway at night, the music, and all of the weird stuff that is packed into every day. Like butter sculpting. This is a regular event held each year in the Farm building. Artists are invited to create a master work in butter, based on the year's theme. They do their work in a special chilled enclosure to ensure that the butter doesn't get too soft to work with. As I can't make it this year, I present instead this work in progress from 2015 by Maria Cupani. If you're curious about the final version, check out this Flickr image.

Digital Origami Tiger

Location: Toronto Light Fest, Distillery District
Date photo taken: 27 January 2016

This glowing cat figure is one of two that makes up the installation Digital Origami Tigers, currently on display at the Toronto Light Fest in the Distillery. Originally created by LAVA to celebrate the Chinese Year of the Tiger in 2010 and displayed at the Custom House in Sydney, Australia, the cats were later adopted by the World Wildlife Fund to help in their campaign to raise awareness of the plight of these endangered animals. Instructions for making your own origami tiger can be downloaded from the WWF website.

The Toronto Light Fest is a free festival that brings over 20 light-based works from local and international artists to the Distillery District. It runs until March 12.

Food at the Ex

Location: The Midway at the Canadian National Exhibition

Date photo taken: 26 August 2015

For many, one of the biggest draws of the CNE is the food. The Food Building was always a favourite with me as a child - I still remember the year that President's Choice launched their Decadent Chocolate Chip cookies and bags could be bought super cheap - and a day at the Ex was not complete without at least one package of Tiny Tom donuts.  While family favourites abound, presenting at the CNE also gives vendors a chance to experiment and each year there are new and often over-the-top offerings. This year is no exception. For the those who love all things pig, there's a fried pig ear sandwich or the pulled pork cinnamon roll. If you prefer your food on a stick, there's The Big Pickle Dog, an ingenious cross between a corn dog and a deep fried pickle. For the indecisive in the crowd who can't decide between dinner and dessert, there's the Philly Steaklair. And if you want to sample the food of the future, head over to Bug Bistro and try their Bug Dog.

The Midway - Zipper

Location: The CNE Midway

Date photo taken: 24 August 2015

This week, another of my favourite Midway rides at the CNE. The Zipper is a classic that's been around since the late 1960s. It features three different movements: the central boom rotates and the cars, which are free spinning, move along and around the boom on a cable. Check out this YouTube video to see one of these rides in action. The passenger capsules have been remodeled and the overall ride toned down since it was first introduced due to a number of fatalities occurring when the doors of the cages released during operation. That's scary stuff!

The Kingsway Neighbourhood

Location: Intersection of Bloor St. W. and Jackson Avenue
Date photo taken: 19 April 2014
Image 2 in the Neighbourhoods Series

Neighbourhood BIAs, or business improvement areas, are active in neighbourhoods throughout the city and work, as their name implies, to make their areas more attractive to local customers and tourists alike. The Kingsway BIA, which covers the area between Dundas and Bloor from Mimico Creek to the Humber River, has been around, at least in spirit, since 1949 when the Kingsway Business Men's Association was formed. This coming weekend, they are hosting Taste of the Kingsway, a festival which features great food, beer and wine gardens and lots of entertainment including music, a midway, dog show, 3D chalk art and more. Hockey great Darryl Sittler will also be on hand Sunday to sign autographs. Festivities are centered around Royal York subway station.

For more about neighbourhoods and customized street signs, check out the earlier NeaTO post about the Church-Wellesley Village.

The Midway - Starship 4000

Location: The CNE Midway
Date photo taken: 25 August 2014

Experiencing the lights of the Midway at night is one of my most anticipated summer rituals. Viewing them while passing by on the Lakeshore or the Gardiner is a treat but nothing beats wandering in among the rides for sheer sensory overload. While I rarely ride at the Ex these days, I do still have my favourites. Starship 4000 is one of them. Its classic graphics and the blur of its lights while spinning perfectly combine Midway fun with a great retro sci-fi vibe.

The Ex is open until September 1 and then the rides will be packed up and whisked off to their next event. The Midway attractions are provided by North American Midway Entertainment, based out of Indiana.

Honest Ed's Theatrical Walls

Location: Honest Ed's, 581 Bloor St. W.
Date photo taken: 7 July 2014

If you're a fan of theatre or just looking for something to occupy you while you hide from the elements consider popping in to Honest Ed's. This store at Bloor and Bathurst, known for its iconic sign and discount prices, is also home to an incredible collection of celebrity photographs. Placed randomly around the store are scads of publicity pics and head shots from actors, musicians and other artists who have visited the city. There are also historic images of the Royal Alexandra Theatre, where many of these people performed, and the stairwells are lined with vintage theatre posters. When the theatre faced demolition in the 1960s, Honest Ed Mirvish purchased it, refurbished it and continued its tradition of bringing top talent to the city.

Until the end of the week Honest Ed's Alley and parking lot is also hosting the Toronto Fringe Festival's Fringe Club and Visual Fringe. Go there to mingle with theatre goers and performers, see an Alley play, listen to music, eat, drink, shop and generally hang out.

As for the store, it will be open for browsing and shopping until the end of December 2016.

Italian Greyhound - Woofstock 2014

Location: Woofstock, Woodbine Park
Date photo taken: 25 May 2014

I almost missed it this year! Woofstock, Toronto's annual outdoor festival for dogs, snuck up on me. It was held last weekend, a few weeks earlier than usual, and it moved to a new location, Woodbine Park. The park setting seemed much more natural for an event of this type and there was plenty of room for everyone to move around but I missed all the restaurant patios on the sidelines where you could sit, have a cold drink, and watch all the cuteness go by. Despite not spending the hours and hours there that I have in the past, I did manage to pick my "it" dog for 2014. While there was a stunning number of bulldogs and Shiba Inu, I also noticed that there were quite a lot of these diminutive dogs, which I am told are Italian greyhounds. As I don't recall seeing nearly as many in past years, I'm giving them the title this year.

Garden Tower in Toronto - Nuit Blanche 2013

Location: Grounds of the Metropolitan United Church, 56 Queen St. E.
Date photo taken: 2 October 2013

This Saturday night, starting at 6:51 pm and lasting until sunrise, is Nuit Blanche, the free all-night celebration of contemporary art that started in Paris in 2002 and came to Toronto in 2006. This tower of chairs by Japanese artist Tadashi Kawamata is one of more than 110 art projects that are part of this year's offerings. It will be interesting to see how this piece will transform after dark.

To read the description of the installation, and to plan your Nuit Blanche adventure, visit the official site.

Shiba Inu - Woofstock 2013

 

Location: Woofstock, Front St. between Church and Jarvis
Date photo taken: 8 June 2013

This past weekend was Woofstock which, according to their website, is North America's largest festival for dogs. It happens each year in early June and it really draws a crowd. Every year I go and spend a few hours soaking up the doggie love and marveling at the outfits and dye jobs some pooches sport. I also try and identify the new "it" dog. In past years the uptick in pugs, bulldogs and dachshunds was obvious, and they are all still very much in evidence. This year, it was a little harder to make the call. There were far more Great Danes than I remember seeing before, but I think It Dog 2013 goes to the Shiba Inu, a breed made famous by Puppy Cam. Also very popular this year were doggie strollers containing two or more tiny canine occupants. Visit my Woofstock Picasa album to see more images from the event.