Public Wall Art 2017

"Wall Ball"

June 25, 2017 - Wendy and I participated in the London Photo Walk. The group attempts to meet up once a month, for an amazing two hour walk in a different area each month. They have been hosting these walks, with cameras and photography enthusiasts since 2000. There are no rules and no membership. Just show up with your camera.

London Photo Walk organizer Chris Baldwin in the plaid jacket.

This particular walk was "Street Art And Back Alleys Of London". We met under a partly cloudy sky at 9 am Sun in front of the library on Dundas, London's main street. The intermittent sunshine was short-lived as clouds rolled in and the sky darkened. The overcast was probably a blessing because it allows photos with fewer and less contrasting shadows. I was late posting about this June walk because I was working on several shots that I call my "artsy" pics.Don't forget, you can click on any pic to enlarge it.

When our group was assembled we walked to Wellington to King to Clarence and through the parking lots across King to Dundas and back to the library. I numbered some of the shots to match the map along the route we followed.

The tunnel through the Galleria Mall on King street is #2 on the map.

The sky is looking ominous now.

An extract from a blog about this art from Creative Cynchronicity.

"This is a very long mural placed along the wall under the overhead walkways along King Street.  The street was shut down for a weekend and the mural was painted all within that time.  The artists who designed this mural were from Argentina and the idea behind the mural was to promote friendship, acceptance,  and unity among North, South, and Central America.  The Argentinian artists came in with an idea for the design and then local artists joined in to help them carry out their vision.  The colours at the far right end of the mural are somewhat muted and as you travel to the left, they become more and more vibrant."

Above is my own collage I pieced together from the various scenes through the tunnel. Click the pic to enlarge it.

Posted earlier last week, the Novacks sign is #3 on the Route Map.

These murals were at #4 on the map.

Rain began to fall here at #5 on the Map but even rain can inspire good pictures as long as you can keep your camera dry.

The abandoned patio was located at #6

I embellished the old patio bar picture, adding extra rain, a collapsed roof, a piano, coke sign and a bottle of coke. I just can't leave things alone!

"Don't Touch My Car!"

The pristine Mustang looked out-of-place but secure? Taken from #7 location.

The above shot, also from near #7 will be impossible to get soon because they intend on building a high-rise just beyond the fence. I loved the way the newer tower contrasted with the old and the comical looking helmet-like tower of the "Mechanic's Institute" peering back at us.

Click on this one, it's amazing!

I had to piece several pics together to get the above mural in one picture. Located on wall of 199 Dundas near #8.

An extract from a blog about this art from Occupied With Photography

"The mural, titled Octopus Garden 2 was the last artistic piece created by Stephen Watson before he passed away from cancer. Born in New Brunswick, Canada he has lived in London for 25 years. His brother Paul Watson, is co-founder of Greenpeace. More than 27 metres high, and 60 metres wide, the mega-mural is the size of your average hockey rink. Stephen had laid out the ground work for the mural but was unable to complete it himself. It is meant to raise awareness in the need to take more interest in the need to preserve future of our oceans..."

The huge artwork will likely soon be gone as they tear down the building for new construction.

I couldn't resist doing something with these great old bricks. The bricks were behind me when I was shooting the big undersea mural at location #8.

I liquefied and moulded the bricks into a ball using Photoshop for this "arsty" pic.

The alleyway to location #9 was covered in street art.

Couldn't finish the pizza? Somebody chose this spot for a meal last night. At least it shows there are probably no rats around here.

Oops! Somebody left more than food behind. Remnants of Saturday night?

"Ran-out Running Shoes"

The buildings that are still left downtown show the architectural beauty of the 19th century. Above and below are views on the old "Mechanic's Institute" building:

CLICK HERE to read more about this amazing old building.

September 21, 1877 The new Mechanics' Institute building costing $24,000 is formally opened at 229-231 Dundas Street. This is the final location for the institute. The building still stands today. 

"The London Mechanics Institute Building is a prominent example of the Second Empire architectural style as applied to commercial design. Characteristic of Second Empire architecture, the Institute exhibits a mansard roof atop the central tower and the fourth-storey, which also features ornately decorated dormer windows. Other decorative elements which typify this style include the brackets below the cornices on the façade, the pilasters which are terminated by capitals that frame the upper-stories and the extended window sills."

By 11 am the sun was again shining as we ended our photo walk. Wendy and I vowed to come back downtown for more pictures at another time. Maybe we can do a series of old buildings in a future visit.