Already Art

Fake Rocks

2010-10-11T19:59:00.004-04:00

Don't be fooled by these rock impersonators...while they may look like inconspicuous mini-boulders, they are, in fact, styrofoam.

Location: Bra d'Or Lake, Iron Mines, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia
Details: These fake rocks can be found washed up on the shore of the Bra d'Or lake in Iron Mines, N.S. Turn onto the Orangedale Road from the Trans Canada highway, and take the first road on the left. There is an access point for the shore at the end of the road.
Submitted by: anonymous

Error 20221 (future date of birth)

2010-07-08T11:20:00.007-04:00

In case it's difficult to read, the error box in the screen capture below reads:

The page at https://www.securesuite.net says:

The date of birth you provided occurs in the future.
Please make sure you are attempting to enter your
correct date of birth. (20221)

Embarrassing, perhaps, but a good reminder that ridiculous mistakes can lead to pretty lovely things.

Location: online form; date of birth request
Details: This particular piece was first experienced while checking out of the online store at tigerdirect.ca. I guess that many credit cards now require an added security process online. It was in going through this process that I mistakenly typed the current year as my year of birth, and my birthday is later this summer. The computer kindly reminded me that it's difficult to make a purchase in utero (much less to be approved for a credit card).
It will be interesting to see how many such forms yield a similar response.
Submitted by: aislinn thomas

Sky on Ground (Cheticamp, NS)

2010-01-23T18:55:00.006-05:00

Sky can often be found on the ground in these large ocean-side puddles at the roadside lookout on the Cabot Trail outside Cheticamp, NS on the west side of Cape Breton island. I especially recommend going as the sun sets.

Location: St. Joseph De Moine, just south of Cheticamp, Nova Scotia
Details: When driving along the Cabot Trail, keep an eye out for Joe's Scarecrows (somewhat of a destination in itself). If my memory serves me correctly, the lookout is just south of Joe's.
Submitted by: Anonymous

Fake Rocks (Iron Mines, NS)

2010-01-23T18:03:00.006-05:00

I lived for some time across the street from the Bra D'Or Lakes outside Whycocomagh in Iron Mines, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. Finding access to the waterfront was a constant project for me. Those I knew who had waterfront property had a veritable marsh between their yard and the shore. The simplest solution involved walking along the Trans Canada to an access point a short distance from the Orangedale Road where I lived. This, however, proved highly dissatisfying. The solution involved making friends with some other neighbours, which, I suppose, is usually a good idea anyhow.

When I finally reached the shoreline, I happened upon a series of fake rocks. I say fake rocks, because the weathered styrofoam blobs briefly fooled me. I don't think I've ever seen fake rocks before, but I imagine that there must be others out there.

Location: Shore of the Bra d'Or Lakes, Iron Mines, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia
Details: Firstly, make friends with the Fergusons, or someone living on Ferguson Point Road (it's a private drive). It is just past Ashfield Road--known fondly to some as the "yuck" road--off of the Orangedale Road (exit 4, Trans Canada Hwy 105), and is about 1 km from the Trans Canada. Secondly, follow the road to its endpoint, and thirdly, follow the somewhat overgrown trail to the shore. Walk along the shore a few meters east to find the fake rocks.
Submitted by: aislinn thomas

Bridge Street Bridge

2010-01-23T18:02:00.004-05:00

This is one of my favourite spots. I never wondered why it was that one of the main streets in Sackville was called "Bridge Street." Even so, I one day learned the answer to the question I never bothered to pose. At the westernmost end of Bridge Street is this old bridge, quite intact and serviceable except for the fact that it is missing its middle.
Besides being interesting in its own right, it's a great place to from which to take in the mudflats of the Tantramar River and the surrounding marsh.

Location: Western end-point of Bridge Street, Sackville, New Brunswick
Details: Instead of following the curve of the new street that leads to the Highway, keep going strait until the road ends at a small embankment. Walk around or over the embankment to access the bridge.

Blank Sign (on the East Lake Ainslie road)

2009-06-06T14:48:00.014-04:00

I came across this sign while on an exploratory bike ride during my first weeks in Cape Breton this spring. Unlike some other blank signs I've come across, this one seems to show some clear signs of having once said something. I can only guess what that might be.

Location: along the East Lake Ainslie road
Details: Coming from the Trans Canada (Hwy 105), take the turnoff for Hwy 252 (between the Irving station and Vi's Restaurant at the flashing amber light in Whycocomagh). Continue along the road as it becomes Hwy 395 (i.e. don't follow the 252 turn-off for Mabou). The sign is on the west side of the road, not far from the turn-off.
Submitted by: aislinn thomas

Bernardi Precast

2009-06-06T14:48:00.011-04:00

Bernardi Precast is a business in the East side of Guelph, ON that specializes in cast concrete forms, including railings, balusters and a stunning assortment of creatures (mythological and otherwise). Their sculptures occupy a large lot that can be seen from the road in a semi-industrial area of town. It's a surreal view at any time of day.

Location: 412 Elizabeth Street Guelph, ON
Details: Located on Elizabeth between Victoria and York. Not far from the foot long hot dog restaurant. To get there by public transit, you can take the 4 York Rd. The Perimeter bus also has a stop nearby.
You can visit their website at: http://www.bernardiprecast.ca/
Submitted by: aislinn thomas

Pink Restaurant

2009-06-06T14:48:00.010-04:00

After an afternoon at the newly renovated Art Gallery of Ontario, and before an opening at Mercer Union, I was part of a bus load of hungry students that saught nourishment at the newly expanded South Indian Dosa Mahal on Bloor. Not only is the new space much bigger (as evidenced by its ability to fit us all in at once), it is very pink. From the wall colour to the curtains, tables, and neon lights surrounding the windows, the theme is consistent. As a result, the faces of the customers also take on a decidedly rosy glow.

Location: South Indian Dosa Mahal, 1262 Bloor St. W, Toronto, ON
Details: Located on the NE corner of Bloor and Emerson. By public transit: take the Bloor-Danforth line to Lansdowne Station. The South Indian Dosa Mahal is 3 blocks east of Lansdowne. Coincidentally, they serve excellent Dosas and South Indian meals.
Submitted by: aislinn thomas

Misplaced Doll

2009-06-06T14:47:00.006-04:00

Jamilla Walker writes of this piece: "The doll was placed on a gate, slightly above eye level on a residential Welsh street, I presume in the hope that the owner of the doll would see it in the future and the doll shaped hole in their life will be filled again."

Although the exact location of this Misplaced Doll is unknown, and likely ephemeral, this seems fitting to the piece.

Location: a residential Welsh street
Submitted by: Jamilla Walker

Blank Sign (Guelph)

2009-06-06T14:46:00.005-04:00

This sign is located very close to where I used to live in the Ward in Guelph. Since noticing it, I've been keeping my eye out for blank signs everywhere. I particularly appreciate its bright colour.

Location: Located in the Ward on the SE corner of Elizabeth and Arthur St, Guelph ON
Details: By public transit, take the 6 Auden/Eastview bus. There is a bus stop metres from the blank sign.
Submitted By: aislinn thomas

Bulging poles (Ottawa)

2009-02-28T11:41:00.005-05:00

Location: downtown Ottawa, Ontario
Submitted by: Dave Dyment

Bulging poles (Toronto)

2009-02-06T21:08:00.004-05:00

These paticular poles can be found on St. George, near the University of Toronto campus in (you guessed it) Toronto, although I imagine that accumulated posters create similar eye-level bulges in many cities.
I believe that the poles are periodically stripped, only to grow and bulge in similar ways all over again.

Location: St. George St., near the U of T campus (between College St. and Bloor St.). By transit: take the subway to St. George station, and walk South
Submitted by: aislinn thomas; photos taken by jon pipitone

Bread Car

2009-01-06T14:47:00.007-05:00

These pictures depict a "bread car." Yes, a bread car. A car filled with bread. A bread car that is art. A br-art car!

You can find this beautifying piece of br-art in the tiny Hamlet of Dol, on the Island of Hvar, Croatia.

When I discovered this car on the property of Suncokret Retreat Center in Hvar, Croatia, I giggled, wondering about it's purpose. ls this a Croatian composter? Or perhaps an up-and-coming old world style bakery/cafe?

It wasn't until I talked to Stipe, one of the retreat center's owners that I realized that this car is functional art at it's best. He explained that the old Renault is being used to dry leftover but perfectly good bread. Dry it out? Why?
To feed the chickens, the homestead's "special ladies," of course!

Location: Suncokret Retreat Center, Hvar, Croatia

Details: Suncokret's holistic wellness retreat is a place to be nurtured from head to toe. It is on a magnificent island and provides an open door into an authentic island lifestyle. Suncokret is run by friendly hosts, who offer customized services for guests. Services include yoga and a variety of spa and healing energy treatments. How to get there: Contact them at, <suncokret_hvar@vip.hr> or visit their website <http://www.suncokretdream.net/retreat.html>

Submitted by: Jennifer Hicks

Self-evident sign

2008-12-15T12:46:00.005-05:00

This image was taken in a motel room in Winnipeg. It made me feel really good about myself, like when you watch jeopardy and you know the answer to a question already. This sign in the shower teaches people a little trick to avoid flooding the bathroom floor. When I read it I was like: "yep, I knew that one...good tip.." On the other hand, as happy and proud as that made me, I did worry a bit about being in a place where that the message didn't just go without saying.

Location: Thriftlodge Motor Inn, 1400 Notre Dome Avenue, Winnipeg, MB R3E3G5
Submitted by: Jon Sasaki

Beach

2008-12-15T12:34:00.003-05:00

This is a photo of a beach near Long Branch streetcar station, the most western stop on the Queen line. My memory is a bit hazy, but i think if you head south from the KFC, you'll eventually hit a little parkette. When you hop the fence and climb down a hill, you get to this stretch of shore. For some reason, really interesting things wash up here. Fragments of weirdo plastic toys. despite the fact that it's a ridiculous cliche, there was once an ol' rubber boot. Sometimes there are thousands of golf balls. Sometimes there are no golf balls. Once there was a coconut, and I wondered if it had somehow made its way up the eastern seaboard, defying the current of the St. Lawrence to end up there. I decided it's implausible.
Unrelated except by proximity, there is also a store near Long Branch station that sells nice old vacuum cleaners.

Location: Lake Promenade Park at the bottom of 38th Street in Toronto (Etobicoke), Ontario.
Details: Take the 501 Queen streetcar West to the Long Branch loop (or travel along Lakeshore Blvd W. to 38th Street). Follow 38th St. towards the lake. Hop over a guard rail and climb down a hill to the water.
Submitted by: Jon Sasaki

Accumulated Dryer Lint

2008-12-15T12:21:00.005-05:00

This piece is a clump of 2 years worth of dryer lint.
I kept wondering what would happen if I didn't throw out my dryer lint. Eventually, curiosity overcame me, and I resolved to seek the answer to my question. Over the past two years, all my dryer lint has been placed into a glass jar. The jar filled up, and it was put into a blue plastic bin, where further lint was placed. Possibly within 10 years, the blue bin will be full.

From one perspective, I thought it was a waste of clothing. Why not keep the attrition and hire someone to turn it into yarn, and then new clothing?

On the other hand, it is beautiful in itself.

This lint was once useful too. There was a draft in our basement, so I used clumps of dryer lint to stuff the holes. The lint was the perfect malleability - it molded to the shape of the holes.

Oddly, I took pictures of the lint for this project because it was beautiful to me in itself. But as I was looking at the pictures close up on my computer, I discovered a whole new world, filled with dust, hair (both human and animal), sparkles, threads, dirt, waves of coloured felt and fuzz. From a distance, the world of lint clumps seems like a homogeneous grey; but up close, it's a vibrant jungle of colour.

Location: Guelph, Ontario.
Details: By appointment. (Please contact Already Art to make an appointment.)
Submitted by: Nathan Saliwonchyk

Horizontal Tree

2008-11-17T20:42:00.005-05:00

I discovered the Horizontal Tree when walking by the river on my way home one afternoon. I noticed a person lying on a branch, napping in the tree. As I walked by, she said something to me. It turned out to be a woman that I'd met the day before. It turned out to be the first of a number of afternoons we spent hanging out in there.
Perhaps "Horizontal Tree" is an inappropriate title for this tree. Like most trees it grows vertically from the ground, except that the bulk of it seems to have grown out instead of up. Its branches reach towards the river, and it is a dream to climb for those like myself who are curious enough to want to climb a tree, but not nimble enough to attempt such a feat under most circumstances. There are probably many more similar trees out there. I'd like to know about them.

Location: The north side of the Eramosa River, in Lyons Park. It is east of Gordon St. past the Ukrainian church, and well before Victoria Road. It is visible from the gravel walking trail.
Details: It can be muddy in the spring time, or whenever the water level is high.
Submitted by: aislinn thomas

Ricky Receptacle

2008-11-09T10:34:00.008-05:00

For a few months I lived near Sunny Acres Park in Guelph. I would often walk by GCVI (Guelph Collegiate Vocational Institute, the local high school) on my way to work. It was at least a month of walking along Arnold St. before I noticed that the garbage cans were special beyond the fact of their blue-ness. The downtown area has pretty average black metal garbage cans with an open top, and I appreciated the beat up blue garbage cans by the west end of the high school. I began to appreciate them even more when I took the time to actually read the flap. "RICKY RECEPTACLE SAYS THANK YOU," is written in raised text. Or as a friend pointed out, "RECEPTACLE SAYS RICKY THANK YOU."

It still makes my day to think about it.

On a side note, when I finally went by with a camera to document these garbage cans, there was a group of kids smoking beside Ricky. One fellow asked me what I was doing, why it was that I was taking a picture of the garbage can. I pointed out the flap. It turns out that he had never noticed the text either.

Location: Arnold St. between Paisley and Liverpool
Details: Every so often the garbage cans get moved to mow the lawn and so on. Every time this happens I worry that they are being replaced. There is usually a garbage can on the NW corner of Paisley and Arnold outside the convience store. It doesn't seem to be moved.
Submitted by: aislinn thomas

Jean's basement

2008-11-08T19:08:00.003-05:00

I have spent hours in Jean's basement. Filled with a huge range of paraphernalia, it's entirely possible to become lost in there for ages. Shelves are filled with boxes overflowing with everything ranging from pointe shoes to scrapbooks, books, postcards, love letters, paintings, toys, photographs, school exercise books, clothing, instruction manuals to 1950s appliances, party-related odds and ends, dollhouse furniture, enamel jewelery making contraptions, board games, suitcases and tools. Most things aren't even in boxes, but in various piles corresponding to an intuitive if unintelligible organizational schema. And it's a welcoming basement, as far as basements go: well-lit, dry, comfortably haphazard, not especially smelly.

Maybe most basements are this enchanting, but I don't know of them. It's kind of like a gigantic and endearing thrift store, only all the objects come with stories that you can hear if you bring them up and ask Jean about them. If you happen to be in the area, I highly recommend it.

Location: Creve Coeur, St. Louis County, Missouri, USA
Details: By appointment. (Please contact Already Art if you'd like to arrange an appointment.)
Submitted by: aislinn thomas

Leslie Street Spit

2008-11-08T10:56:00.008-05:00

The Friends of the Spit website has this to say about the Leslie St. Spit:
"The Leslie Street Spit is North America's most remarkable public urban wilderness. It is a 5-kilometre long peninsula, built by lakefilling, that juts into Lake Ontario close to downtown Toronto. Started 40 years ago, it was intended to be a breakwater for harbour expansion, which was not needed due to a decrease in lake shipping."
The website goes on to list the variety of wildlife (plants, birds, butterflies, etc.) that can be found on the Spit.

It's all very nice, but what makes it artful to me is the beach at the end of the spit. I rode my bike out there one day years ago, and was mesmerized by all the bent and tangled rebar in amoungst the weathered bricks and tiles. All the trash and junk that have been accumulating over decades is slowly transformed into these intriguing and beautiful shapes. I couldn't help but fill my pockets with the once-debris.

The site is still used for dumping building materials, so is only open to the public during certain times. It's a bit of a hike to the end of the spit--I recommend taking a bicycle if possible.

Location: the bottom of Leslie St. at Unwin Ave., Toronto, ON, Canada.
Details: open weekends (except Christmas, Boxing Day and New Year's day) from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. April - October, and from 9:00 - 4:30 p.m. November to March. For more information on parking, and public transit access, see the Friends of the Spit directions page.
Submitted by: Anonymous

European Watch & Clock Experts

2008-11-07T13:30:00.004-05:00

The European Watch & Clock Experts is a small, unassuming store with a bright yellow sign in downtown of Guelph. I have passed by it often for some time now, but only first went in about a year ago. My watch needed a new battery, and the gentleman who owns the store was kind enough to replace it, even though he was in the process of closing.

I was really intrigued by the giant glass jars he had that stored all the old batteries and mechanisms that he had recently replaced. These alone were really interesting objects. Add to that the huge variety of constantly ticking clocks that crowded the front part of the store, the framed certificates on the wall, and the decor. The truly extraordinary thing, however, was when at 5:15pm (or was it 5:30?) a good number of the many and varied time-keeping devices began making a strange collection of noises to signal that a quarter of the hour had passed. The noises ranged from chimes to pop and classical songs, bird calls, car engines, and so on. Over the course of about 45 seconds, I was treated to an bizarre and delightful cascade of sound (the clocks are just out of sync enough that the chimes are staggered). It was amazing.

Plan to go so that your time there overlaps the hour or half-past the hour in order to experience the audio component of this piece, although if my memory serves me right, at least some of the clocks go off every 15 minutes.

Location: 124 Wyndham St. N. Guelph, ON, Canada
Details: open Monday-Saturdays; plan to go to hear the chimes on the hour or half past
Submitted by: aislinn thomas