Toronto AC/BC

[MonkeyRonin]

Mix of stuff from Before and After Corona. The long, long ago time and...now. City mostly still looks the same though.

[Doady]

I really like the vantage points above the street level. Many different sides of the city shown from different perspectives. Even some images in the fog at night as well, wow. I always enjoy seeing people walking around and hanging out at night, and fog adds even more mood. I hope people are a bit more careful now though...

[Innsertnamehere]

Really seeking out the grit. I like it. Really gives that sort of urban ramshackle fee in a lot of them, which is a great representation of the west end neighbourhoods in the city.

I’ve lined up in that very line in the second last shot a few times myself. I’ve bar crawled that stretch of Dundas dozens of times with buddies. Fun times.

[OhioGuy]

Nice scenes!

[kool maudit]

So good. Wish I could come visit but things are too weird there right now.

[Jaborandi]

Great shots on a great tour. Thanks!

[PHL10]

A certain amount of graffiti is expected, especially on abandoned buildings or large blank walls. But some of the graffiti on the fronts of active buildings seem sort of strange to me. Why would some of that not get cleaned up by the building owners?

[Nouvellecosse]

Wow really beautiful, vivid, eclectic imagery! The summer vibe is so intense it just feels like I'm there. Toronto and Montreal definitely have their own related but distinct vibes in the summer. It's hard to pinpoint exactly what they have in common but I think it comes down to sharing this unusual sort of "urban/rural" aesthetic where much of the urban cityscape outside of the CBD has this super relaxed feeling similar to what you'll get in the countryside where the buildings and other built elements are kind of weathered or even slightly dilapidated and the greenery seems to grow at times randomly with bushes, trees, weeds and vines sprouting up at every opportunity. This contrasts heavily with the urban neighbourhoods of many cities in NA and Europe which are highly manicured with greenery tightly controlled.

In Chicago for instance, many residential streets have manicured gardens in the road verge (space between the sidewalk and street) and often even have low fences enclosing the gardens. All the greenery is meticulously watered and pruned whereas the greenery in Toronto and Montreal often seems to be opportunistic plants fending for themselves. The result is that in Toronto and Montreal the landscapes seem natural and timeless as if the human environment is simply part of the existing landscape - a naturally occurring ecology that just happens to be dominated by one animal - whereas the more typical urban cityscapes seem as if they're totally separate things. The cultivated cityscapes can almost seem like the outdoors is an open-air building.

In terms of which is better, for my tastes Toronto sometimes takes things a bit far with the uncultivated vibe, at times verging on the abandoned/returning to nature aesthetic, while some cities take the up-tight cultivation a bit far verging on artificiality or sterility. I think Montreal tends to have a good balance.

Anyway, thanks for the amazing experience!

[Nouvellecosse]

Originally Posted by PHL10

A certain amount of graffiti is expected, especially on abandoned buildings or large blank walls. But some of the graffiti on the fronts of active buildings seem sort of strange to me. Why would some of that not get cleaned up by the building owners?

From my observations, things are different in the US compared to here. In the US, street art tends to be associated predominantly with crime, gangs and decline and therefore has a strongly negative connotation. Here street art tends to be associated more with creativity, fun, vibrancy, etc. When street art start popping up, it's more a sign of youth, hipsters, and quirky/funky culture so there isn't a knee-jerk reaction against it to the same degree. Certainly there are people who don't like it - either an individual piece, in a specific location, or in general - but people aren't as likely to see it as threatening or as a maintenance issue. In this case, proprietors of buildings/nabes that aren't posh/corporate and/or that cater to the types of people that street art is associated with are in no rush to remove it. In fact it probably gives a business a sort of street cred, like "Hey, we're cool, laid-back and creative like you! We're not uptight corporate-types like some business owners!"

[MonkeyRonin]

Originally Posted by Nouvellecosse

Wow really beautiful, vivid, eclectic imagery! The summer vibe is so intense it just feels like I'm there. Toronto and Montreal definitely have their own related but distinct vibes in the summer. It's hard to pinpoint exactly what they have in common but I think it comes down to sharing this unusual sort of "urban/rural" aesthetic where much of the urban cityscape outside of the CBD has this super relaxed feeling similar to what you'll get in the countryside where the buildings and other built elements are kind of weathered or even slightly dilapidated and the greenery seems to grow at times randomly with bushes, trees, weeds and vines sprouting up at every opportunity. This contrasts heavily with the urban neighbourhoods of many cities in NA and Europe which are highly manicured with greenery tightly controlled.

In Chicago for instance, many residential streets have manicured gardens in the road verge (space between the sidewalk and street) and often even have low fences enclosing the gardens. All the greenery is meticulously watered and pruned whereas the greenery in Toronto and Montreal often seems to be opportunistic plants fending for themselves. The result is that in Toronto and Montreal the landscapes seem natural and timeless as if the human environment is simply part of the existing landscape - a naturally occurring ecology that just happens to be dominated by one animal - whereas the more typical urban cityscapes seem as if they're totally separate things. The cultivated cityscapes can almost seem like the outdoors is an open-air building.

In terms of which is better, for my tastes Toronto sometimes takes things a bit far with the uncultivated vibe, at times verging on the abandoned/returning to nature aesthetic, while some cities take the up-tight cultivation a bit far verging on artificiality or sterility. I think Montreal tends to have a good balance.

Anyway, thanks for the amazing experience!

I love how you describe it - you've nailed the aesthetic perfectly.

Thanks guys.

[MonkeyRonin]

Originally Posted by Nouvellecosse

From my observations, things are different in the US compared to here. In the US, street art tends to be associated predominantly with crime, gangs and decline and therefore has a strongly negative connotation. Here street art tends to be associated more with creativity, fun, vibrancy, etc. When street art start popping up, it's more a sign of youth, hipsters, and quirky/funky culture so there isn't a knee-jerk reaction against it to the same degree. Certainly there are people who don't like it - either an individual piece, in a specific location, or in general - but people aren't as likely to see it as threatening or as a maintenance issue. In this case, proprietors of buildings/nabes that aren't posh/corporate and/or that cater to the types of people that street art is associated with are in no rush to remove it. In fact it probably gives a business a sort of street cred, like "Hey, we're cool, laid-back and creative like you! We're not uptight corporate-types like some business owners!"

More than anything, in certain neighbourhoods I think it's just a case of 'why bother'? You paint over the graffiti, and it's just going to get tagged again the next night anyway.

[softee]

Incredible shots!

Yeah, if the businesses bother to remove the graffiti, it'll just reappear again within days.

[rousseau]

Originally Posted by Nouvellecosse

Wow really beautiful, vivid, eclectic imagery! The summer vibe is so intense it just feels like I'm there. Toronto and Montreal definitely have their own related but distinct vibes in the summer. It's hard to pinpoint exactly what they have in common but I think it comes down to sharing this unusual sort of "urban/rural" aesthetic where much of the urban cityscape outside of the CBD has this super relaxed feeling similar to what you'll get in the countryside where the buildings and other built elements are kind of weathered or even slightly dilapidated and the greenery seems to grow at times randomly with bushes, trees, weeds and vines sprouting up at every opportunity. This contrasts heavily with the urban neighbourhoods of many cities in NA and Europe which are highly manicured with greenery tightly controlled.

In Chicago for instance, many residential streets have manicured gardens in the road verge (space between the sidewalk and street) and often even have low fences enclosing the gardens. All the greenery is meticulously watered and pruned whereas the greenery in Toronto and Montreal often seems to be opportunistic plants fending for themselves. The result is that in Toronto and Montreal the landscapes seem natural and timeless as if the human environment is simply part of the existing landscape - a naturally occurring ecology that just happens to be dominated by one animal - whereas the more typical urban cityscapes seem as if they're totally separate things. The cultivated cityscapes can almost seem like the outdoors is an open-air building.

In terms of which is better, for my tastes Toronto sometimes takes things a bit far with the uncultivated vibe, at times verging on the abandoned/returning to nature aesthetic, while some cities take the up-tight cultivation a bit far verging on artificiality or sterility. I think Montreal tends to have a good balance.

Anyway, thanks for the amazing experience!

Really great shots of a really great city. And this is a perfect description of this aspect of Toronto. You've really nailed it here.

[shappy]

Really enjoyed this set... the west end is pretty damn good.

Is this Bloor and Dovercourt - interesting how you can see the slight elevation looking north


Nice urban atmosphere with this one:

[boden]

Good pics of the Big Smoke.

[streetscaper]

Great snaps!

[niwell]

Awesome pics!!! So many are taken near where I lived (well, lived until 2 weeks ago) and throughout my regular walking routes - very interesting to see them through a camera lens as opposed to in person.

The pictures of full bars / restaurants are making me nostalgic. We sorta have patios now, but it's not the same for a whole lot of reasons. At least backyard drinks with friends means I've paid off a ton of stuff.

[The North One]

Toronto is not a pretty city, but it has some character at least. Nice shots.

[MonkeyRonin]

Originally Posted by The North One

Toronto is not a pretty city, but it has some character at least. Nice shots.

Yeah, I certainly can't fault anybody for thinking Toronto is unattractive (though it does have some pretty parts); but I am genuinely baffled when hearing the occasional-but-common-enough criticisms of it being bland or sterile - likewise for the compliments of cleanliness. It's like, are we even talking about the same city here?

[Martin Mtl]

Wonder full set ! So much ambiance and such a good eye to capture it.