You don’t often see a man in a top hat walking on the same sidewalk as a man sleeping on a cardboard box, but those two images, separated by time, both exist in the same space. The Life on the Grid exhibit, graciously hosted by the Toronto Archives, displays is a striking glimpse of how our beloved city has changed over the last century, and how the art of photography has changed the way we might look at it.
Life on the Grid
Where: City of Toronto Archives, 255 Spadina Rd.
(Photo Credit: “The Canada Life building looking southeast down University Avenue” Photographer: Unknown – 1934 – City of Toronto Archives)
Upon arriving at the Toronto Archives, you’ll instantly notice on both sides that the first sets of photos are of the monochromatic variety. The early brick and mortar buildings dominate empty landscapes and are only sometimes contrasted with photos of crowded city streets. Portraits of early 20th century Torontonians are of street fiddlers playing for some gaping children, their clothes hanging off their bodies in tatters, and some are of perturbed socialites whose stern expression of mistrust is at odds with the lifeless gaze of the animal furs that wrap around their necks. Apparently these people come from a time when no one really felt the urge to smile for the camera.
(Photo Credit: “Concertina player on Major Street” Photographer: William James – ca. 1912 – City of Toronto Archives)
Further along the exhibit is a huge jump from the early 1900’s all the way to the 1970’s as colour begins to bleed into the images. A strange thing to note though is how it becomes less about the grandeur of the city, and more about the citizens. Instead of bustling streets that are staggeringly crowded, even going by modern rush hour standards, more recent photographs of Toronto focus on quieter scenes, like a flower vendor caring for his plants or an elderly man shopping in Kensington Market.
One particular section features a series of photographs by Ivaan Kotulsky highlighting some eye catching, or I suppose lens catching in this case, subjects individually posing in the same archway at 690 Queen West. Almost as if to say the buildings surrounding us are inherently less interesting than the different people who live in the city.
And if you made the mistake of assuming this was a glamour set for the city and its citizens, also featured are photographs of the people you might miss, or at least pretend to miss. Exhausted homeless men lying on the pavement, wide eyed religious zealots wearing their long winded placards, and a squeegee kid applying her trade of choice. Photographs that demand our acknowledgement that, yes, these people are just as much a part of the city as we are.
In spite of this, there isn’t any bitterness in the exhibit. It merely highlights the change in focus of photography as an art form within the city. And I do apologize for that pun. If painting has some kind of ownership on the pastoral scene, photography surely has a claim to the cityscape. It might have once slavishly tried to capture the modern splendour of the city, but to look at the people within the city is to find what truly makes it alive.
(Photo Credit: “Shell Oil Co. sales meeting, King Edward Hotel” Photographer: Gilbert A. Milne & Co. Ltd. – April 10, 1956 – City of Toronto Archives)
Although Life on the Grid will be around until May 2014, that’s no real excuse to dawdle. It’s free and only requires a few moments of your time. You can also take a closer look at some of the photographs, including many not on display at the exhibit, on a special Flickr page created to display Toronto’s history in photographs. The website skews a bit more to the older photographs, but it’s well worth a look. Although you can see many of the photos online, you’ll have to muster up the energy to reach the Toronto Archives to see some of the more fascinating images on display.
(By: Jose Gonzalez)
