Bugs!

Location: The Royal Alexandra Theatre, 260 King St. w.
Date photo taken: 22 January 2014

The venerable Royal Alex Theatre seems to have a bit of a bug problem. Despite the chilly weather currently plaguing the city, two over-sized insects have taken up residence on the outside of this heritage theatre. They are there as part of the publicity for the new adaptation of Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis, in which one family's life is thrown into turmoil when their son wakes up to find himself transformed into a gigantic insect. The play is running until March 9th. Who knows how long the critters will stick around?

Entrance - 371 Wallace Avenue

Location: 371 Wallace Avenue
Date photo taken: 3 October 2013
Image 1 in the Portals series

Doors have always held a certain fascination for me so I'm going to indulge myself by occasionally featuring them here.

This distinctive door belongs to the Wallace Station Lofts, a warehouse conversion project completed in 2008. The complex is located right next to the West Toronto Railpath and is named after a train station which once existed in the neighbourhood.

The building was originally built in 1929 and served Meredith, Simmons & Co. Ltd., manufacturers of adhesive, including that used on postage stamps.

Toboggan Hill Mural

Location: 5112 Dundas St. W.
Date photo taken: 17 April 2013
Image 8 in the Mural Series

This is another mural from the town of Islington, this one with a delightful winter scene. Set in the 1920s, it shows children enjoying a day of tobogganing behind Montgomery's Inn, and is based on a photograph from the Islington archives. The mural was painted by John Kuna in 2011.

Korea Town Tiger

Location: Bloor & Christie
Date photo taken: 7 January 2014

This beautiful tiger, rendered in LED lights, was created to commemorate the establishment of the Korea Town Business Improvement Association which works to promote and beautify the section of Bloor between Christie and Bathurst. The tiger was chosen as it is a symbolic guardian of well-being and prosperity, and this particular tiger has reappeared to watch over this stretch of Bloor for the past 9 years. The lighting ceremony this past November included coffee, treats, pictures with the tiger, performances and words from Councillor Mike Layton.

Floating Christmas Tree

 

Location: Brookfield Place, Front & Yonge
Date photo taken: 28 November 2013

One of my favourite indoor spaces, Sam Pollock Square in Brookfield Place, is even more beautiful right now, decorated with a stunning floating Christmas tree. Designed specifically for Brookfield Place, it has over 40,000 LED lights, and lots of amber and crystal ornaments. I clearly wasn’t the only one impressed with the display – while I was setting up this picture, people were constantly stopping to pose with the tree.

Christmas Windows

Location: Holt Renfrew, 50 Bloor St. W.
Date photo taken: 10 December 2013

Despite the fact that most Christmas windows these days are much like windows at any other time of the year - filled with product - I still have a fascination with them. While the just-for-fun displays with animatronic Santas or Christmas-at-the-zoo scenes are largely gone, some of today's windows are beautiful, and some are quirky and fun. This is one of the Northern Noel series from Holt Renfrew on Bloor, one of the better efforts this Christmas.

If you're craving a good old-fashioned window experience, The Bay on Queen Street has a number of windows featuring miniature scenes, complete with animation. They're not new,  having been on display for the past several years, but they're still fun.

Snowflake Tree

Location: Berczy Park, Front & Church
Date photo taken: 28 November 2013

While many people complain about how early darkness falls in December, I don't mind for the simple reason that December is a month filled with lights. Decorations go up all over the city and one of my favourite displays is the snowflake tree in Berczy Park.

Normally I prefer my Christmas trees on the traditional side but something about this tree, made of 36 snowflakes and 58,000 individual LED lights, is simply enchanting. It's been a fixture in the park since 2008 and is accompanied by 16 other snowflakes placed in nearby trees. It was created by Blachere Illumination and commissioned by the Old Town Toronto Business Improvement Association, the same people responsible for the carolers who can be found wandering the area between here and St. James Park. And if energy woes are making you feel a little Grinchy this year, rest easy - thanks to the energy efficient LED lights, it costs only about $4 per month in electricity to light this wonderful tree.