You are viewing an archived event from a previous year.
Culture Days will return September 20 – October 13, 2024.
Images
Views of the Port Lands: through a camera and from an observation tower
In-person
Architecture Climate Action Nature & outdoors PhotographyDate and time
Location
Observation Tower, on the southwest side of the yellow bridge.
222 Cherry Street
Toronto, ON
Directions: The viewing platform is just off the sidewalk on the south side of the yellow and white Cherry Street bridge. It is most easily accessed on foot or by bike. There is no dedicated parking, people driving would need to park nearby and then walk to the viewing platform. There are no washrooms on site.
Access
Free.
Offered in English.
About
See construction of a renaturalized mouth for the Don River from the viewing platform (not normally open to the public) and talk to the photographers who have been documenting the area’s transformation since 2019.
Photographers Vid Ingelevics and Ryan Walker have had unusually open access to the construction site for the Port Lands Flood Protection Project since 2019. This massive infrastructure project is creating a new river and providing flood protection for a huge area of eastern downtown Toronto. The public has limited ability to see the site, except through Vid and Ryan’s photos.
On Sept 27, we will be opening the viewing platform – a four storey-tall observation tower – to allow people a bird’s eye view of the construction site. Visitors will be able to see the new riverbed we are constructing and the plants that are thriving in future greenspace. Vid and Ryan will show a selection of photos they have taken on the site and talk with visitors about their work and what is unique about their commission.
About Vid and Ryan’s work:
Vid and Ryan look beyond the factual process of construction to interpret the Port Lands’ transformation as visual artists, often addressing the social nature of labour. Their photos of the Port Lands have been the subject of three CONTACT Photography Festival installations as well as presentation in online and print media.
For this event, they will be showcasing images that speak to labour and the workforce on the site. With photos capturing the different ways people communicate and the human connections, visitors will be able to explore two perspectives of the project - the panoramic views available from the platform and selections from four years of the artists’ consideration of work on site.
Vid Ingelevics is a Toronto-based photographer/artist, independent curator, writer and educator. He holds the position of Associate Professor Emeritus at the School of Image Arts, Toronto Metropolitan University.
Ryan Walker is a Toronto-based photographer, specializing in documentary, editorial photography, and visual advocacy. Having graduated in 2013, Walker holds an MFA in Documentary Media from Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University). He is also an educator for the BFA Photography Programs at Toronto Metropolitan University and Sheridan College.
Links
- Learn more about the Port Lands Flood Protection Project on the project website PortLandsTO.ca
- Read an interview with the Photographers about their work waterfrontoronto.ca
Organizer
Waterfront Toronto
Waterfront Toronto is the public advocate and steward of Toronto’s waterfront revitalization. Waterfront Toronto came together in 2001 to tackle big issues along the waterfront that only collaboration across all three levels of government could solve.
With the backing of federal, provincial and municipal governments we overcome the barriers to revitalization so that Toronto can take its place among the world's top waterfronts. By listening to the public voice, we’re delivering a distinct and vivid vision for a vibrant and sustainable waterfront.
Working with partners, from property developers to conservationists and community groups, we are creating conditions for next-generation job creation while improving the ecological health of the waterfront.
Contact
Waterfront Toronto