Since August, I’ve enjoyed watching the gradual creation of a mural on the northeast side of the Dupont-Dundas intersection. I’ve been taking a few pictures during my commutes, and I’ve also stopped a couple of times to chat with the artists when I see them at work. This past Saturday was the official opening for the mural. The opening was on the little triangle of grass on the south side of the intersection, with the prosaic name “Dundas – Dupont Traffic Island”
Here are a couple of pictures during the painting:
August 2: the west most section has an indigenous theme
August 4
August 8: the section just before the bridge is nature themed.
August 10
August 10: Also there is some graffiti art being added in the underpass section
August 18: more of the nature theme
August 19: more work on the indigenous section.
August 19-25: some work on an abstract bridge between the two sections
The ceremony starts with an acknowledgement of the lands.
This mural was commissioned by Street Art (START) Toronto. It was a collaboration between artists Alexander Bacon and Que Rockford.
Councillor Bailao introduces the two artists present.
Alexander Bacon (right) explained that he was very excited to work with Que Rockford, Que said that it was his first mural. The mural is intended to show a balance and progression between indigenous culture and street art. He also brought in three graffiti artists to decorate the underpass section of the mural: Sight, Kwest, and Kane.
Que explained some of the elements in his section of the mural. It is drawn from his heritage, which is primarily Anishnawbe,
Going from left to right, it is a creation story, starting with the sun. Immediately to the right of the sun, the seven trees represent the seven teachings of the grandfathers, and the reflection shows the duality between the physical and the spiritual world. To the right, the figure is a gender neutral human, with surrounding figures grouped in fours for the four elements, and the four cardinal directions. Next is a panel showing a wolf family, since Que is of the wolf clan. There is both a male and female wolf, showing the balance between the genders. Finally, there is a mother and child, which shows the creation of people. The thirteen circles on her sleeve are the thirteen moons of the year.
The transition was a collaborative effort between both teams of artists. The nature theme returns just to the east of the bridge, after the graffiti sections.
Ribbon cutting.
Councillor Bailao with the two artists.
I was very glad to learn more about this art that I ride past twice a day. It is different than the mural on the south side. At the same time, the older mural has not been defaced very much at all. I hope that the new mural will also remain untouched as it is a wonderful addition to our streetscape.
If there are any misrepresentations above, they are my fault as I was not very good at taking notes on my phone while people were talking.
Thanks for sharing! Love hearing the story behind the art.
Thanks for documenting the progression of the mural. It really is beautiful. I will now know more about it when I pass it every day.