Giant Skeleton

 

Location: Dundas Street East

Date photo taken: 16 October 2022

Oversized skeletons are definitely a thing this fall. I see them in front yards and hanging out on porches, even riding giant skeletal horses. Or, in this case, watching the street life from the safety of the backyard.

Afrophilia

 

Location: Sculpture Garden, King & Church
Date photo taken: 5 October 2022

The Toronto Sculpture Garden is currently occupied by 9 busts on elevated plinths, but these aren't the typical white marble depictions of ancient philosophers or founding fathers. Instead, Jamaican-born artist Frantz Brent-Harris celebrates young black people in hues of bright orange and red. He describes it as a love letter to Black People. From his artist statement: "Unapologetically, my artwork seeks to present a juxtapose palate to the white gaze, standing in defiance of historical notions of heroes, representation of beauty and those worthy of being immortalized in a statue. Grounding my work in an anti-colonial and anti-racist lens, I present images that works to dismantle and provide alternative embodiment of beauty.” The work is presented by Black Artists' Networks in Dialogue (BAND) Gallery and Cultural Centre in partnership with the City of Toronto. 

Art Wire & Iron Co.

 

Location: Lakeshore Blvd between Carlaw and Leslie

Date photo taken: 1 May 2021

Last week I talked about the dismantling of the eastern-most part of the Gardiner and the public art project that arose from the demolition. If you look carefully at the pillars that are part of the installation, you'll notice that each has a large plaque affixed to it. These are actually stainless steel plates, each etched with an image of local significance. Some of them document the dismantling of the elevated portion of the roadway, while others delve into the more distant history of the area. This particular image shows employees at the Art Wire & Iron Company Limited on Carlaw Avenue, probably in the mid-1940s. The Art Wire & Iron Company set up shop at 3 Carlaw Avenue around 1923, with Charles R. Shipway as proprietor and manager. They specialized in ornamental iron work. The building still stands today and is now the home of Habitat for Humanity's ReStore. The former business name is still visible in ghostly letters on the exterior.

Fun fact: Prior to the Art Wire & Iron Company locating at 3 Carlaw, the site housed a chemical manufacturer, and before that, Fuller Stanbury Co, one of the many pork packers that helped give Toronto its Hogtown nickname.

Gardiner East Dismantling

 

Location: Lakeshore Blvd between Carlaw and Leslie

Date photo taken: 1 May 2021

In 1999 Toronto City Council voted to demolish the eastern-most portion of the Gardiner expressway. This section served no real purpose, having been built to link up to a Scarborough Expressway that was never built. When it was demolished in 2001 the work involved a reinvention of this section of the Lakeshore. It was designed to accommodate more traffic capacity but also included bicycle lanes, landscaping and public art. Artist John McKinnon took the expressway itself as his inspiration, transforming remnants of the structure into a visually striking new installation. In his words: "Probably the most oppressive part of the Gardiner is the overhead deck and with the deck removed the columns take on a life of their own and that is actually the best part. It almost has a kind of marching Stonehenge… sort of almost millennial sense about it. And this kind of thing actually is what gives now the whole piece a distinct character."

Here's the Ben Wicks

 

Location: South wall of 426 Parliament Street

Date photo taken: 19 May 2022

Ben Wicks was many things - Toronto resident, writer, media personality - but he was best known for his cartoons. Starting with the Toronto Telegram in the 1960s, his work eventually appeared in newspapers across Canada and the United States. And eventually on the wall of a building in Cabbagetown. It turns out Ben Wicks was also a would-be restaurateur. His self-named restaurant The Ben Wicks opened at 424 Parliament Street in 1980 and remained open for over 30 years, although the majority of that time it was owned and operated by Robert McEnirney, Wicks having realized very quickly that his talents lay in other areas. The Ben Wicks, like Wicks himself, is now gone, but the mural remains and has been joined by a heritage plaque, tucked away on a nearby railing.

Nathan Phillips' sundial

 

Location: Nathan Phillips Square, north west corner

Date photo taken: 1 November 2019

While not immediately obvious, at least to me, this sculptural piece on the north west corner of Nathan Phillips Square is a sundial. Designed by engineer and geophysicist G.R. Johnson, it's six feet in diameter and made of brass. It was a gift to the people of the city from former mayor and namesake of the square, Nathan Phillips. He served the city as alderman for 28 years and then as mayor for eight more, from 1955 to 1962. The international design competition held for the new city hall, which sits adjacent to the Square, was undertaken during his tenure and he was still in office when construction began. Phillips wanted to show his gratitude for being allowed to serve, and he wanted his gift to be something that would be artistic, unusual, functional and permanent and this sundial was the result. It was presented in April 1969.

Former entrance to Blantyre Public School

 

Location: Blantyre Public School

Date photo taken: 29 November 2020

This former doorway stands ready to welcome students back to school. Sort of. If you were to walk through it, you would actually find yourself in the parking lot. 

I love it when pieces of older buildings are salvaged and repurposed on site. They act as landmarks in time, helping us to better understand the history of a place. In this case, this installation takes us back to 1928 when Blantyre Elementary first opened. I find the placement a bit odd but I believe it serves a purpose. It seems that this doorway, paired with the hedge that runs out from either side of it, is a feature designed to stop the unwitting from tumbling down the short steep grade behind.