A NOTE FROM THE CURATORS​

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This exhibition takes its lead from the dual attributes of the industrial space which was presented. A defunct condo presentation centre on the one side, with its bizarre simulations of nature and cliched imaginings of idyllic neighbourhoods by the waterfront – interesting in light of how disconnected our city’s residents have been from the lake due to a long history of urban design that turned Toronto’s back to its waters, prioritizing polluting industries. On the other side, a raw warehouse space whose dramatic sense of scale, the likes of which is becoming rarer and rarer to find in our city's quickly developing downtown core, fills the imagination with creative possibility.

Both spaces, in their own way, invite us to think about the dynamics of placemaking, to reflect on how we have defined our notions of home and community, as well as how we can not just imagine, but also realize a more authentic, just, and inclusive vision of what city and citizenry mean.

Desire lines is a term that stems from landscape architecture and refers to the informal or unsanctioned paths that form by the erosion of repeated use as a result of the pursuit for efficiency, or more simply, a “short cut”. A desire line is by its very nature an act of resistance towards that which is prescribed by some higher authority. That said, the flip side of desire lines, also known as a cow path, are the worn out patterns that begin to form as a result of unreflective thinking so typical of all herd mentality, blind to the rewards of the road less traveled. The tension of this duality is embodied by the very space in which this exhibition is presented and the works in this show encourage us to re-think the meaning of community, to challenge the stereotypes of placemaking and appreciate the preciousness of the natural environment we all call home.

- Art Spin Co-Curators           

Layne Hinton & Rui Pimenta