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}

Frankly Speaking

C5 sets a high bar for museum restaurants (http://yyzine.blogspot.com/2008/02/crystal-as-restaurant-thumbs-up-as.html) and I expected FRANK, the restaurant at the newly re-opened Art Gallery of Ontario to be of the same genre of stunning design, fabulous food and hip atmosphere. Based on my first dining experience there, it's less a destination and more a convenient pit-stop.

With expectations adjusted downwards, FRANK is a pleasant place to meet friends for a bite before, during or after a tour through the gallery. Our table for three at brunch last weekend enjoyed views of the clean and pristine open kitchen, a wall of wine bottles and the curious Frank Stella sculpture dangling from the ceiling (which sadly is not completely visible from any one vantage point, limiting its effect). The menu offered tasty options to satisfy all manner of brunch cravings, which in our case turned out to be sweet, savoury or sandwichy:

*Vanilla French toast with Monforte fresh ricotta, poached apricots, late harvest Vidal syrup and toasted almonds (a reward to cap off 2 weeks on South Beach)

*Twice-baked souffle with caramelized shallots and Maple Dale 4-year-old cheddar, served with beluga lentil and roasted baby carrot salad (called beluga because they're small, black and resemble caviar after cooking).

*The club sandwich of the day (whose ingredients I need my friend to verify since it's not on the online menu...but I can say he enjoyed it).

I'll give FRANK another chance to impress at dinner, but I don't have high hopes from a design standpoint. Although I'm sure the food will be fine, the room just doesn't offer the artistic and architectural drama I'd expect from a restaurant in "an international landmark and Canada’s newest cultural destination."

FRANK Restaurant

Art Gallery of Ontario
317 Dundas Street W

http://www.ago.net/frank