Toronto Through My Lens
Outside the Pier 27 Condos, located at 29 Queen’s Quay East, there are two intriguing installations, both the work of Alice Aycock.
This was Phase 1 of the project, completed in 2017. The Toronto Twister is made of structural steel with aluminum powder coated white. It is 25 feet tall at its highest point:
The second phase of the project was installed in 2021 outside the Pier 27 Condos:
The last time I walked down The Esplanade, I was struck by how many new condos have sprung up in that neighbourhood. I thought it may be interesting to put together a little photo journal of the structures I encountered that day.
Continuing on in the Yonge-Eglinton area, I came across a couple of interesting sculptures on Roehampton Avenue:
This sculpture is located at 70 Roehampton Avenue beside “The Republic” condo building. What’s Your Name? identifies North Toronto Collegiate Institute (NTCI) students past and present by reproducing their proper names and handwritten signatures on the sculpture’s stainless steel surfaces.
One sheaf shows all the first names of students who have attended the school since 1912, beginning at the top of the inner page. Each name is present only once, and at the moment it first appears in the school record. The chronological list includes new names through to 2010 with a total of 2053 different names. The names of the last students to occupy the original NTCI building appear at the bottom of the outer page.
The second sheaf creates imprints of the students’ public and private identities by contrasting the names of those who attended the school over the past century with a selection of signatures from alumni and current students.
‘What’s Your Name?’ is often the first question we ask someone, and by answering we announce ourselves to each other and to the world. During adolescence our relationship to proper names tends to change; a name is no longer something given but something made, crafted and personalized through the deliberate art of the signature. Schools, and particularly high schools, are where the proper name and the signature intersect.
Paper and print, which are the core tools of education, become dynamic sculptural forms on which an imprint of students’ public and private identities is inscribed.
Located outside the condos at 101 Roehampton Avenue is a work entitled Points of View: Looking North. The stainless-steel sculpture combines precise geometries with expressive organic form — an exploration between the rational and emotional aspects of material forms:
The entire material world, whether natural or man-made, consists on a fundamental level of rational geometries-ratio. Our appreciation of their complex appearances is, however, our emotional response. ‘Points of View: Looking North’ combines these apparently very different worlds and traits of human thought.
Outside the condo buildings at 150 and 155 Redpath Avenue, there is an interesting 2-part sculpture entitled Stargate.
Designed by Toronto and Krakow-based artists Blue Republic (Anna Passakas & Radoslaw Kudlinski), the 2016 installation includes alien-inspired pieces on the two west side corners of Redpath Avenue, fronting the entrances to the condo towers at 150 and 155 Redpath.
The crew of blue and yellow characters, each weighing thousands of pounds, create a window into outer space, both through the bold creatures themselves and their surrounding landscape of swirling vortices.
Our inspiration for this piece came from the unique diversity of this city. For some, moving to a new neighbourhood is like moving from one universe to another. So many people bring various experiences and cultures with them from all over the world. We are both science fiction fans, and we felt that “Stargate”, drawing from this popular genre, could be the glue between these narratives.
Inspired by both Eastern and Greek mythology and science fiction, Stargate serves as a connection between different worlds and a call to explore the unknown.
This post was originally from a couple of weekends ago when the weather was not cooperating. I am reposting this one as I don’t believe it was published recently given all my trouble with my automated sender.
This post is one-part city walk mixed with two-parts photography experiment.
It’s a distant foggy memory, much like the weather we’ve had recently. Given that, I thought it would be interesting to take a walk in the fog/darkness and shoot in black and white to emphasize the moodiness.
I love shooting in black and white; it makes everything look so different and dramatic – details stand out, creating emotions. In addition to shooting in soft black and white I used a diffusion filter which removed much of the “digital edge” from modern digital cameras, leaving a soft B&W treatment looking like it was shot on film. The shots are intentionally dark and muted, and the fog enhanced the effect.
Located at 247 Yonge Street, across from the Eaton Centre, is OctoZone. OctoZone is a huge claw machine-themed gift shop. The interior is very Asian-styled, infused with copious amounts of bright turquoise and hot pink neon (the effect lost, of course, in my black and white shots). I’ve passed this place several times and have always wondered what it is; this time I decided to take temporary refuge from the fog and drizzle, go in and check it out. It’s quite an interesting place: click here if you’d like to watch a short YouTube video about OctoZone.
Next stop: home, where it’s warm and dry! 🙂
At 637 Lakeshore Blvd. West just west of Bathurst Street sits the Tip Top Lofts. Just behind it lies Lake Ontario. This building has a long and prominent history in Toronto. Formerly known as the Tip Top Tailors Building, it was constructed in 1929 and housed the manufacturing, warehousing, retail and office operations of Tip Top Tailors Ltd., a menswear clothing retailer founded in 1909 by Polish-Jewish immigrant David Dunkelman.
The building was designed by Bishop and Miller architects, incorporating the Art Deco style. In 1972, the building was designated as a heritage structure by the City of Toronto.
In spring 2002, Dylex (the company owning the building) sold the property to Context Development, who converted it into condominium lofts. The conversion was designed by architects Alliance of Toronto. The conversion included the addition of six stories on the roof. The neon Tip Top Tailors rooftop sign was retained and given a slant. Inside, there are 256 beautifully renovated lofts.
A few notes on the interior lofts courtesy of the website condos.ca:
Offering “hard” and “soft” lofts: When the building was converted into lofts in the early 2000’s, Context Developments was smart-thinking to create both hard and soft lofts. What that means is that Tip Top Lofts offers both the classic, exposed brick and woodbeam “hard loft” style, as well as more modern “soft loft” styles that will feel like a contemporary condo.
Courtesy of the City of Toronto Archives and torontolofts.ca, here are a few photos tracing the history of this magnificent Art Deco building:
Passing by the Bloor Street United Church at 300 Bloor Street West a couple of weeks ago, I was quite surprised by the renovation/demolition taking place there.
Located in Toronto’s Annex neighbourhood, the 19th century Neo-gothic structure is undergoing a major interior and exterior restoration and renovation that includes the redesign of 20,000 square feet of community and commercial office spaces. For the time being the congregation is worshipping with St. Matthew’s United Church at 729 St. Clair Avenue West.
The mixed-use project aims to add approximately 40,000 square feet of leaseable space which will support the congregation’s ongoing programs. The completion of the project will carry out the original mission of the church, providing a community space for gathering and worship.
Respecting the heritage building, the commercial and residential program form a podium and a 29-storey-high tower – the Cielo Condos – that is set back from the church. The tower takes cues in geometry and materials from its neighbourhood. The brick fabric of the Annex is reflected along the accordion-like podium of the building and features panels of windows that connect residents to the city and neighbourhood. In contrast to the intricate detailing of the church, the tower’s minimal form and gold detailing complement the existing structure.
The church began as a Presbyterian congregation in 1887 to serve the rapidly growing population of then-northern Toronto, with the church building opening in 1890. In 1924, the church voted by a substantial majority to join the United Church. Three years later, a portion of the church was demolished when the city decided to widen Bloor Street.
The church grew in size in the 1940s and 1950s as an influx of immigrants arrived in the area. The congregation was so large that on several occasions, Massey Hall was rented to hold some services. It was decided to renovate the church in 1954. As it was nearing completion, however, a fire broke out and the church was badly damaged, with most of the sanctuary destroyed. Money was quickly raised to rebuild the church; in the interim the congregation met at nearby churches and U of T’s Convocation Hall.
Up until a few years ago I would pass through the Sherbourne Street area near Bloor Street East twice per day, on my way to the subway. Not the most uplifting of ‘hoods, the area has traditionally been slightly down at heel. That has all been changing recently. This past weekend I went up Sherbourne Street, not having done so for quite a while, and was shocked by the recent changes on Sherbourne and neighbouring Howard Street.
After years of neglect, the heritage building on the corner of Howard Street and Sherbourne Street finally gets some attention (and a new condo built above it):
I shot these while heading to the subway via the wonderful little street known as Glen Road. I’ve always loved Glen Road; so much character – to me it has an almost-Brooklyn look and feel. It’s a huge bonus that the once-derelict period houses on the west side of the street were recently renovated and revitalized:
Sherbourne Street continues to change and gentrify. Over the last few years several upscale condos have gone up near the corner of Bloor Street East, making the area a little more desirable than it was a couple of years ago.
A little black and white photo exercise today, focusing on the curves and angles of a few downtown structures.
It was a crisp fall day when I started my Avenue Road photowalk at Bloor Street West. I made my way up Avenue Road, reached Dupont Street, then returned south until I hit University Avenue and Dundas Street West. Here’s a little of what I encountered along the way.
Now the puppies are nice and warm. Love this fountain.
Pretty sad but it’s time had come
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Well done Marv! I walk by this area so often and really take these for granted, but when you highlight…
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This is such a lovely part of the city. I love how they fixed up that square and the fountain…