Arts – Natalie the Explorer

Which Outing Would You Choose?

April 19, 2024April 23, 2024Natalie89 Comments

A friendly reminder that there will be no Weekend Coffee Share link-up on April 26 and May 3 as I will take a blogging break. Please plan to join me again on May 10 when I will resume hosting.

This week I had so much fun being outdoors every day, except Wednesday. I explored nature by bike and on foot and went to an outdoor light-based art exhibition. I am lucky to have wonderful places to explore and enjoy close to home. Here are some of the things I saw and did. To view captions, please click on the photos.

Don Valley Brick Works Park

Outing 1: I set out for Don Valley Brick Works Park which was once a former quarry on a sunny and mild morning (12C or 54F). I cycled to the park then hiked for about two hours before cycling home.

I started from the quarry gardens at ground level then climbed up the steep trail to the quarry ridge lookout. After enjoying the views from the lookout, I made my way down a few switchbacks and over to the Belt Line Trail to walk the Mud Creek Loop.

It was a glorious and peaceful hike. I listened to the trickling sound of water in the creek, birds singing and squirrels foraging in the woods. Pretty coltsfoot flowers lined the trails and on the banks of the creek. On my way back, I watched turtles and saw a small garter snake in the grass.

Sunnyside Beach

Outing 2: I rode my bike to Sunnyside Beach then jogged a 5 km loop along Lake Ontario’s Humber Bay. It was a beautiful sunny day with fantastic views of the bay. I love listening to the sounds of water gently touched the shore and birds singing.

The Sunnyside boardwalk was under reconstruction with the old section in grey and the new section with brown wood planks. As I returned to get my bike, I visited some of the swans and found two butterflies on dandelions.

Lumière: The Art of Light

Outing 3: I enjoyed a lovely walk with a family member to see the free outdoor Lumière art exhibition at Trillium Park. The theme this year is Connections which aims to explore the various ways in which light can create connections between people, the environment, and different aspects of our lives. Here’s a sampling. To see all 17 light-based installations and their descriptions, please click here.

Gardens

Outings 4 and 5: One final gallery to finish which shows a variety of spring flowers I spotted during my garden walks. Altogether, these outings made me a very happy explorer!

Link-Up

If I invited you to go for a walk, which outing would you choose? Feel free to choose more than one.

I’m linking up with Min’s #WWWhimsy this week.

I’d love for you to share your week’s highlights and/ or public art from around the world in the Comments or Weekend Coffee Share link-up #161 below. The next Weekend Coffee Share link-up will be on May 10. Enjoy the rest of April and happy May!

5 Winning Stations at Woodbine Beach

March 22, 2024March 15, 2024Natalie70 Comments

Goodbye winter and hello spring! To mark the transition from winter to spring in my corner of the world, I am sharing two of my “bike and walk” outings. The first outing was to Woodbine Beach to explore the Winter Stations on display. The second outing was to the Toronto Music Garden to look for early spring flowers.

Winter Stations at Woodbine Beach

“Launched in 2014, Winter Stations invites the international design and art community to reimagine the lifeguard stations along Toronto’s east end beaches for the winter. The competition has seen entries from over 90 countries, bringing the world of design to the water’s edge“.

The theme this year is Resonance. Contesting designers for the competition were encouraged to reinvent previous installations and infuse them with fresh ideas and their unique artistic vision.

Here’s five of the six winning Winter Stations located from east to west at Woodbine Beach. Have a look and let me know if you have a favourite. Click on the title of the installation for its description.

Bobbin‘ by University of Waterloo School of Architecture (Canada)
Nimbus by David Stein (Canada)
Nova by Toronto Metropolitan University Department of Architectural Science (Canada)
We Caught A UFO! by Xavier Madden and Katja Banović (Croatia and Australia)
A Kaleidoscopic Odyssey by Brander Architects Inc (Canada)

The 6th installation Winteraction is interactive but simplistic in its physical form so I did not take a picture. It requires a phone to get the full experience.

It was a beautiful day with mild temperatures and sunshine. I enjoyed cycling, walking, experiencing nature and culture, all in one outing. I came home feeling happy and grateful.

Early Spring Flowers

I spotted several early spring flowers on my walk at the Toronto Music Garden this month: Crocus flowers, snowdrops, puschkinia and purple irises. Their simple beauty gave me joy. I look forward to seeing a wide range of spring flowers to bloom in the coming weeks.

Link-Up

I’d love for you to share your week’s highlights and/ or public art from around the world in the Comments or Weekend Coffee Share link-up #157 below. Have a wonderful weekend!

5 Favourites from February

March 1, 2024March 1, 2024Natalie87 Comments

Hello March and goodbye February! Before I get into my February favourites, please note that there is no Weekend Coffee Share link-up on March 8 as I will be on a blogging break. I will resume hosting on March 15.

After having an adventurous January in Boston, Philadelphia and Spain, I enjoyed a relaxing February at home. I intentionally kept my February calendar as light as possible and set two fun challenges for my mind and body. I love how the month turned out and feel grateful for two consecutive wonderful months.

1. Family

My family and I celebrated Lunar New Year, the Year of the Dragon, on February 10 and Family Day holiday on February 19. We enjoyed delicious food and good company. It was two wonderful family gatherings to ring in the new year and to have fun on a long weekend.

Dragon display at Nathan Phillips Square and delicious Thai food

2. Friendship

I met up with a good friend for a brisk 8 km walk together. She was away on a beach holiday while I was away in Spain so we had fun catching up. We saw the Jimmy Mount Rushmore mural at Jimmy’s Coffee. It features four musicians, from left to right: Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Jimmy Buffet and Jim Morrison.

*Jimmy Mount Rushmore* mural by artist Christiano De Araujo, 2014.

On our second brisk 8 km walk date, we visited the new and inspiring art installation “We Are Shaped by the Obstacles We Face“. It features a life-sized bronze statue of Terry Fox before he was diagnosed with bone cancer and three tall granite pieces in a small park.

The installation is designed to flow east-west, akin to Terry Fox’s journey, with visitors entering from Queens Quay and ending at vantage point at the southwest corner of the park. From this unique perspective, the granite pieces visually transform into a familiar silhouette of Terry Fox during his Marathon of Hope. (Look at the gap that the granite pieces create).

*We Are Shaped by the Obstacles We Face* by Jon Sasaki and landscape architects DTAH.

3. Being Outdoors

Just for fun, I set a challenge to cycle and/ or do brisk 8 to 10 km walk every day in February. This year February brought only one light snowfall so I scored 29/ 29. Even on cold days, I came home feeling warm, happy and grateful from my bike ride and brisk walk. I enjoyed the fresh air and nature’s sights and sounds. We are getting longer daylight hours and closer to Spring!

4. Being Indoors

After being active outside, I enjoyed being cozy inside, doing strength training, practicing yoga, blogging, reading and writing. Also for fun, I set another challenge to take daily Italian lessons on Duolingo for 30 days (from January 31 to February 29) and did 30/30.

I’m currently reading Fresh Water for Flowers by Valérie Perrin after finishing:

The Measure by Nikki Erlick (a thought-provoking book)
The Wake-Up Call by Beth O’Leary (a light read)

5. Trip Planning

I researched and made the essential bookings for my upcoming trip. I look forward to embarking on new adventures. I’ll share more by end of March.

Link-Up

This post is my contribution to the #WBOYC link-up co-hosted by Donna, Sue, Jo and Deb.

I’d love for you to share your February highlights and/ or public art from around the world in the Comments or Weekend Coffee Share link-up #155 below. The next Weekend Coffee Share link-up will be on March 15.

Happy March!

Outside the Box | Front Street

February 2, 2024February 6, 2024Natalie115 Comments

Hello February and goodbye January! I ended my January with ten days of fun and wonderful adventures in Spain. I just got home and will take time to reflect on my trip and sort my photos.

Revisiting Spain

It was my third visit to Spain. My flights were all good. I had beautiful weather for the entire trip (15C to 23C or 59F to 73F). I revisited some of my favourite cities (Madrid, Toledo, Cordoba, Seville and Barcelona) and explored three new-to-me cities (Granada, Alicante and Valencia) which have also become my favourites.

While in Spain, I used public transport to get around. I walked and did a lot of sightseeing every day. I enjoyed delicious foods and drinks. I met and had fun exchanging travel stories with other travelers. I practiced basic Spanish throughout my trip. All in all, I had a fantastic time. Watch this space for my postcards from Spain in the next week or two.

Outside the Box

Today I am sharing five painted utility boxes and a mural located on Front Street. Front Street is one of the main east-west streets in downtown Toronto. The front of each box has a door handle while the back is flat. Have a look and let me know if you have a favourite.

Two boxes by artist Kirsten McCrae (or Hello Kirsten).

*Aquatic Garden* by artist Erin McCluskey, 2021.

Behind the Aquatic Garden utility box, I discovered a beautiful mural depicting “a way of life” of Aboriginal people by Native Canadian artist Joseph Sagaj. Zoom in to see the details of the mural. For more information on the artist and his artworks, click here.

Mural by Native Canadian artist Joseph Sagaj, 2006

I have seen other artworks by the above artists and look forward to seeing more of their creative designs in the future.

Link-Up

This post is my contribution to Dan’s Thursday Doors photo challenge and Min’s #WWWhimsy link-up.

I’d love for you to share your week’s highlights and/ or public art around the world in the Comments or Weekend Coffee Share link-up #151 below.

Rittenhouse Square’s 5 Best Sculptures

January 19, 2024January 17, 2024Natalie97 Comments

Greetings! A friendly reminder that there is no Weekend Coffee Share link-up on January 26 while I take a short blogging break. I will resume hosting on February 2.

Last week I was in Philadelphia for a family celebration. Aside from enjoying time with family, I took walks and explored downtown Philadelphia. It was mild on Friday and Saturday with daytime high temperatures reached 14C (57F), then temperatures dropped from Sunday to Tuesday, from 6C to 0C (43F to 32F).

On Monday night, it snowed overnight and by Tuesday morning, the two inches of snow covered the grounds and trees creating a beautiful winter wonderland. My departure flight from Philadelphia had lengthy delays that added a happy-ending story to my travel tales that I will share one day.

Rittenhouse Square

One of the places that I visited in Philadelphia last summer and have not written about is the picturesque Rittenhouse Square. It is a relaxing spot to take a stroll amid the beautiful trees, flower beds, lovely fountains and sculptures in summertime.

Here are pictures of Rittenhouse Square and its sculptures from my archive. I visited the square after it rained so everything was still wet. I hope you enjoy what you see.

Rittenhouse Square circular central area.

Rittenhouse Square fountain with colourful tile at one end of the reflecting pool.

Paul Manship’s ***Duck Girl*** (1911), a young girl carrying a duck under one arm, at the other end of the reflecting pool.

Albert Laessle’s **Billy**, a two-foot-high bronze billy goat. Its head, horns and spine have been worn to a shiny gold colour after being touched by countless small admirers.

Antoine-Louis Barye’s dramatic **Lion Crushing a Serpent**, dates back to about 1890, symbolizing the power of good (the lion) conquering evil (the serpent).

Cornelia Van A. Chapin’s **Giant Frog**, a large and sleek granite amphibian.

Beatrice Fenton’s *Evelyn Taylor Price Memorial* ***Sundial***, a sculpture of two cheerful, naked children who hold aloft a sundial in the form of a giant sunflower head. The inscription on the sundial reads “*The Hour Passes Friendship Abides*”.

What is your level of interest in this type of sculptures? High, Medium or Low? I admire how sculptors create expressive sculptures from hard materials like bronze or granite.

Link-Up

I’d love for you to share your week and/ or photos of public art around the world in the Comments or Weekend Coffee Share link-up #150 below. The next Weekend Coffee Share link-up will be on February 2.

Boston Harborwalk’s Beautiful Murals

January 12, 2024January 17, 2024Natalie96 Comments

Last week I took a four-day trip to Boston to attend a family event. It was my first trip of 2024 and my first time back in Boston post-COVID-19 pandemic. On my departure flight I got a free seat upgrade which included priority boarding and more leg room. Even though the flight was only one hour, the free upgrade was a nice surprise.

Aside from enjoying a lovely time with my family, one morning I explored a new-to-me section of the enchanting Boston Harborwalk. Boston Harborwalk is a near-continuous, 43-mile (69 km) public walkway along Boston’s shoreline. It connects Boston’s waterfront neighborhoods to Boston Harbor and each other.

Murals

I discovered several beautiful murals at the Boston Harbor Shipyard & Marina. They were part of the “Sea Walls: Artists for Oceans, Boston 2020” project from PangeaSeed Foundation in collaboration with HarborArts. The murals are about climate change, sea level rise, pollution, and how these problems particularly hurt communities of color.

Have a look and let me know if you have a favourite.

“*Fight The Rise*” mural by Josie Morway

The same building at an angle to show the fish on top

“*The Calling*” mural by Cedric “Vise 1” Douglas and Julz Roth – Part 1 of the corner mural

“*The Calling*” mural by Cedric “Vise 1” Douglas and Julz Roth – Part 2 of the corner mural

“*Jersey Barriers*” murals by David Mark Chatowsky

As I was leaving the shipyard, I found one lovely mural that is not part of the above art project. It’s a proud shipyard cat and his Bluefin catch.

I enjoyed my walk along Boston Harborwalk and would definitely explore other sections of this public walkway next time I am in Boston.

Link-Up

This post is my contribution to Min’s WWWhimsy link-up.

A friendly reminder that there is no Weekend Coffee Share link-up on January 26 when I take a short blogging break.

I’d love for you to share your week’s highlights and/ or public art around the world in the Comments or Weekend Coffee Share link-up #149 below.

Ringing in 2024

January 5, 2024January 4, 2024Natalie73 Comments

Happy New Year and welcome to the first Weekend Coffee Share (WCS) blog link-up in 2024! This is also the 148th WCS link-up since I started hosting in January 2021.

During the holidays, I did a blog checkup and backup. I updated the pages at the top of the blog and the widgets on the sidebar. I keep the same blog theme (Plane). Since this is my first post in 2024, I’d like to share what’s coming up on Natalie the Explorer blog in 2024.

Blog Topics

I hope to continue writing about my exploration at home and abroad and monthly wrap-up posts. If all goes well, this year my blog readers can expect to see posts from my travel adventures to the United States and overseas.

I love sharing my home city so you will see posts on places and events in Toronto as well. In each post I hope to continue sharing images of public art since I enjoy discovering public art and playing with digital photography.

Weekly Post and Link-Up

I hope to continue writing and hosting the Weekend Coffee Share (WCS) link-up weekly. Details on how to join the weekly WCS link-up is on the Linkups page at the top of my blog and in each Inlinkz dashboard. Feel free to grab the WCS badge from my blog sidebar and spread the word to promote the link-up.

Engagement

I’ll reinforce my ‘rule of engagement’ by deleting links from ‘link and run’ bloggers without notice. I read all participating blogs in each WCS link-up and leave comments. I hope to receive sincere comments on my blog. Of course, no one has to feel they must leave a comment on my posts. Just don’t link and run.

I’ll continue participating in photography challenges and blog link-ups when I have something to share and when the timing works out. I’ll do link back and always leave a comment for the host.

Blogging Breaks

I’ll take blogging breaks in 2024 and will keep you informed of my upcoming break. The first break is at the end of January. This means No WCS link-up on January 26.

What’s On in January

My January calendar is full with two family events and an adventure abroad. I’m excited about these trips and look forward to savouring them all. I’ll share more after each trip is completed.

The following untitled mural created by Billal Khan seems to sum up what I look forward to in January: Recreational activities (biking, trail walking in lower left corner of mural), traveling and coming home (airplane and CN Tower on right side of mural). I took the photo last winter.

Mural at Ontario Place by Billal Khan, 2017

Speaking of winter, I’d like to share a ‘cool’ interactive sculpture titled Frost. The two Ys create a snowflake design.

Visitors to Brookfield Place are encouraged to touch Frost. Run your hand along the sculpture and you’ll see that you cast a shadow in the field of light, the same way you leave a trail when drawing on a frosted window.
Frost information board

Link-Up

I’d love for you to share your week’s highlights and/ or photos of public art around the world in the Comments or Weekend Coffee Share link-up #148 below.

2023: A Year in Review

December 29, 2023December 31, 2023Natalie81 Comments

Photo by Kostas Dimopoulos on Pexels.com

As we head into the last few days of the year, I have been reflecting on all the good things that came my way during 2023. At the beginning of the year, I hoped to maintain good health, spend time with family and friends, enjoy my hobbies and travel. The last twelve months brought many joys and one personal loss. Here’s what 2023 had in store for me.

January & February

I embraced winter and enjoyed exploring Toronto by bike and on foot. I discovered a lot of delightful public art such as the sculptures at the Garden of the Greek Gods and the IceFest Dreams & Fantasies event.

March & April

I traveled to Charleston, South Carolina, in the United States for a lovely reunion with my sisters. We explored historic Charleston and had beautiful weather for a few days.

I headed home in time for Winter Stations and Lumière, two fantastic outdoor art events. Spring arrived with sunny days and gorgeous cherry blossoms (Sakura).

I made a trip to Portugal at the end of March and had a wonderful time revisiting Lisbon, Cascais, Sintra, and exploring Evora, Fatima, Tomar, Coimbra and Porto.

May & June

My sister came for a visit in early May. We explored and loved the Fleurs de Villes Voyage trail of more than thirty beautiful floral installations. I also had fun seeing many expensive cars at the Exotic Car Show in June.

Both trips to Montreal in May and to Philadelphia in June were wonderful. They would be followed by a series of trips to the United States for family for the rest of the year.

July & August

July was fun-filled with trips to Chicago and Washington DC in the United States. I revisited several historic landmarks in the two US cities. August highlight was a fantastic trip to Iceland where I enjoyed stunning landscapes and many natural wonders.

September & October

A trip to Los Angeles in September meant I was able to touch the Pacific Ocean water at Manhattan Beach. On October 3, my Dad passed away. My family and I felt deep sorrow for our loss and gratitude for the love and support that we received.

November

To process my sorrow, I dedicated time for self-care and time with family and friends in Toronto, Dulles, Virginia and Charlotte, North Carolina. I did 25 nature walks, 8 km each, or a total of 200 km (125 miles). These walks brought both physical and mental health benefits.

About seven weeks after my Dad died, I met him in a dream. He appeared happy with his usual beaming smile as we headed out for a walk. This dream gave me comfort and peace.

December

I enjoyed walks with friends to see the incredible Gingerbread Way, the festive Fleurs de Villes Noël floral trail, the fun Winter Village and dazzling light decorations in the downtown core.

My family and I had a lovely Christmas. I think of my Dad and his smile. I look forward to ringing in the new year.

Blogging

I’ve been active on the blog in 2023. Here are some numbers:

7th year blog anniversary in October
3 years of hosting the weekly Weekend Coffee Share (WCS) link-up
Wrote and published 48 blog posts
Hosted 47 WCS link-ups and took 3 blogging breaks
Shared about 400 images of public art at home and abroad

Thank you to all who read, like, follow, link up and/ or comment on my blog.

This post is my entry to Terri’s Sunday Stills 2023 Year-in-Review photo challenge.

Gratitude

Reflecting on 2023, I’m grateful for a year of good health, time with family and friends and wonderful experiences at home and abroad. I’m also grateful for the good memories that I had with my Dad.

I wish everyone a healthy and joyful New Year.

November 2023 Gratitude

December 1, 2023December 5, 2023Natalie99 Comments

Goodbye November and hello December! A quick review of my calendar showed many simple joys in November. I’m grateful for a good month with local exploring and travel to the United States. Here’s an acrostic version of what November had in store for me.

NOVEMBER

Nature walks were so enjoyable that I completed 25 walks, 8 km each, or a total of 200 km (125 miles). This is in addition to my ongoing fitness routine and normal walking to get from A to B. I’m grateful for the green space, blue space and my ability to walk.

Outdoor public art hunt yielded many fun finds to add to my Outside the Box digital image collection. I’m grateful for the abundance of public art in my surroundings. Have a look at these six utility boxes painted in pattern-mixing fashion by Toronto artist Hello Kirsten.

Visiting family is something I never take for granted. While in Virginia I enjoyed vibrant Fall colours and viewed chocolate displays at See’s Candies store (not available in Toronto).

Exiting Virginia, entering North Carolina in time for American Thanksgiving holiday last week and returning home this week, I’m grateful for safe travels, sunny weekends, quality time with family and good food.

Meeting friends in Toronto for coffee catch-up and making calls to out-of-town friends brightened up my day. I’m grateful for longtime friends.

Blogging and hosting four Weekend Coffee Share link-ups meant I wrote four and read 100+ blog posts. Thank you to all who join in on the fun every weekend in my virtual nook.

Entering photography challenges was an enjoyable exercise for my brain. I’m grateful that I can play with digital images without accumulating physical prints. Which images to use, how many, and how do I want to display them on the blog? I did it my way here, here and here.

Reading mystery fiction novels was strangely relaxing. I’m grateful for the availability of e-books. My recent reads were The 6:20 Man by David Baldacci, The Stranger Diaries by Elly Griffiths and Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt. Have you read any of these books or authors?

Holiday Season

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas around here. After sunset, downtown Toronto shines with dazzling lights, beautiful Christmas trees and stunning window displays. I enjoy checking them out and hope to share some photos on my blog later this month.

Toronto’s Christmas tree from my photo archive

Weekend Coffee Share

I’d love for you to share your November highlights in the Comments or Weekend Coffee Share link-up #143 below. I’m linking up with Donna, Sue, Deb and J o who co-host #WBOYC, Ju-Lyn who co-hosts #TheChangingSeasons, and Min who hosts #WWWhimsy.

Happy December!

Outside the Box | Bold and Bright

November 24, 2023November 28, 2023Natalie83 Comments

I hope my blog friends and readers in the United States who celebrate Thanksgiving had a nice Thanksgiving on November 23 and a great holiday weekend. Canadian Thanksgiving is on the second Monday of October.

This week has been a traveling week for me so I’ll keep this post short. I discovered these two painted utility boxes while I was out cycling and walking on the Waterfront Trail in Toronto. Even though the art designs are not my style, the bold and bright colours made me smile when I saw them.

Both boxes have different murals on four sides. I hope they also bring you a smile. Click on any image to see its bigger version and the doors. They are my entry to Dan’s Thursday Doors photo challenge and Min’s #WWWhimsy link-up.

Outside the Box #1

This big utility box was painted by Toronto muralist FPMonkey (Julia YH), who often expresses ideas with a surrealist and fantastical flair. Much of her work has elements of Chinese and overall Asian culture from which her roots are. Her design on this box looks like a dragon is swimming in Toronto Harbour.

Outside the Box #2

This utility box was painted by a muralist who goes by the name Eats Verbs. On the left side of the door, there are vertical letters that look like ‘MERGS’ to me. The bold red exudes energy and demands attention.