What A Difference a Year Makes

About a year ago, I blogged with pride about not being a cottage person - how could we even think about leaving the city with so much going on here in the summer - from jazz festivals, to fringe theatre, to dusk dances, to Shakespeare in High Park? Enter COVID, stage right, and nearly all the activities that make summer weekends in Toronto so special have been cancelled. Suddently, the idea of getting in the car and exploring the many parks, lakes, vineyards and farms around Ontario was a compelling one. We've gone on four pandemic road trips so far this summer: to Niagara-on-the-Lake, Mulmur, Crystal Lake in the Kawarthas and Kingsford Lake in Frontenac Provincial Park. Each destination offered different experiences - wine tasting and garden grazing, storytelling and toasting by a pond, swimming and hiking, postcard writing and stargazing. Now I can't imagine summer without a road trip or two. Looks like it's time to retire the #notacottageperson hashtag...

TIFF 2019 Round-Up

That's a wrap on another Toronto International Film Festival! 10 days, 36 films and many hours in dark theatres later, I've emerged with a round-up of my favourites, in no particular order: (1) The Two Popes, for the laugh out loud opening that carries through to the final scene and the on-screen chemistry between Anthony Hopkins and Jonathan Price (2) I Am Woman, for transporting me back to my feminist roots and for Tilda Cobham-Hervey’s breakout performance as Helen Reddy (3) The Personal History of David Copperfield, for its colourblind casting, fantastical story and Wes Anderson-esque scenes (4) Black Bitch, for depicting colonialism and racism in contemporary Australian society while illustrating the beauty and complexity of Indigenous communities (5) And The Birds Rained Down, for Quebecois actress Andrée Lachapelle’s performance of an older woman’s second chance at life and first opportunity for love, as well as the many beautifully shot, tender scenes between her and actor Gilbert Sicotte n (6) Hearts and Bones for the outstanding performances and juxtaposition of the lives of a war photographer and a refugee from a war-torn village that was the subject of a series of photographs (7) Judy for Renee Zellweger’s tour-de-force performance of Judy Garland (8) Harriet, for lifting Harriet Tubman off the pages of history books and showing us what a fierce and fearless woman she was (9) Portrait of a Lady on Fire, for its beautiful love story, sumptuous costumes and scenery, and absolutely brilliant final scene (10) Three Summers, for cleverly and humorously depicting the economic divides in Brazil and the resiliency of the working class (11) Keussipan, for giving us a compelling glimpse into the realities faced by children growing up on an Innu reserve in northern Quebec (12) A Herdade, for its fascinating story of the fate of three generations of a prominent land-owning family in Portugal that parallels the history of Portugal post World War II and the outstanding cast. Other films I’d recommend seeing: How to Build a Girl, Arab Blues, The Perfect Candidate, Frankie, Jordan River Anderson, Incitement, Lyrebird, Flatland, The Burnt Orange Heresy, Proxima, American Son, Bombay Rose, Our Lady of the Nile and Heroic Losers.

Not wanting to sacrifice good eating in between films, let me also share my favorite restaurants within walking distance from the TIFF Bell Lightbox and Scotiabank Theatres - most are places I go to year-round. Again, in no particular order, (1) Byblos has amazingly delicious and innovative Mediterranean food ideally shared by a group (I pretty much always order the Geographer gin-based cocktail, Turkish dumplings, fig salad, truffle pide, fried chicken and roasted lamb shoulder) (2) Pai has a lively atmosphere, speedy service and tasty Thai fare (the squash fritters are a MUST) (3) La Carnita serves Mexican street food in a fun setting (don't miss the Mexican street corn, Baja shrimp tacos and pitchers of Sangria!) (4) Yuzu No Hana is one of the best reasonably priced sushi spots in town and if you're a sea urchin fan like I am, they usually have melt-in-your-mouth uni from Japan and BC (5) Aloette, the lower-brow but delicious diner-ish cousin of Alo (one of the best restaurants in Canada) has several stand-out dishes, including crispy oyster mushrooms and stracciatella cheese served on sourdough with burnt honey, piquillo pepper and pine nuts. Last but not least, staying caffeinated during TIFF is essential! My "go to" coffee spot is Dark Horse on John Street. It's a few steps down from the street and easy to miss, but well worth it for the espresso drinks, ham and cheese croissants and two unisex bathrooms with no lines!

#NotACottagePerson

On summer weekends, when half of Toronto it seems is up north at a cottage on a lake, we have the city to ourselves. As a result, a number of activities have become not-to-miss summer traditions. This is by no means an exhaustive list, just some of my favourites. If you have others to highlight, please leave them in the comments section!

Jazz Festival: At the start of summer, the Yorkville neighbourhood becomes ground central for all manner of jazz music, and I do mean jazz defined very broadly, including blues, funk, hip-hop/rap and genre-bending improvisations. The festival line-up always includes famous headliners (this year, Diana Ross and Norah Jones, for example) but also lesser known but amazingly talented performers from Toronto, Canada and beyond. Stand-outs for me this year included Grammy award-winning vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant, accompanied by Sullivan Fortner on piano, whose voice I'd put in the same league as Sarah Vaughn's and Ella Fitzgerald's - and Montreal-based Milla Thyme, whose fusion of soul, hip hop, and jazz contains calls to action for social justice. A great feature of the festival is the literally dozens of free outdoor concerts on offer, taking over the Village of Yorkville Park and on the first weekend, two stages set up on a pedestrian-only stretch of Bloor.

Shakespeare in High Park: Some years the pay-as-you-wish productions are stellar, sometimes a little lackluster, but they're always entertaining and loads of fun. We pack up a blanket and a picnic dinner (typically curried chicken salad, caprese salad, elote, mixed berries, pre-mixed gin and tonics in a thermos, a couple of cans of Fresca and a bottle of wine) and arrive about an hour before the show to get a good seat (pro-tip: don't forget the bug spray!). Two shows on alternating nights are on offer each season, and this year's Measure for Measure and Much Ado About Northing are both excellent. There are still a few weeks left to catch them before they close on Sept 1.

Dusk Dances in Withrow Park: Celebrating its 25th anniversary of bringing contemporary dance to public spaces, Dusk Dances is a wonderful evening for dance lovers and skeptics alike. Often featuring world premieres and specially commissioned works, the innovative program involves having the audience move around the park to view each dance in a different setting. Professional and amateur dancers perform work that ranges from humorous takes on love to emotional pleas for a peaceful world.

Fringe Festival: For 10 days in July, in over 35 venues across the city - from conventional theatre spaces to pubs and churches - the Fringe Festival features over 150 productions, including solo shows, multi-media performances, ensemble theatre, improv and cabarets. The shows can be hit-or-miss, but for less than the price of a movie ticket (with all proceeds going directly to the performers), flipping through the program (printed or online) and choosing which to see feels adventurous and fun. (Pro-tip: follow NOW Toronto's and Mooney on Theatre's real-time reviews).

Summer Music Festival: This classical music-focused festival provides a platform for established and emerging musicians to share their talents through free and ticketed concerts in and around Yorkville and the University of Toronto that include both music by famous composers of the past and new music by some of the most exciting contemporary composers active today. The festival had two innovative features this year that really stood out for me: first, for a number of ticketed evening concerts, they offered the chance to sit in on a rehearsal earlier in the day for free - a fascinating opportunity to see the "behind the scenes" dynamics between the performers and how they approach preparing for their shows. Second, the final day of the festival (a Saturday) featured a series of fabulous free one-hour concerts that started at 10 am and ended at 6 pm.

Summerworks Festival: On now through August 18, this annual summer festival celebrates new works of theatre, dance and music in intimate, general admission settings. Striving to be as accessible and inclusive as possible, Summerworks shows are often created and performed by women, LGBTQ2S individuals and people of colour, and "pay what you decide" ticket prices start at $15 ($13.50 if you purchase an 8-ticket pass).

This year, I'm especially looking forward to two shows: Rochdale, a new play about the legacy of Rochdale College, Toronto’s greatest experiment in cooperative housing and alternative education written by celebrated playwright David Yee, winner of the 2015 Governor General’s Award for English Drama, directed by Factory Theatre’s multiple award-winning Artistic Director Nina Lee Aquino and performed by the graduate class of York University’s Theatre Department and Audible Songs from Rockwood, a song-cycle based on case files of people incarcerated at Rockwood Asylum for the Criminally Insane between 1856-1881 that songwriter Simone Schmidt spent two years combing through.

Yeah, it's hard to leave the city in the summer!

Best of Niagara

I've decided to resume this blog, over 8 years (!) since my last post. I don't have a well thought through reason for doing so, other than an urge to write more than twitter-length prose and to get back into the habit of sharing highlights of my adventures around Toronto and beyond.

This past weekend, we visited Niagara-on-the-Lake for probably the seventh or eighth time since moving to Toronto in 2007. Through those many trips, we've settled into somewhat of a routine that makes for an enjoyable and relaxing getaway. While there are many quaint bed and breakfasts to choose from in the area, we always opt for the White Oaks Resort because of its fabulous fitness centre and spa. If you look past its absolutely hideous exterior of gold-bronze glass, you'll discover a hotel with terrific service, comfortable rooms, good breakfast options, beautiful grounds, a "real" gym with steam and redwood saunas, a pool and jacuzzi, and skilled massage therapists.

We usually leave Toronto by 12 noon on Friday (avoiding the worst of the traffic), arriving in time for a workout, a massage, and a picnic dinner under the gazebo of dishes we prepared the day before and fruit picked up at the Hildreth Farm Market in Beamsville on the drive down (pro-tip: call room service for place settings and grab the wine glasses and wine opener from the room).

Saturday starts with a la carte breakfast (an outdoor table if possible), a quick workout, stops at a few of our favourite wineries (tasting Southbrook's rosés, Five Rows' sauvignon blancs and Big Head's reds are high on the list), a matinée show at the Shaw Festival (this year we saw Rope, a thriller adapted for the screen by Alfred Hitchcock), some downtime at the hotel and dinner at the Backhouse restaurant (in the space where another fabulous restaurant, the Stone Road Grill, used to be). The three-course menu is a good deal and with three choices for each course and three of us dining, we were able to try everything on the menu! Stand-outs included the heirloom tomato salad (all ingredients fresh from the chef's garden), the "cream puff" stuffed with duck liver mousse and the corn ice cream. Rather than bottles, this time we opted for glasses of wine served all at once - 3 whites and 3 reds - so we could taste more and see which paired best with each dish. Seeing how much we enjoyed wine, the sommelier brought us a 7th glass with instructions to guess the grape and region. After many sips and much discussion, we narrowed it down to bordeaux varietals, likely from a domestic vineyard, given the restaurant's extensive Canadian wine list. The answer: petit verdot from Ontario!

Even after these many trips to NOTL, there is always more to discover. A friend recommended we stop for dim sum at Ma Cuisine in St. Catherine and we're so happy we did! The place is tricked out for crowds, but on this summer Sunday at noon there were only a few tables being served. Joined by friends, the 5 of us ordered shrimp dumplings, mushroom and pea shoot dumplings, pork soup dumplings, pork potstickers, pork buns, and a spicy eggplant dish. Everything was hot and delicious, and while we left full, we didn't experience the usual post-dim sum carb haze. Didn't even need a coffee to stay awake!

Heading back to the city, we stopped for farm-fresh veggies and chatted about our next Niagara visit, an abbreviated one at the end of September on the way to a friend's wedding in upstate New York. Hoping to catch the fall colours!

Swish Splash

There's a block of Wellington Street E that I always make a point of walking along when heading home from St. Lawrence Market. It runs the length of Berczy Park, right by the Gooderham, one of my favourite buildings in the city (flatirons always makes me smile). There's a surprisingly high concentration of bars and restaurants in the red brick rowhouses that line the block (Lucien, Trevor, Pravda Vodka Bar) but Swish by Han, at #38, caught my attention and curiosity the moment I peeked in the window. The interior of reclaimed wood and contemporary art, with a communal table running down the middle, is warm and inviting. The menu, hanging on the door, presents an interesting modern take on Korean cuisine.

Always in a hurry to get home with my shopping cart filled to the brim, I never had time to just pop in for a bite. So for months I only imagined what the smells and flavours might be like, until we bought tickets to see a play in the Distillery District and wanted to have dinner nearby. Truth be told, we drove by Guu on Church Street first, hoping to snag a table at the perennially popular spot since we were eating so early. But with a crowd hovering around the entrance, we were skeptical about the reported 30 minute wait and continued on to plan B.

From the moment we entered through the thick curtains protecting diners from the cold, we knew we were in for a treat. The aroma was amazing - a mix of sweet and spicy scents swirling (or should I say swishing?) around us. We proceeded to enjoy what we both agreed was one of our best meals to date in Toronto:

Spicy pork buns - little pulled pork sandwiches on ciabatta-type bread

Tempura onion rings - fried in just enough tempura batter to make them delightfully crispy

Crunchy octopus - the actual name of the dish escapes me - deep fried and served with a spicy mayonnaise-y dipping sauce

Short rib ssäm set - literally meaning "wrapped," ssäm refers to a Korean dish that wraps meat in leaf vegetables. This set came with a stack of crisp lettuce leaves, grilled beef short ribs, hoisin sauce and a spicy fermented soybean paste

...all washed down with Sapporo beer on tap (it was tempting to order a soju cocktail, but I was worried I'd snooze through the show)

The service was excellent, the tables spaced well for intimate conversations, and the bill a pleasant surprise: under $80 for two. There's not much buzz about this place on the internet, but there should be! NOTE: Sadly, Swish by Han closed in 2014, but fortunately, the Han brothers have opened a bunch of other restaurants that are all excellent: Hanmoto, OddSeoul, Pinky's Ca Phe and Seoul Shakers.

It's Getting Better All the Time

We popped into the Rosedale Diner for a bite before going to a New Year's Eve party and were once again blown away by the quality of the food, the warm ambience and the friendly, attentive service. The Diner was one of the first restaurants we went to when we first moved to Toronto in 2007 and it's only gotten better over the years. We almost always order the same combo: hummus and calamari as appetizers and the chicken dijonaisse and a special as mains - a recent special was homemade sausage with truffle frites. We're lucky living right around the corner, but it's well worth a trip!

Http://rosedalediner.com

Single Issue Voter

If I was able to vote in the Toronto mayoral election (which alas I am not, as a non-citizen resident), one issue would top my list of concerns: the abysmal state of the street food situation in Toronto. I've opined about this before (http://yyzine.blogspot.com/2009/01/i-take-it-all-back.html), but my recent trip to Portland, Oregon, named as the top street food city in the WORLD by Frommer's Budget Travel Magazine has left me positively steaming.

Let's run the numbers, shall we?

Portland:
* Population - 582,130
* Demographics - 78.6% white
* The Portland public school system has over 1,800 students who come from homes where over 60 different languages are spoken.

Toronto:
* Population - 2.5 million
* Demographics - 53% white
* Half of Toronto's population was born outside of Canada
* No single nationality or culture dominates Toronto's immigrant population, placing it among the most diverse cities in the world
* 47% of the population has a mother tongue other than English or French
* The city's 911 emergency services are equipped to respond in over 150 languages
* The Toronto District School Board is the most multilingual and multicultural school board in the world. More than 50% of 270,000 students speak a language other than English at home

Where would you expect to find better quantity and quality of street food?

Well, you're wrong.

Number of street food carts in Portland: 500 (e.g, Southern pulled pork buns, Mexican burritos, Korean bulgogi, Thai-style Hainan chicken...) - $25 propane permit and a couple of hundred bucks for a health inspection.

Number of street food carts in Toronto: 310 at designated spots with annual permits costing $5,000 or more. Street vendors are prohibited from selling any meat that isn't pre-cooked, and hot dogs are pretty much the only thing they can legally sell. Also banned are any toppings or sauces that require refrigeration, hence no mayo or cheese. (and no espresso carts with milk, either...)

According to a glowing article in the June 11, 2010 issue of the Vancouver Sun, "Here in Portland, we have a couple of agencies who offer micro-lending to carts who wouldn’t normally qualify for standard business loans...Allow the carts to sell a quality, safe product without the owners having to hurdle red tape with multiple agencies.”

And in Toronto? It's basically socialized street food. A pathetic food cart "pilot" competitively selected 15 street food vendors, the final stage of which involved review by a small panel of food experts who judged the proposed food items from the standpoint of diversity, quality and culinary excellence. Only 8 vendors decided to proceed. The verdict? A recent Toronto Star article cuts to the chase: "ethnic street food offerings bland."

Visit my "Portland or Toronto?" photo album at http://on.fb.me/uX21zw

Destination: Train Station

When the latest issue of Architectural Record arrived in the mail, I paged through it fully prepared to find the usual array of stunning buildings and public spaces in locations I would be unlikely to ever visit. But after seeing the photos of the new Santiago Calatrava-designed Liège-Guillemins TGV Railway Station in Liège, Belgium and googling to find it was only an hour from Brussels where I was going the following week.. and bingo, I hit the jackpot!

And so on March 10 I boarded a train for my first trip planned entirely around seeing a building (I've made my share of pilgrimages for Frank Lloyd Wright, Gaudi and Hundertwasser to be sure, but they weren't the impetus for the trip). The building was as spectacular in person as in the magazine photos, and even more impressive when you see it in the context of the small brick buildings of the surrounding city. On the outside, it looks like a giant spaceship ready to take off, perhaps more what you'd expect for an airport. The inside evokes a soaring cathedral.

With a few hours to spare before my return train, I hopped in a cab to visit the Grand Curtius, which re-opened about a year ago after a 50 million euro redevelopment. The building is an imposing red brick and stone structure overlooking the Meuse River, built in the early 1600s as a private mansion for Jean Curtius, industrialist and munitions supplier to the Spanish army. I was delighted to find beautifully designed gallery spaces with interesting archeology, weaponry, decorative art and religious art collections, most with informative descriptions in English.

On the ride back to the station, we passed a beautiful sculpture of a diver soaring over the river.

Definitely a worthwhile day trip!

Not Quite Ready for Prime Time, Apparently

From today's Weekend Edition National Public Radio program in the U.S. http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=105064968

"Close your eyes and imagine a perfect vacation. Where you would choose to go if money, distance and time were no limitation? Paris and/or Provence? Rio or Hong Kong? The peaks of New Zealand? Or the pastas, porcinis and vinos of Tuscany? A recent poll says you'd go to Canada. An online survey of people in 20 countries shows that Canada is the place most people would choose to visit if Loonies — were no limitation. Host Scott Simon speaks with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation's Michael Enright about the new study."

At last! The recognition we deserve! Surely listeners from around the world will come and spend their tourist dollars in Canada this summer!

But wait a minute. What's Michael Enright's first comment upon hearing the news about Canada's standing in this poll? Laughing, he says "my first reaction, being a Canadian of course, is I have to apologize to all the other countries. You see, that's part of our national charater, so I'm really sorry to those folks. "

He goes on to describe "the perfect week in Canada." On Ontario? "Hmm, if you like fishing and hunting and shooting and killing small animals, I suppose Ontario is ok. Toronto is the most multicultural city in the world, the food is varied and interesting." About BC? "Now BC is very interesting because the people who live there know that they've got it made, and they have probably the most beautiful geography in the country, and they never stop talking about it, but they don't tell you about the rain and as you know, it rains all the time." No mention at all of the Canadian rockies. He mainly praised Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island, but even there "you set the clock half an hour ahead, 1956."

I should have known better. The story's headline on the NPR website reads, "Your Top Vacation Spot? Canada, Apparently."

If You Have To Say It... What Does It Say?

As Toronto celebrates its 175th year, I'm detecting a bit of a shift in the rhetoric about its standing as a city from an odd combination of self-conscious insecurity and righteous indignation, to the realization that, by jove, we are terrific and we shouldn't apologize for it.

Exhibit D*, from an article about the local literary scene in the Official Guide to Doors Open Toronto (which is celebrating its 10th year and a wonderful way to experience the city - more on that later):

"In the greater scheme of things, Toronto is still a bit of an adolescent. But the confidence that our writers now have to set their work in Toronto and to find their inspiration in Toronto speaks to a city that's coming of age, wanting to be real, not trying to be a Paris or London or New York or wherever." Jane French, Project Manager, Doors Open Toronto

"In the past, we've had this compulsion to compare ourselves to other cities - to say that literature matters if it comes from New York or Chicago or Mumbai or London or Dublin, but if it comes from Toronto it's provincial and parochial and doesn't matter as much. That's been part of the problem. What's changed is that we've started measuring the city against its own merits." Amy Lavender Harris, Geography Professor, York University

*This exhibit business began in my April 9 post:
http://yyzine.blogspot.com/2009/04/my-new-hobby.html

And the Winner is...

A few weeks ago, I threw out the challenge: "I'm anxiously waiting for the day when an article in a popular media outlet boldy praises Toronto without apologizing, looking backwards or making comparisons."

And the winner is... The New York Times. In a travel article on Toronto, posted today but dated for Sunday's issue:

http://travel.nytimes.com/2009/05/17/travel/17hours.html?hpw

My favourite line is about the Frank Gehry-designed renovation of the AGO: "It’s a stunning homecoming for an architect credited with helping other cities flourish, not that Toronto needs a hand."

There's a pretty nice slideshow too (can you guess the location of the photo above?)

http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2009/05/17/travel/0517-toronto_14.html

Bumptious Yankee Alert

Exhibit C, From today's Globe and Mail:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20090514.BARBER14ART2258/TPStory/?query=toronto

On Richard Florida, "tireless promoter of the so-called 'creative economy,' best-selling economist and famous would-be Canadian":

"Clearly, this man will never fit in to Toronto, no matter how hard he tries...He is relentlessly positive about the city and its prospects. He's all silver linings, no clouds. He's so American!That's what makes him such a great catch for Toronto, despite any eye-rolling that mention of the "creative class" might now inspire among hype-weary locals. The city needs a regular infusion of bumptious Yankees. It wouldn't be Toronto without them."

Well, having just reviewed the definitions of bumptious available online, I'm not going to count myself as one of them. A great catch, maybe!

Americans Aren't Helping Matters

Since taking up my new hobby (http://yyzine.blogspot.com/2009/04/my-new-hobby.html) I'm noticing that Americans aren't helping matters. On the cover of the May 2009 issue of Conde Nast Traveler magazine appears a prominent "CANADA NOW! 16-PAGE PULLOUT EXTRA" which actually prompts me to buy it (well, that and I happen to be in the US where it's cheaper). What's the first line? "Move over, New York. Step aside, LA. These days, the continent's hottest metropolises are north of the border. Welcome to the new Canada!" The section on Toronto begins "Peter Ustinov once quipped that Toronto is New York run by the Swiss. It was meant as a compliment, but Canada's largest city seems to be on a mission to shrug off its staid reputation by giving itself an architectural makeover."

I'm anxiously waiting for the day when an article in a popular media outlet boldy praises Toronto without apologizing, looking backwards or making comparisons. If you're aware of any, please let me know!

A Big Brother We Can Believe In

I just want to put in a plug for the Toronto Public Space Committee (TPSC). A self-appointed watchdog of sights and sounds in the public sphere, TPSC first drew my attention with its campaign to rid the city of ugly chain link fences, framing its work in terms of community development: "A self-imposed rusty barrier between neighbours, properties surrounded by chain link look more like jailyards than homes. Fences create feelings of isolation and detachment. By taking them down, we encourage a process of community building." Other campaigns include the "billboard battalion" to hold the city accountable for its strict rules about outdoor advertising (already on the books, but inconsistently enforced) and "city for sale" that is working to ensure that names of city parks, subway stations, libraries, community centres and other public spaces are not sold off and that ethics guidelines are established to inform decisions about corporate sponsorships and donations. Please join me in donating or volunteering to this worthy cause.

http://www.publicspace.ca

My New Hobby

I really feel terrible doing this, but I just can't help myself. I've recently started a new hobby I'm tentatively calling "the insecurity project." I've been living in Toronto for nearly two years, and I'm totally in love with this city. But the longer I live here, the more evident it is that this city, and in many ways this country, suffers from a serious self-esteem problem - frequently framed in comparison to other places, and always viewing itself as "lesser than". I've started to collect documentation of this phenomenon - mainly from newspaper clippings and online articles so far - and have amassed quite a pile on my office floor in a very short period of time. Actually, I have two piles - one just for pieces by or about Richard Florida. I'm not quite ready to offer theories to explain it - but I am fascinated by it.

Exhibit A, from the August 19, 2008 issue of The Star: "Toronto gets spot on world Monopoly game. But Hogtown takes over for Virginia Ave., while Montreal lands Boardwalk position and Vancouver subs for New York Ave. Well, we're not quite Baltic Ave. - but we're a long way from passing Go. And it looks like Torontonians will have to stroll along Montreal's boardwalk if they want to get there. Hasbro Inc. has announced the top 22 global cities that will make up the first world edition of Monopoly. More than 5.6 million votes were cast for 70 contenders over a six-week period earlier this year, to determine which cities would be featured in the game. And as a nation we can puff our community chests - with three cities on board, Canada tied China for the most representation in the new edition." If we're on the Monopoly board, we must be world-class, right?

Exhibit B, from the January 3, 2009 issue of the National Post. The headline catches my eye: "As the new year begins, so, too, does our 26-part alphabetic accounting of what makes this city special. We start with the visual arts..." I scroll down to the first installment expecting to read an upbeat account, but what do I find? "When it comes to art, Toronto is not New York or London; nor is it Tokyo, Berlin, Paris or even Miami. If you like your art playful and a little wild, be thankful. Some would sniff about Toronto's second-or third-tier position in the visual arts. Others, however, recognize that Toronto offers something none of these other cities can: An arts scene as a study of a work in progress; a place where the challenge is to realize unrealized possibilities -- an unfinished canvas, if you will."

To be continued...

Art Surprise

Many past disappointments with large art shows have led us to arrive with very low expectations. Usually, we quickly walk up and down the aisles, whispering quips to each other about an artist's evident mental illness or personal vision that should be kept to themselves. We're lucky if one or two artists stand out as having genuine talent and worth lingering over. But our experience last night at the Liberty Grand was entirely different. From the moment we walked into the 1926 Beaux Arts building and spotted a few paintings at the entrance to the Artist Project Toronto, our spirits lifted. (Actually, I already had high hopes from my preview of the show website. When I saw two artists whose work we had seen and admired at galleries around town, I figured not only was it worth going to, but I had better measure the wall in our living room just in case...). The cocktail party atmosphere - with jazz music playing and people admiring the art while sipping wine - made for a delightful escape from the pouring rain. We left with a stack of business cards and a newfound optimism not only about finding a piece for our living room, but about contemporary art in general.

The Artist Project Toronto: www.theartistprojecttoronto.com

Artists of note:

Nava Waxman: www.navawaxman.com

Nahum Flores: http://www.nahumflores.com

Mina Dela Cruz: www.minadelacruz.com

Jessica Rode: www.jessicarode.com

Tammy Ratcliff: www.tammyratcliff.com

Rose Hirano: www.rosehirano.com

Wenyun Hua: www.huawenyun.com

John Ovcacik: www.ovcacik.com

Paul Roorda: www.paulroorda.com

Heidi Barkun: www.heidibarkun.com

Greg Shegler: www.gregshegler.com

Liberty Grand at Exhibition Place: http://www.libertygrand.com/

I Take it All Back

This photo is not from Toronto

When we were packing up to move from Seattle, I got distracted by a pile of old Gourmet magazines stashed in a closet. When I came across the May 2005 issue on street food from all over the world, I remember opening it in anticipation of what foods it would highlight from my soon-to-be-home city, the most diverse in North America. Wait a minute...I don't see any entries on Toronto...nothing here on any city in Canada! I was disappointed, I was angry. Surely Gourmet magazine was guilty of a terrible oversight! I nearly fired off an email complaint to the editor (she even went to high school in Montreal!) but decided to wait until I had specific places and dishes to recommend.

Well, I've been living here almost two years now and I still haven't sent that email. I take it all back. Gourmet was right.

I've come to learn that Toronto has some of the tightest restrictions in the world on street food. Basically, all that can be served is hot dogs. The city has recently unveiled new regulations intended to encourage diverse offerings, but they are so onerous and expensive, change doesn't look like it's coming anytime soon.

http://www.toronto.ca/alacart/

http://www.thestar.com/article/573295

Where Have You Been All My Life?

I don't mean to be obnoxious, but let's face it. How many Americans can even name an artist from Canada, never mind the Group of Seven? I lived in Washington DC for 6 years for Christ's sake and can't recall one Canadian painting in the whole Smithsonian! We stumbled upon an Emily Carr exhibit one weekend in Vancouver, but it just didn't register.

Enter the McMichael Collection in Kleinburg (just north of Toronto) and the AGO. In the hands of Franklin Carmichael, Lawren Harris, AY Jackson, Frank Johnston, Arthur Lismer, JEH MacDonald and Frederick Varley in the 1920s (that would be the Group of Seven), the Canadian landscape comes alive. Tom Thomson, inspired by the beauty of Algonquin Park, influenced the group's development. Emily Carr, influenced by the First Nation's communities of the Pacific Northwest coast, was also closely associated with the group. They uniquely capture the color and light of the beauty that surrounds us.

My favourite of the group's contemporaries is David Milne, whose paintings were clearly shaped by living in New York City in his formative years and less reminiscent of the French Impressionists. The New York Times in 1912 called them "violently alive" and in 2005, reviewing a major retrospective at the Met, described his "delicate yet direct watercolors" as "dazzling." Two rooms off the AGO's gorgeous Galleria Italia are devoted to his work and they're just a tease as far as I'm concerned. A google search reveals no movement to start a museum in his honour, but I'd donate to such a cause.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Group_of_Seven_(artists)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Milne_(artist)

http://www.mcmichael.com/

http://www.ago.net/

http://www.metmuseum.org/special/se_event.asp?OccurrenceId={CE2E3C4A-4EAF-4104-B5FF-63294D65232D}