Beauty:
The quality that gives pleasure to the mind or senses and is associated with such properties as harmony of form or color, excellence of artistry, truthfulness, and originality.
As a teenager who lives in a privileged suburban town, it is not uncommon for me to see well kept homes with beautiful bricks, clean walls and no graffiti in sight. In addition, it is not uncommon to see hundreds of homes in my area that can only be told apart by the cars in the driveway, or the plants that are outside the house. However, during my recent visit to downtown Toronto, I have had the privilege of capturing images that can almost tell a story of un-kept, old homes and walls that have such a brilliant way of expressing themselves as something more then environmental breakdown.
Above, is a very simple image of old metal pipes coming from what used to be an industrial building, located at Bathurst Street and Queen Street. Now used as an office building, this building shows off character and beauty through various elements and principles of design, such as high contrasts in the decaying bricks that are caused by the environment and a feeling of unity and asymmetrical balance when looking at the pipes and how they split. The pipes have a small amount of rust on them, adding colour and personality to what used to be plain white pipes.
As I ventured down the fashion district, more commonly known by the presence of the "Chum Building", it was hard for me to not notice the beautiful buildings that stood proud on the street that were named after Queen Victoria. Now, the historical street, that was first surveyed in 1791, is now used for our everyday shopping, entertainment and food buying needs. As I sat in a Starbucks, looking at the people walking quickly outside, it was hard for me to accept all of the people walking by these buildings and not stare at them in wonder. Although they are unchanged, old and sometimes filled with graffiti, the idea of Queen Street West in the 1800's makes you reflect on how much history all of these elegant buildings and past inhibitors have lived through.
Above, is the image of the top of a building created using a Victorian architecture style in the mid 1800's, on Queen Street. The bottom floor of this building is now used as a Subway restaurant, and is surrounded by other buildings that have their walls flooded with artistic graffiti of past, and current generations.
As I continued to walk around the decaying and often un-noticed buildings of Queen Street, I ventured off to different streets and looked at the more recent decay and clutter that leaves the streets of Toronto with artistic character and deeper meanings. Having an artistic background, I noticed several fliers that used to have news of upcoming movies, art gallery and dance events that dated back to the early 2000's, decorating the walls of what seemed to be abandoned buildings and light posts. This lead me to think that if they were all past events, then why aren't they removed? Did the city forget to bring people to clean up this clutter? Or, In contrast, do these papers stay on the walls in remembrance of past events and to prove how rich Toronto is in artistic background? Would anybody notice they were gone, if they were removed?
Above, a decaying clutter of fliers stay strong on the walls of an abandoned building, promoting events that were held in the early 2000's. An 'I Love You', that has been emphasized by being surrounded by clutter has put a deeper and artistic meaning to something that is more commonly known as 'garabage' and something that should be removed.
It is very common for busy Torontonians to carelessly pass by these street masterpieces. In contrast to these busy people, a lot of extremely caring individuals come out of the dark and spend their time putting down their art onto the street for everyone to enjoy. As a fan of the "Hug Me" tree near the intersection of Queen Street and John Street, I have found out that a wonderful artist, known by as "Elicser" had spent his time repainting the majestic "Hug Me" tree once every month. This "Hug Me" tree has been in it's place for about 10 years, receiving a lot of sympathetic hugs. With messages like "I wonder If my bark is being used for paperbacks", It really puts meaning and depth into its purpose. Unfortunately, the "Hug Me" tree recently fell down to old age and decay, but got replaced within one week by many caring artists. The "Hug Me" tree is now continuing its amazing purpose with a paper mache and foam bark.
The "Hug Me" Tree, shadowed by a healthy tree is known as "An Martyr for Art" and "Perfect for Tree Huggers" by local store and home owners. The now, paper mache and foam version of the original "Hug Me" tree, still serves a deeper meaning then simply being a piece of art.
During my journey downtown, I had the opportunity of asking some people, out of town, and locals, what they thought of the buildings in Toronto. I introduced myself, and asked them for a minute of their time, and almost reluctantly, they allowed me to ask them some questions about what type of building structure they prefer in Toronto, specifically whether they prefer old or new. After 10 short surveys, only one girl in a group of schoolkids said she loved the brand new buildings of Toronto, and all the other people I had interviewed said the old architecture gives character, depth and history to the growing city. They feel it "adds more culture" to the streets, and "it feels more like home" with these beautiful structures surrounding us constantly.
Above, the image of old buildings in front of a relatively new building leaves you wondering what gives more character and depth to a society. The great variety and contrasting buildings in Toronto give off an idea of what the city is like culturally, and it shows how the growing city can function with two main different types of architecture and design and still look brilliant.
Beauty in the Breakdown, to me, means how beautiful decay can be in contrast to a brand new, clean and simple design. The idea of something with history and stories of it's decay can make it seem so much more beautiful and meaningful. As I was downtown, I thankfully found many examples of this, but I crossed paths with Breakdown and Beauty in ways I haven't thought of before.
I met a man on University Avenue laying down on a bench, with his home surrounding him. As I looked at his simple home, I noticed their were decorations and ornaments hanging from the tree above him. I asked the man nicely if I could take a picture of him, and as he spotted a five dollar bill in my hand, he said "Sure!" with a grin. I gave him the five dollar bill and told him it was for a thank- you.
The image below, to me, is by far one of the most meaningful pictures I have ever taken. Although the man and his surroundings are nothing special, he is in a extremely terrible situation but managed to add a touch of beauty and happiness to his surroundings. It is extremely common for many people would walk by this man and never notice such intricate details of happiness and beauty he tried to display to the world. Unfortunately, many artists' work often come by unnoticed in this busy city.
A homeless man on University Avenue, sitting on the only thing he could in his home, decorates his surroundings with ornaments to try to add some beauty and happiness to this quiet, lonely and busy city.
Look at this image above you, and ask yourself, "Wouldn't it be beautiful to stumble by and see this on a tree downtown, yes or no?"
You will see how everything around you suddenly changes.
