Iris

Spring is finally here and there are flowers everywhere including the Irises which are always wonderful to see. It's hard to pick a favourite colour combo but I quite like this one.

The theme for City Daily Photo bloggers on June 1 is "Zest."

A Hockey Great

Last Saturday was proclaimed Johnny Bower Day in Toronto and this is one of the street signs that were unveiled along the street where he lived throughout his career with the Toronto Maple Leafs. Bower was part of 4 Stanley Cup winning teams from 1962 to 64 and in 1967 and was one of the most popular players of all time and continues to be to this day, now in his late 80s. I chose this particular sign because his jersey number was 1! As an aside, I grew up nearby and as kids we would often go and knock on his door  and he was always thrilled to greet us!

The theme for City Daily Photo bloggers on June 1 is "Zest."

A Fence On Spadina Rd

This pic shows the side of the house/stable at Spadina House which was visible in the background in yesterday's post. I loved the starkness of the wooden wall behind that great fence and the line of tulips.
Taking part in Good Fences. Click here to see more fences.

The theme for City Daily Photo bloggers on June 1 is "Zest."

Greenhouse in Spring

I showed you this greenhouse, which is part of Spadina House Museum, surrounded by snow last February (click here) and thought I would show it now. Also, in the background you can see what used to be a stable on the grounds before being converted into a dwelling for the gardener until the 1920s. It seems to be in use as a private home now.

The theme for City Daily Photo bloggers on June 1 is "Zest."

Pretty In Spring

I've always liked this house which is located just north of Casa Loma and the magnolia tree added such a nice touch, so here it is. It's interesting how their garage has been built into the hill.

The June theme for the City Daily Photo group is "Zest".

Yet Another Islington Mural

Another of the Islington neighbourhood murals by artist John Kuna, this one was done in 2009 and is titled "Faith of Our Fathers 2" since it replaces the first mural of that name. It shows some of the history of the Islington United Church from the days of ministers travelling around to small hamlets by horseback to the construction of the first church on Dundas St W.  The congregation outgrew this location and moved around the corner and the original is now a pub.
Taking part in Monday Murals. Click here for more murals.

Timothy Eaton Memorial Church

This stately church is found on St Clair Ave W in the tony Forest Hill neighbourhood and it quite suits the style and age of many of the homes there. It was designed in the English Gothic style by architects Wickson & Gregg and was built in 1914 as a Methodist Church but is now a United Church. The land was donated by the Eaton family as a memorial to retailer Timothy Eaton and hence the name. This is the same family that the famous Eaton Centre mall is named after.
Taking part in Inspired Sunday. Click here for more religious buildings from around the world.

Needs Some Work

I'm still out in the same part of Bloor St W as the last few days, out towards Lansdowne, with this pic that show what was probably a quite lovely Classical Revival building before a 4th floor was added and the first floor details disappeared. The 2nd & 3rd floor details are wonderful so lets hope that whoever is taking over the ground floor does a nice job.

A Horse Is A Horse

I could find no info on this building other than the fact that it was built in 1892 and has heritage designation, but I've always loved the detail work of the bricks especially around those 3rd floor windows. The Black Horse Pub has been here as long as I can remember and I imagine they are responsible for the horse head between the 2nd floor windows. This is on Bloor St W in the same area as the last 2 days, a stretch that is undergoing a change as a lot of small galleries and restaurants that have been priced out of Queen St W are moving up here. 

Corner Store

Even in this day and age of so many large store chains, there are still a lot of small independent corner stores around the city. This one is on Bloor St just down the street from yesterday's restaurant and it specializes in fruit and a wonderful assortment of flowers, especially at this time of year.

Nordic Goodies

In a city known for its very diverse assortment of restaurants, we had been lacking a place to have a great assortment of Scandinavian goodies until a couple of years ago when Karelia Kitchen opened on Bloor St West. Karelia was the name of a wonderful store here in the 60s & 70s that sold contemporary design products from Scandinavia and this restaurant is owned by the son and daughter-in-law of the store owners. It is a Nordic smokehouse that also offers open-faced sandwiches, pastries, and traditional Nordic entrees. I've eaten there and it was really good!
Taking part in Signs, Signs. Click here for more signs.

Blossom Time, Finally

It's later than normal but the last week has seen all the spring blossoms popping open and it is a delight to see after the winter we have had. This small Magnolia is always one of the first in the neighbourhood to bloom and it was again this year!

A Touch Of Wilderness

Yet another laneway pic of a mural painted on a garage door but this time I could find no signature at all so I have no artist info. It certainly seems to be discouraging the taggers. Taken when we still had some snow on the ground.
Taking part in Monday Murals. Click here for more murals.

A Simple Church

I took this pic of the Ukrainian Baptist Church, located just off Queen St W, in February when we still had lots of snow. It was the stripped down plainness that caught my eye and after a bit of googling I found a pic of it taken in 1957 (click here to see it) so it originally had many more details when it was built in 1897. Once again, it was locked so we will have to guess at the interior but probably there were upkeep problems that caused them to change the exterior features so much.
Taking part in Inspired Sunday. Click here for more religious buildings.

Bunny In The City

I was walking down the stairs from Casa Loma this week when I had an encounter with this bunny. We both froze - he wanted to cross the stairs and I wanted to go down and eventually he gave in and crossed over. I continued on my way and later, passing by at the base of the stairs, I spotted him nibbling on some dandelions and I was able to pull out my camera and get this pic. Cute isn't he?

Square Plus Red Car

When searching for squares for the May theme day this was one of my contenders. I love all the different textures especially the expanded metal square which is some sort of mechanical box connected with the addition to the Rotman School of Management building at U of Toronto. It is yet another building I hope to get inside of to check out what is supposed to be a fabulous interior. 

British Taxi

Not a usual sight in Toronto, this British taxi with right hand drive certainly got a lot of attention from passers-by. I've never had a ride in one but it sure looked roomy!

Good Beer

Steamwhistle brewery is a microbrewery located right downtown just south of the CN Tower in the old John St Roundhouse which was the steam locomotive repair facility for for Canadian Pacific Rail. This is the original 60,000 gallon water tower from the roundhouse and works well for pointing out where to go for a tour of the brewery after going to a Blue Jays ball game at the Rogers Centre across the road. The trees give away the fact that this isn't a recent pic - no leaves here yet!
Taking part in Signs, Signs. Click here for more signs.

Towers

I just liked the juxtaposition of towers in this pic taken when walking through the U of Toronto campus. We have the clock tower from Hart House on the left, the CN Tower far in the background, turrets from University College, and finally on the right one of the new light towers that have been installed for a playing field for next year's Pan-Am Games.

Rock On!

This mural is found on the side of a guitar store called L'il Demon on Dundas St W and as you can see I took the pic a couple of weeks ago when we still had snow. I know little about guitars but I do know that this is a cool one!
Taking part in Monday Murals. Click here for more murals.

St Francis

This is St Francis of Assisi Roman Catholic Church which is found in the Little Italy neighbourhood just off College St. It was designed by architect Arthur William Holmes in Gothic Revival style and was constructed in 1915 to serve the flourishing Italian population in the area. The church has 21 large stained glass windows but was locked when I went by a couple of weeks ago so no pics. The church is famous in the city for its huge Good Friday pageant which closes down College St and involves hundreds of people reenacting the events of that day.
Taking part in Inspired Sunday. Click here for more religious buildings from around the world.

Deco Door

I've always loved this door and every time I pass by I admire it. It would be nice to see a little TLC bring it back to its former glory and since other parts of the building are being restored that will probably happen.

Wychwood Library

Wychwood Library is one of 10 public libraries built in Toronto between 1907 and 1916 using grants from the American industrialist Andrew Carnegie. It was designed by architect Eden Smith, who designed many of the fine homes in the Wychwood Park neighbourhood, and was one of 3 identical ones built. The curved section was an addition built in 1978 and was designed by Phillip Carter. Early on a Sunday morning there was little activity around and I will try to get by for some interior shots of the heritage-designated structure.

Water Tower

It's funny how the sight of a water tower gives such a nostalgic feel to a view. That along with the still active corner store in this neighbourhood seems to take us back to another time. Taken early on a Sunday morning in the west end of the city.

Terror And Beauty

I was at the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO), which I gave you a pic of yesterday, to see this exhibition featuring the works of Francis Bacon and Henry Moore. It is a major show with paintings, sculpture, drawings, pics, and archival material displayed to show the influences that both artists shared and how they used them in their work. Once again, no pics were allowed but if you are in the Toronto area it is well worth a visit! 
Taking part in Signs, Signs. Click here for more signs.

Twisted

I was at the Art Gallery Of Ontario (AGO) last week and while walking along the mezzanine above the Walker court, caught this view of Frank Gehry's wonderful staircase as seen through one of the arches around the walkway. I have shown you the staircase from down below here.

Marilyn

This is the wall of a hair salon and spa on St Clair Ave just across the road from the train mural that I showed you last Monday.  The wall had previously been blank and the salon hardly noticeable until this portrait appeared. And it has even been autographed!
Taking part in Monday Murals. Click here for more murals from around the world.

Tiny, But Elegant

This tiny little church is located on a small hill just off St Clair Ave. It is the Holy Resurrection Russian Orthodox Church but I could find no information about it at all. I love the dome and golden crosses which were gleaming in the sun the day I was there.
Taking part in Inspired Sunday. Click here for more religious buildings.

There's No Stopping Time

I found this sundial on the U of Toronto campus this week and at first it was cloudy but the sky opened up and the shadow appeared and the time was right on! The sundial was commissioned in 1993 by the Class of 1943 Applied Science & Engineering to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of its graduation and is located on the site of an observatory that stood here until 1908. That is the Medical Science building, off to the right, which I have shown the last few days.

Concrete Details

Just a quick shot of one small section of the Medical Science Building at U of Toronto which was the location of yesterday's "Squares" sculpture. The facade of the whole building is covered in wonderful 3-dimensional concrete patterns that vary throughout the structure. It is a super example of Brutalist design that is friendly to the eye and really works well unlike some that are just brutal!

Theme Day - "Squares"

The May theme for the City Daily Photo Blogs is "Squares" and I thought that this sculpture fits that perfectly. It is found on one of the walls near an entrance into the Medical Science Building at U of Toronto and was designed by artist Robert Downing who was also the designer of the wonderful concrete facade of this building which is an example of Brutalist design at its best. The sculpture was created in 1967 during the construction of the building. I'll show you a section of the building's facade tomorrow.
To see more examples of "Squares" from around the world, click here.