Sanko trading company

Posted on May 30, 2026 by Mary C

below: People walking on Queen Street West in Toronto. Do you think that they realize that a large yellow eye is watching them from behind? This is the eye of a very large painting of a cat, probably a Japanese cat.

The mural, the JapanTown mural on the side of the Sanko Trading Company, has been re-painted. The previous mural dates from 2013/4. A blog post with photos of what that looked like in 2015 is at: Sanko Wall. This blog post should give you an idea what it looks like now.

The group of artists (‘The Summit’) who painted the mural also made a video for youtube: The JapanTown Project No. 5

Photos taken May 2026

when the walls speak to me

Posted on May 17, 2026 by Mary C

If I believe what is scrawled and scribbled on walls, there’s a lot of love out there…. but not all of it is “happily ever after”. Unrequited love can be a sad thing as Mickey has learned.

graffiti that is all text that says I will always love you my babbies No matter what they say or make up, but it needs 2 end not us the rumours you are still my Mini even Know you don't want me as your Mickey. I love you

below: “Look around, love around”. Like philosophy, it can be interpreted as you wish. It’s like “vague posting” on social media.

graffiti that is all text, words that say Look around, love around

below: I hope that you all have a “baby love dove”! It sounds very romantic!

graffiti that is all text, words that say My lover My protector My Angel My Best Friend my soulmate My Everything My Whole World My baby love dove, love 4 ever an always plus a day

below: Elevate love

graffiti that is all text, words that say elevate love

below: “Love your neighbor”

graffiti that is all text, words that say love your neighbor

below: I will file this one under ‘love’ as well

below: And this one as love too – although it could be lust or just admiration? Nah, the hearts give it away. Alex probably knows the answer.

graffiti that is all text, words that say Alex Lee is the hottest alive, A + A

below: “I’ve always known it was you” is another rather ambivalent statement. Yes, you are the one and only for me or, yes, you’re the one who stole my phone…. It could be the start of many narratives!

graffiti that is all text, words that say I have always known it was you

below: And of course, there is always the opposite of love

graffiti that is all text, words that say I don't even miss him

Some text reads like the words of a motivational speaker…

below: … such as this one, “You are sacred, you are worthy”

graffiti that is all text, words that say

below: “You’re almost there”

below: “Fear less, create more”

below: “Hope is tax free”

graffiti that is all text, words that say Hope is tax free

A few graffiti sayings sound like they could have been written by your therapist.

below: Take seriously each other’s vulnerability”

graffiti that is all text, words that say Take seriously each other's vulnerability

below: “Practice being brave”

below: “We need each other”

graffiti that is all text, words that say we need each other

Some get philosophical (or at least try)

below: “No moment more fleeting than the present”

graffiti that is all text, words that say No moments more fleeting than the present

graffiti, black marker on grey concrete, that says tears in the rain

Or more political…

below: “To be wealthy and honored in an unjust society is a disgrace.” … although at least one person has made it known that they disagree.

sticker that says to be wealthy and honored in an unjust society is a disgrace. someone has written bullshit across it.

below: “We are poor because they are rich.”

poster with pictures of Mark Zuckerberg, Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk, with words, we are poor because they are rich

There are some warnings on those walls and fences too!

below: Poor Laura!

graffiti that is all text, words that say Laura has cooties. It's true, I saw them!

Sometimes there is just a bit of whimsy

below: Henry has left his mark here.

But, as we all know, many have no meaning at all…

below: … unless someone has decided to name themselves Potato 300

graffiti in blue that says the skys not classified

What would you say?

down Biscuit Lane

Posted on April 19, 2026 by Mary C

Biscuit Lane is a short, narrow alley in Toronto that has street art murals on both sides.

below: A Toronto mural in a Toronto alley.

below: More Toronto, painted by Thomas the Anonynous

below: “I’ll always be here with you!”

below:Cartoon characters & Pop culture references! Bert doesn’t look too comfortable!

below: Inspector Gadget, one of the Smurfs, Betty Boop, Tweety Bird looking angry, Goofy isn’t sure what’s happening, Launchpad McQuack, and Droopy Dog.

below: Marge Simpson with her enormous blue hair, Yogi Bear (fondling that hair), Jessica Rabbit, Bert, Woody Woodpecker, Little Hiawatha, The Mask and Huckleberry Hound.

below: Along one wall is a large mural by Ness Lee – women with long hair

below: Looking north on Biscuit Lane

below: Wanted poster for what looks like the Pink Panther in black hat and shades. Wanted for “harbouring stool pigeons near sanctuary”

below: “Wanted for keeping it 2 real”. Marvin the Martian?

below: …. and even more (with some repeats)….. A smug Pink Panther and a concussed Sylvester…. Beep! Beep!

below: It’s the alphabet all jumbled up in many colours, many ‘fonts’, and many sizes.

below: Superhero time! Superman, Spiderman, and more.

Photos taken April 2026

along Boulevard Décarie

Posted on April 9, 2026 by Mary C

… a few murals seen on Boulevard Décarie in Montreal.

below: By Cecile Gariepy, holding up blue cube houses and showing them to each other in “Chez Nous” on a wall of Habitations Bourret housing project. a gift from the organization MU to the Office municipal d’habitation de Montréal (OMHM) for their 50th anniversary. 2019

portion of chez nous, a mural by Cecile Gariepy

below: Fonki painting of bulldogs and pugs

Mural of group of dogs, bulldogs and pugs, by artist Fonki,

part of larger mural by Fonki of bulldogs and pugs

below: Tilly, another bulldog, painted on pink on what is now an empty building.

below: This portrait of Tilly was painted by Kevin Ledo.

below: This is the street art seen under the portrait of Tilly.

below: Dora the Explorer, in a Tim Hortons & Wendys parking lot.

Dora the explorer mural in Wendys parking lot on Decarie, Montreal

below: Dora the Explorer chases butterflies.

Photos taken April 2026

Montreal theatre hommage

Posted on April 8, 2026 by Mary C

There is a small collection of murals that pay tribute to actors and theatre in the area near rue Wolfe and rue Robin. All of them were painted under the auspices of MU, an organization that is devoted to creating murals about people and their community.

below: One of these murals is a portrait of actor Denise Pelletier (1923-1976) painted by Mateo (with help from Ilana Pichon, Rocio Perez, and Julien Sicre).

street art mural of Denise Pelletier by Matteo, in Montreal

below: On rue Robin there are two matching murals side by side. On the left is one in blue with a man sitting on top of a ladder. The text reads, in French, “Ne compte jamais sur rien ne restez ni sur un echec, ni sur un succes” ( = Never count on anything, don’t dwell on either failure or success.). It is a tribute to the founders of Théâtre de Quat’Sous and was painted by Gene Pendon.

mural by Gene Pendon in Montreal, in blues, a man sitting on top of a ladder, with text in French Ne compte jamais sur rien ne restez ni sur un echec, ni sur un succes

below: “Commencez toujours autre chose c’est la suite qui compte” = Always start something new; it’s what comes next that counts. This is a quote by theatre director (and writer) Paul Buissonneau (1926-2014). It is the work of street artist Sender.

mural by sender in red and black , white line drawing of a building, with a quote in French from actor Paul Buissonneau, Commencez toujours autre chose c'est la suite qui compte which translates to Always start something new; it's what comes next that counts.

below: La Roulette was the name of Paul Buissonneau’s first theatre. It began in 1952 – performances were outdoors in Montreal parks. According to a nearby plaque, this mural was not a Mu production, instead it was a La SPAG initiative (la société pour la promotion des arts gigantesques) and was created by Laurent Gascon. Gascon has produced eight other similar murals that showcase actors, performers, singers, etc.

street art mural, that looks like mosaic, with words La Roulette, which was a theatre in Montreal.

below: Lastly, there is tribute (painted by Hsix156) to Dominique Michel (b. 1932), a Quebec actress, singer, and comedian. She began her career in cabaret but got a start in television in the 1960s.

street art mural of actress Dominique Michel beside a small park in Montreal

For more information about MU, check out their website (mumtl.org)

Photos taken April 2026

Hiding behind the Danforth

Posted on January 21, 2026 by Mary C

On the south side of Danforth, near Bowden Ave.., there is an alley….

below: Looking west to Bowden Avenue. There are a few street art pieces that have been painted in the past couple of years.

below: Natasha Dichpan painted this young woman and wolf (dog?). It’s probably a dog but for some reason I’d like to think that it was a wolf.

below: The multicoloured swirls of dots and splotches are by Andre Castro.

below: A young woman with flowing pink hair, pointy elf-like ears, and many eyes, rides on a blue pelican (or at least a bird with a big beak), painted by Katrina Canendo in summer of 2021. Pink mushrooms in blue foilage on the accompanying door.

below: She also seems to have an extra arm as well as an eye on the back of her hand. She ate the mushrooms?

below: By Sasha Fonkatz, the only man on the block. The calligraphy in the black box on the right says: “Sometimes you have to be a lion to be the lamb that you are” (a Dave Chapelle quote). I am not sure what the whole story is surrounding the pink faced man, but the first two lines start “A true community is not just about …”

below: by Amani Muhammad, blues…. blue woman, blue pigeon, and blue butterflies among the pink and red flowers

below: Another Katrina Canendo piece, this time from April 2022. On the sidewalk on Bowden Street with Danforth Church in the background. Once called Chester Baptist Church, the building was completed in two stages. The original building was built in 1911 while a newer addition fronting onto Danforth was added in 1931.

below: Bowden Ave. The street is named after John Wilson Bowden, a builder who purchased land in the area in 1858 and subdivided it in 1871.

below: Behind the church

To the west of Bowden there are a couple of garage doors that have been painted but that was long ago. Some have been tagged over.

below: Long ago as in 2012 which is when this double garage was painted – CHEST on one side with Magical Mystery Tour and RASR on the other with Imagine. Beatles fans I presume.

below: and 2013 (pest, bacon, nozer).

Photos taken January 2023

the smaller stuff too

Posted on January 16, 2026 by Mary C

…in Graffiti Alley

My previous post was also about a walk down a section of Toronto’s Graffiti Alley (Spadina to Portland). This post is from the same walk – because there were so many images that I wanted to share, I decided to divide the fun into two parts. This second part takes a closer look at some of the smaller pieces.

below: Peeling paper hands…. A 33wallflower33 group of three women in their dashing outfits … and a charming man with devil’s horns and red glasses.

below: Although it’s getting more difficult to see, there’s a Poser rabbit by the door. The door is disappearing behind a layer or two of paper and paint.

below: There is a little pink stikman on the light above the door.

below: Once upon a time this skinny little guy was pink but ooops, a layer of paint and now he’s prematurely grey.

below: In her face – another stikman

below: Last stikman for today… sometimes you find them tucked away in hard to see places.

below: Party line? Four hands phone.

below: A bleeding heart, a pansy flower, and a woman with a red hat and big ear rings.

below: Polly wants a cracker before she takes over the world, or at least that’s what she told me.

below: A young woman with blue lipstick and jagged pink make up on her cheeks. A spiked collar is around her neck. Make of it what you will.

below: Another young woman, this time she’s a little softer (at least in appearance) – drawn by Catchoo.

below: Multiple Sailor dudes (trp613) in two varieties hanging out with a happy little catchoo critter and its smiley daisy balloon.

below: “Save me”!

below: It looks like catchoo has been busy.

below: More of that wall.

below: Darth Vader makes an appearance too. Who’s that man peeking through the hole?

below: One flower sprouts a bald person while the other produces a sunny orb. That black octopus doesn’t look very happy – perhaps in this winter weather it needs more than just a woolly toque.

below: There are those women again!

below: Dogma slaps standing tall in his puffy jacket and bright red mitts.

below: Riding a D7606 crayon – T-bonez always finds new adventures.

below: A collaboration between Tamm Shinzo and April Showers Art produced this little round piece – sitting on top of the clouds with the moon shining over her shoulder.

below: Cryptid Supremacy – a rat with a very long tail

below: More rats, this time “the rat race is rigged”. Also another skull (skulls are very popular!), this time by Broke Canvas (aka Colin Green) on yellow. And third, is it a rainbow or a very sad face? – slap by Rider Waitress (aka Frances Sousa)

below: While we’re dealing with rats – Squee! They are all fleeing from an NYC trash can. Don’t litter!

below: Another small collection – Catchoo shows up on a soy sauce bottle while a Sentient Cookie (aka Cecil Tian) character gets taped to the wall… remember that banana?! And last, in the top left corner, a Cartoon Car Slaps.

below: Juice box time. By Clem Crevetz

Photos taken January 2026

Graffiti Alley – first visit of 2026

Posted on January 14, 2026 by Mary C

This blog post is a quick look some of the “art” that can be seen in Toronto’s Graffiti Alley at the moment. There is lot on display even though I only walked between Spadina and Portland so this post focuses on the murals and larger paintings that I saw. The smaller stickers and paste ups will be in a subsequent post (sooner rather than later I hope!).

below: Blue birds and big ugly black dogs.

below: A portrait of Volodymyr Zelensky in Ukraine’s blue and yellow colours.

below: Daisy, in rabbit ears

below: On one of the corners, there is a long grey mural with bits of red….

below: “A lone samurai known as Ghost stands on watch”. A story and a mural by Dewucme

below: Portraits painted on skateboards – there has been a collection of such portraits hanging here for at least a year. I am not sure if these three are newer, or if I just forgot them last time. (Link to blog post of skateboards from 2025)

below: Portrait by Bunso

below: Other part of the above mural, but painted by a different artist (I think)

below: In memory of Andre Campbell

below: Behind the Queen Street stores

below: Painting on hoardings as downtown redevelopment (and subway construction) slowly encroaches on the Queen and Spadina neighbourhood.

below: “Find peace in your chaos” Plus, it seems to be wearing shirt and tie but it’s also drooling and looking just a little unhinged!

below: Monstrous television screen head with bloody gums and matching tie.

below: “Who you gonna call?” Ghostbusters green slimey thing!

below: He’s got one big eye and a scowl on his face. There’s a burning cigarette in his mouth and the Ace of hearts is tucked into his hat band. Quite the character.

below: Not all cats are cute?

below: A woman with her purple hair tied up with little glowing (but ghostly) lanterns in a mural by MonkYi

below: Climbing green onions (scallions?)? An upside down blue goose? … And in the middle, yellow siu mai (Chinese open-topped steamed dumplings, a dim sum favorite), all images from the imagination of Mixt Paints aka Kelcy Timmins Chan

below: There’s that snowman again, but on a different wall and surrounded by graffiti

below: Ninos Libres, by Kalaruno

below: Another Kalaruno painting

below: At least it’s a step up from tagging…..

below: A green finger on the trigger.

below: Blue. And strange looking. He’s hanging out in the doorway.

below: An introspective dragon

Photos taken January 2026

in the alleys of Owen Sound

Posted on December 31, 2025 by Mary C

Owen Sound is a small pleasant Ontario town that is nice to wander around. It has more street art than one might expect from a town its size.

parking lot and alley behind shops in Own Sound, three storey brick buildings with street art murals along the bottom third.

below: Back in 2013, the Bleeding Carrot Cafe decided that the alley adjacent to the cafe needed some art and thus the Bleeding Carrot Alley Project was born. That summer, the exterior walls of the cafe (in the alley) were painted with street art murals. Most of them still exist. Although the Bleeding Carrot doesn’t seem to be in business any more, it has left behind a colourful legacy. The first part of this blog post is dedicated to those murals.

below: Brilliant red poppies painted by Andree Levie Warrilow

a young woman's face and some bright red poppies, a mural

below: This was the first mural that was painted in the alley, a boy and his toys.

below: Another from 2013, painted by Alan Glicksman … where everybody seems to be talking.

below: Keep on rockin’ downtown, bright yellow by Robert Menzies (also 2013).

below: More 2013 – a surreal scene by Marc Matei with a purple octopus (with more than 8 legs!) makes a headpiece for a surly looking man who has a shaggy beard and one big tooth.

street art mural, purple octopus, orange donkey, man with beard,

below: Portrait of Jim, by Jennifer Crawley (2013)

below: Logan Pellerin’s trippy trees and a rocky road that leads infinitely into the distance

below: Jana Miller painted these wavy rays of sunshine.

below: In later years (post-2013), the other side of the alley was also painted.

alley behind shops in Owen Sound, three storey brick buildings with street art murals along the bottom third.

below: An orange skull

below: “Vida” is a collaboration between artist Billy Goodkat and local high school students. Vida is the Spanish word for Life.

alley behind shops in Own Sound, three storey brick buildings with street art murals along the bottom third. Purple stripes

brown turtle partially submerged in water, face is above water street art painting

below: A large section of wall in Carney’s Lane is covered by this Owen Sound mural which is also known as the Koodoo mural.

street art mural with words, Owen Sound, and a pink bunny and a blue fish

below: The south wall of the Grey Gallery is covered by “Transformation” a large mural by Raquell Yang that was painted in the summer of 2020

mural painting along one wall, exterior, outdoors, of the Grey Gallery Garden. Two large blue whales across the top, two male portraits below with a large eye with butterfly wings between the men

below: There is a large mural behind the Roxy Theatre that was painted to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the theatre. It is composed of a number of theatre related vignettes. It is the result of a collaboration between a number of artists under the leadership of Billy Goodkat.