Toronto is quickly gaining recognition for the never-ending sprawl of condos popping up across the city. But a new installation in midtown gives hope to what those seemingly lifeless buildings could mean to the city’s art public art scene.
On Wednesday, UK street artist Phlegm put the finishing touches on an eight-storey mural on the side of a commercial building at 1 St. Clair W. The piece depicts a crouched figure whose body is composed of Toronto landmarks, including the CN Tower, ROM, Old City Hall and the city’s expansive ravine system. Phlegm is a cartoonist and illustrator who’s known for street artwork that depict strange, often shrouded figures interacting with urban landscapes.
“We wanted to ensure that even though we were working with an international artist that the end result was going to be really locally relevant,” says Alexis Kane-Speer, founding director of the STEPS Initiative who partnered with the artist to bring the piece to life. STEPS is a public art organization in Toronto which tackles large-scale community-based work, including the world’s tallest mural in St. James Town.
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To include public input for the Phlegm piece, they canvassed residents and local business owners and solicited input online, attempting to ensure the neighbourhood’s spirit was captured in the work.
Kane-Speer says that, according to Phlegm: “The design itself is a metaphor for the living and breathing nature of the city. For him, the city is always comprised of all the people who have lived there, past and present, so using the human form is a reflection of that.”
Funded through the City’s Street Art Program, the project was initially conceived by building owners Slate Asset Management. Kane-Speer hopes that this kind of business-driven investment in public art signifies a new chapter in appreciation for more adventurous art in the city.
“It’s kind of pushing the envelope about what the business case for public art is,” she says.
Started five years ago, the City of Toronto’s Street Art Program helps fund public art programs and aims to “develop, support, promote, and increase awareness of street art” while combating graffiti and vandalism.
To Kane-Speer, this kind of city-supported program adds both legitimacy and proper resourcing to alternative forms of art.
“The fabulous pieces are not just hidden away in the alleys where they’re kind of done on the fly, but they’re well planned out and orchestrated very public installations.”
Watch a time lapse video of the creation of Phlegm’s piece here.
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