Thursday, May 24, 2012

Art Deco On Spadina Ave

This is the entrance to the Balfour Building which was designed by architect Benjamin Brown in 1930 for a local clothing company. At that time this part of lower Spadina was known as the "garment district" and was lined with factories producing clothes. Today most of these factories have been turned into design offices and gallery spaces with a few still being used as artist studios but the rents have climbed. This area is now called the "Fashion District" for the many fashion retailers that occupy the ground floors of the buildings. The Balfour building has been historically designated because of its stylish Art Deco design so will remain intact!
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16 comments:

  1. LúciaMay 24, 2012 at 3:05 PM

    You know everything about your city! ;-)

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  2. HalcyonMay 24, 2012 at 3:08 PM

    A beautiful example of art deco. Glad it will be saved!

    PS: I like the new layout of your blog. Very clean and streamlined.

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  3. Paul in Powell RiverMay 24, 2012 at 3:43 PM

    Art Deco is one of my favourite architectural styles - nicely seen.

    I like your new look, BTW, clean and simple.

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  4. AnonymousMay 24, 2012 at 4:12 PM

    Nice!

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  5. DebMay 24, 2012 at 4:31 PM

    A Grand Entrance indeed.

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  6. Regina KMay 24, 2012 at 9:04 PM

    I find Art Deco the most fabulous architecture around, thank goodness for the 1930's!

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  7. Regina KMay 24, 2012 at 9:05 PM

    This is such a fabulous doorway!

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  8. Regina KMay 24, 2012 at 9:05 PM

    This is such a fabulous doorway!

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  9. JackMay 24, 2012 at 10:31 PM

    This illustrates that one can add interest to architecture with pretty simple elements. It is a shame that modern architects so often skip the details.

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  10. RandyMay 24, 2012 at 11:33 PM

    I love it, great reflection too.

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  11. Rae WalterMay 25, 2012 at 6:24 AM

    Like the architecture and interesting how the district has been able to keep it's links with fashion.

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  12. EG CameraGirlMay 25, 2012 at 7:19 AM

    Impressive entrance. And the people in front show how large the entrance is.

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  13. PerthDailyPhotoMay 25, 2012 at 9:21 AM

    Love the 1930's style Pat, in everything..clothes, hairstyles and architecture. Nicely shown here.

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  14. Taken For GrantedMay 25, 2012 at 11:13 AM

    I've visited Toronto several times and have always been impressed with how sensitive it is to it's architectural history. Great that these buildings can be saved. Your blog looks great.

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  15. ArtandArchitecture-SF.comMay 25, 2012 at 11:27 AM

    That entry is gorgeous, and the type face is spectacular.

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  16. UnknownMay 27, 2012 at 9:29 AM

    As a big fan of Art Deco I can lonly love this entranceway.

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