Textile Museum of Canada

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  The Textile Museum of Canada which is located in downtown Toronto, is the only museum in Canada solely focused on the collection, exhibition and documentation of textiles produced globally over a span of two millennia. Anything of fabric is displayed with over twelve thousand accessioned items. The museum has two floors accessible to the public with the permanent collections on the first floor and temporary exhibits on the second floor. There is also a hands on area for children including looms and a spacious store of items for sale on the first floor.

Next to Entrance outside

Some of the permanent displays

Greek jacket from the Ionian islands late 19th century

   This is a jacket made in Corfu, Ionian islands in the late nineteenth century using cotton, gold thread and copper

West African masquerade costume 20th century

  This a Masquerade costume made in West Africa by the Senufo people during the Twentieth century using  sisal.

South African apron late 20th century

  This is an apron or liphotu as it is known locally which was woven by the Ndebele people in South Africa during the 1980s from goat skin, glass beads, brass and various plants.

Chinese headdress 20th century

  This a wire and silver headdress made by the Miao people of China sometime in the mid to late twentieth century.

Chinese jacket mid 20th century

   This is a jacket made by the Miao people of Guizhou province in China during the mid Twentieth century using silk and feathers.

Museum shop

Museum store

  If you’re interested in buying one of a kind textile items from around the world then the museum shop is worth seeing.

Close up of central Asian purse

Fabrics for sale

Entrance to shop

Occupy Toronto: St. James Park

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Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune--without the words,
And never stops at all, ( Emily Dickinson)

    I’ve always found it interesting that during periods of societal stress and transition people turn to dance. In the 14^th century you had the Danse Macabre (fr) or Danza de la Muerte (sp) in Europe which was a cultural reaction to the predations of the Black Death although this was often an allegory for the inevitability of death - a sort of physical memento mori. The 16^th century saw the Taki Unquy in the Peruvian Andes in opposition to the predations of the Conquistors and the European diseases which they brought with them. During the 19^th century there was the Ghost Dance of the Native Americans in the western United States where the act of the Ghost Dance would mitigate the predations of the white settlers and a prior typhoid epidemic. Now we have the Occupy dances in opposition to the predations of the economic elites.

Announcement board at St. James Park

   As I said in my last post I went to the encampment at St. James Park last Sunday afternoon to deliver garbage bags as well as disposable utensils, cups and plates to the encampment via the public transit because many of the roads downtown were closed due to the Toronto marathon. It was quite a trek to haul all of that stuff by myself but I did.

Meditation group

  I felt that I had done enough meditation in the morning so I gave this group a pass.

Out of town group

    Thomas Walkom, a Toronto Star columnist, walked around the encampment on Wednesday and wrote the following:

In style, the Occupy Toronto protest is almost stereotypically Canadian. Those camping out in a downtown city park are polite and respectful to all, including police. The campsite itself is meticulously tidy, with protest placards lined up for inspection along the pathways.

Free food tent for protestors

  I dropped the supplies at the food tent and it was gratefully received by the folks who were almost out of plates.

Bay street banker jail

   Will the occupation gain traction.  In the following quote from the online version of Atlantic magazine, their so called  “left-wing” policies as outlined are already a current Canadian  reality so the intense demands for change of the American occupiers don’t really exist in this country. There is more a fear here of Canadian society moving in the direction of America.

What binds a large majority of the protesters together--regardless of age, socioeconomic status or education--is a deep commitment to left-wing policies: opposition to free-market capitalism and support for radical redistribution of wealth, intense regulation of the private sector, and protectionist policies to keep American jobs from going overseas.

Sixty-five percent say that government has a moral responsibility to guarantee all citizens access to affordable health care, a college education, and a secure retirement--no matter the cost.

Robert Gourlay - the original protestor

  Another bit of irony – the statue of Robert Gourlay who protested against the Family Compact, a small group of plutocrats who ran Ontario between the War of 1812 and the Upper Canada Rebellion of 1837. There are many similarities between the current economic environment and that of the early 19^th century including the collusion of the government with the plutocrats. The plaque reads:

Robert Gourlay championed reform
ahead of his time.
In Scotland - a vote for every man
who could read and write
In England - a living wage for workers
In Canada - fair land distribution

One section of the tents in the park

  I believe that on Sunday which was the second day of occupation there were 160 tents distributed around the park.



Media center with donated computers

From Rue89:

Et si l'enrichissement des riches, la paupérisation des pauvres, cessaient d'être perçues comme des fatalités météorologiques ? Et si, et si, et si ? Pourquoi s'interdire de rêver ?



Center of the park

  Addendum October 20:  I couldn’t end this post without saying something about the food since I post restaurant reviews on this blog. The meals at the encampment are donated by many of the local restaurants so you never know what to expect except for the certainty that the food will be good and plentiful. The video below will give you a good impression of the food which is important for overcoming  a down mood from the rainy and windy days which we're currently experiencing.

Sunday

Altar on Sunday

   Last Sunday I had a bifurcated day where I spent the morning at my local parish in an upscale suburban environment having communion plus a thanksgiving luncheon and the afternoon downtown at the St. James Park Occupy Toronto encampment. You can see from the pictures in this post and the next that there was quite a contrast.

Thanksgiving lunch

  Lots of food at the luncheon including poached salmon, ham with pineapple, pork tourtière (a Quebec dish consisting of a pie with a minced pork or beef filling), broiled potatoes with rosemary, rice and other dishes plus a choice of red or white wine.

Dessert

  A variety of deserts were available with coffee or tea. I was certainly full when I finished.

Tables

 Nice harvest décor on the dining tables.

Two 75th birthdays

  Contrast this with delivering garbage bags as well as disposable utensils, cups and plates to the encampment via the public transit because many  of the roads downtown were closed due to the Toronto marathon which was also happening on Sunday.



St. James Cathedral from park



   St. James Cathedral is the seat of the diocesan bishop in the Toronto Anglican diocese and the park which contains a cemetery where many of the early Ontario luminaries are buried lies on the east side of the building. This was once a very prosperous part of the city but declined over the years into a relatively poor area which has recently been gentrified by new arrivals. Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip attended a service at this church last summer. It`s a good place to attend if you like Anglo catholic pageantry and rubbing shoulders with the local elite.

St. James Altar

   The original church was built in 1807 but was damaged and robbed by American troops in the War of 1812. After a number of replacements burned down, the current church was built in 1853 with the bells installed in 1865 and the spire completed in 1875.



Interior

  This church was the preserve of the Family Compact, a small group of plutocrats who ran Ontario between the War of 1812 and the Upper Canada Rebellion of 1837 which makes the Occupy Toronto having its encampment beside the cathedral ironic since there are many similarities between the current economic environment and that of the early 19^th century including the collusion of the government with the plutocrats.

  Below are the park gardens which were off limits to the encampment and in return the church supplied electricity to the occupiers.

St. James Park gardens

Occupy Toronto

  I just got home tonight from the organizational meeting of the Occupy Toronto group in time to see myself on national television which is a strange feeling. I thought that I would compare my impressions with an online article from the Toronto Sun, the local tabloid.

A ragtag group of would-be revolutionaries gathered in a downtown parkette Thursday night to organize committees and solicit donations for Saturday’s planned Occupy Toronto demonstration.

Around 250 people — the majority of them in their 20s— assembled in a circle around several organizers of the upcoming protest against capitalism and big business — a Toronto-based rendering of the Occupy Wall Street protests that first took root in New York’s financial district in mid-September.

The group gathered in the Bloor St. W and St. George St. area, just east of the University of Toronto’s Ontario Institute for Studies in Education.

  The article did get the size of the group about right, the crowds had around 200 people but the rest of the comments by my estimation were off since the demographics were evenly distributed over ages from 20 to 65, probably most of them had at least an undergraduate degree and they tended to skew towards the higher end of the socioeconomic scale. Ragtag is not a word that I would use because they seemed to have pretty good organizational skills and the participants knew how to pursue goals. After an hour of procedural wrangling, things moved along rapidly with reports from the various subcommittees such as logistics, food, media, legal and medical given and training sessions for various aspects of the occupation announced.

One of three news vans

 
  There was wall to wall news coverage and five representatives of the constabulary.

News crews everwhere

  At this point, my personal feeling is that the demonstrations on Saturday will not be as active as in the States since Canada is not in the same economic and social situation as America. The wealth inequality is not anywhere near the US (ratio of CEO salaries to workers’ wages here is 22:1 and 475:1 south of the border), the banks did not need to be bailed out, there was no housing bubble and economy went into a short, shallow recession. Also the cost of post secondary education is relatively low compared to America and student debt is subsequently manageable for most people. This does not mean that things could not be improved but I think the strong impetus for change is not present.

One of the younger members

Three of the volunteer facilitators

Remember, remember

Remember remember the fifth of November
Gunpowder, treason and plot.
I see no reason why gunpowder, treason
Should ever be forgot...

  New York Police have been charging demonstrators at Occupy Wall Street protest area under New York`s Penal Law 240.35 as promulgated below:

Being masked or in any manner disguised by unusual or unnatural attire or facial alteration, loiters, remains or congregates in a public place with other persons so masked or disguised, or knowingly permits or aids persons so masked or disguised to congregate in a public place; except that such conduct is not unlawful when it occurs in connection with a masquerade party or like entertainment if, when such entertainment is held in a city which has promulgated regulations in connection with such affairs, permission is first obtained from the police or other appropriate authorities.

  So Guy Fawkes masks are out of bounds although if the demonstrations last until Halloween on October 31, the protesters will get a pass for one night. This is a class B misdemeanour which allows the judge to impose a prison sentence of up to three months. The photo below was taken on Wall street, New York on October, 2011 by David Shankbone under a creative commons licence.

Nuit Blanche

   Each year on the first Saturday of October most of downtown Toronto turns into an interactive art exhibit from 6:49 pm on Saturday to sunrise on Sunday and this year there were 132 separate art installations divided into three regions of the downtown area.

   The City of Toronto commissioned 45 public art exhibits by local, national and international artists while the local educational, cultural and neighbourhood groups and institutions had independent art projects. All installations were free and open to the general public. My favourite was the streetcar at the corner of Yonge and Dundas streets which was turned into an adventure ride and can be seen on the video below.

   Another example was Scotiabank’s Fluxe project:

FLUXe is an imaginative collaboration of strangers and artists coming together to create on a large digital canvas - a 100 foot x 33 foot LED screen suspended on the north side of Scotia Plaza. In this interactive digital art installation, you’ll have the opportunity to transform the urban back drop of Scotia Plaza with your own creative vision in collaboration with one of nine featured artists.

Be the artist!

Move your finger to create brushstrokes that instantly transform the grey cityscape into a space that echoes your most unique inner artistry. Once you’ve created your whimsical composition, watch as other people add their creative twist, making it a constantly changing work of art. Then go to the FLUXe facebook gallery to see your artwork and to enter for a chance to win a Blackberry playbook.

A diverse group of artists spanning a wide range of artistic styles created brush patterns to make your painting even more inspired. Combine their vision with your creative finger for an unforgettable foray into immersive art.

   And here is another video:

  There're lots of more videos of the various installations on youtube. Public transit was available all night but no cars.

Toronto PATH system

   I assumed that everyone knew about the Toronto PATH system but I guess that I was wrong. The underground tunnel system in Toronto actually predates the one in Montreal. The first underground tunnel was built in 1900 when the T Eaton Co. joined its main store at 178 Yonge St. and its bargain annex. By 1917 there were five tunnels in the downtown core. When the Union railway station opened in 1927, another tunnel was built to connect it to the Royal York Hotel (currently the Fairmont Royal York). The present growth started in the 1970s when a tunnel was constructed to join the Richmond-Adelaide and Sheraton Centres. Today there are 28 km. (17 miles) of tunnels with 372 thousand sq. metres or 4 million sq. feet of retail space. The PATH system connects 50 building complexes, 20 parking garages, 5 subway stations, 2 department stores, 6 major hotels and the transit hub including commuter trains, long distance trains, streetcars and the subway line as well as connections to the major entertainment and tourist attractions. Most of the newer portions are airy, bright and spacious.

PATH system

Fourth of July (Afternoon)

  This is part two of my Fourth of July adventures and involves going to the local shopping center, one street of which is shown above, to do some shopping and have a fast bite of food.

  The South street Burger company across the street in the picture makes the best hamburgers around as well as that iconic Canadian staple of fast food, Poutine.

 
 Poutine is Canadian comfort food and has been refered to as a heart attack in a bowl. It is basically french fries, gravy and fresh white cheese curds. The curds must be less than three days old and be squeaky when chewed. The best Poutine is found on Quebec chip wagons since the dish originated in la belle province. I tried some in the States once but they used Kraft cheese slices instead of curds. Do you know "Danse la Poutine"?



   Next I went to Teaopia which is the best tea shop in the area. They have a better selection than McEwan (see my Saturday shopping post) but aren't a first rank tea shop which would have items like first bud himalayan estate tea. I picked up some Oolong tea.

     You can have them make a small sample for you before you buy.

   And drink it in the area below:

  My next stop was that classic Canadian clothing shop where you can buy anything that you can imagine with a Maple Leaf or the words Canada on it. This place is popular with students going to Europe or adults (?) travelling to Buffalo for the purpose of trashing the place after a hockey game. And they wonder why Buffalo has the most empty houses in New York State.

 My youngest daughter who did a diploma in Fashion management did her internship at the Roots head office. The photo below is a shot of the interior of the Roots store.

   My final segment on this part of the day was Tilley's where I checked out their 40% discount. I purchased a shirt and pants. They make the best travel clothes in the world and they're actually made on site.

 That was the fun part of the day. My mother is going to a garden party on the weekend so I took her to Jacques Vert to buy an outfit since the store was having an end of season sale of up to 80% discount. There were some $250 hats for sale at $15 each which is throw away money so I offered to buy her two hats to go with her outfit but she said that she had one JV hat and didn't need another. While she was trying on the various dresses, I had to sit in a rather plush waiting room with a group of Rosedale matrons. I had been through this scene before so I'd arranged in advance a subversive attack where I pointedly open up my copy of  Grundisse der Kritik der Politischen Okonomie and hummed the Internationale. 

My mother's only (!) Jacques Vert hat

Saturday shopping

My favourite food store

  This is my favourite food store where I like to shop for items since I’m very particular. Below is a short video giving an overview of the store and the pictures were taken with my camera.

  I was shopping here today and later went to Aroma which is my best coffee shop. Beats the hell out of Starbucks.

Biscotti di Prato selection table

Cakes and pasteries

Part of the Cheese section

  I'm partial to Quebec artisan cheeses. The secret is that the best cheese is made from unpasteurized milk. I discovered this at a young age when I lived on my uncle's farm in the Yorkshire Dales not far from Haworth where the Bronte parsonage is located.  Shades of Jane Eyre. He had goats so we had goat cheese, goat milk and goat butter. I got into trouble one day when I had inadvertantly let part of the herd into the greenhouses. The farm was on the moors which were the flat tops of hills and the fog used to fill the valley in the morning so looking out the bedroom window it appeared to be like a sea of clouds beneath the house.

Tomato table

 
Any kind of tomato that you can imagine.

One of my favourite Olive Oils

  You can use it on ice cream (really!) since it is more like a sweet syrup. In the picture below you can see the cherry apple pie which I purchased along with the store paper grocery bag and my Tilley hat. I buy my clothes from Tilley when I travel and it has the best travel clothes in the world. All my clothes in the pictures from the Egyptian posts came from Tilley.

Cherry Apple pie from McEwans