A rundown house in Toronto’s Annex area has been given a colourful sendoff before it is demolished to make way for a new rental housing development.
For the last month or so, a crew of about 40 artists – both emerging and experienced – have been painting murals inside and outside of the vacant dwelling at 91 Barton St., near Bloor and Bathurst streets.
Called Art on Barton, the project is spearheaded by multi-disciplinary artist Stephanie Avery.
The Christie Pitts area resident told CP24 that she wanted to do a large-scale mural project for some time and saw an opportunity to do “some unique public art” at the soon-to-be demolished house, which is structurally sound and has electricity and running water.
On May 30, Avery, a member of an unnamed collective of muralists, contacted Greenstreet Flats, the developer that owns the property, to discuss her idea.
“We thought it was a really unique activation,” Leonid Kotov, the company’s president, told CP24.com earlier this week.
“It’s not often that developers have an opportunity to collaborate on unique initiatives like that. (Art on Barton) also furthers our goal of contributing to the cultural fabric of the community.”
Greenstreet Flats has previously incorporated murals into its new builds at 435 Grace St. and 367-369 Howland Ave., but this is the first time they’ve been involved in a pre-demo art installation.
Kotov said they were happy to sit down with Avery and the core group of organizers to discuss the concept and vision for the project at 91 Barton and figure out any logistics and a timeline.
“It was a whole process to make this project a reality,” said Avery, who worked closely with project manager Bobby Beckett on the installation.
“They gave us the key and said ‘Let’s do this.’,”
Initially, a small team of about 15 to 18 artists went through the house to divide up the space. In the end, 40 artists were invited to contribute to the installation and were given the freedom to paint and interact with their unorthodox canvas as they wished.
Some of the artists incorporated objects and furnishings that had been left inside the house, while others preferred to have a blank slate, Avery said.
“It’s cool to see something like this outside of our plans for this property,” Kotov said.
“This house has just taken on an interim life of its own.”
Art on Barton was made possible through a $1,000 grant from the Toronto Awesome Foundation. Greenstreet Flats chipped in some funds for paint and brushes. Organizers also raised some money for supplies by holding a yard sale. All of the artists donated their time and talent to the initiative.
“It was a real passion project for everybody involved,” Avery said, who called Art on Barton a “blueprint for future projects.”
“There are so many opportunities. There are so many properties sitting vacant.”
Avery went on to say that said she hopes this initiative might inspire other to think creatively about animating unused spaces in their community, even temporarily.
“This is an idea that I’d like to see amplified across the city,” she said.
“And, it doesn’t have to be just murals. There’s so many options.”
The public is invited to check out Art on Barton on its second and final weekend. Doors will be open for self-guided tours on Friday from 5 to 8 p.m., Saturday from noon to 7 p.m., and Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. All are welcome. Last weekend, more than 1300 people visited the installation.
