Thursday, 12 July 2018
c="http://www.loulou.to/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/old-warehouse-building-in-the-junction-neighbourhood-of-toronto-where-banksy-art-show-was-held.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="480" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-40017">My friend
Julie offered me her second ticket to
The Banksy Art Exhibition currently on in Toronto -- lucky me! We went on Thursday.As most will know,
Banksy is an England-based graffiti artist, political activist and film director, whose identity is unknown. I read that the artist's own mother doesn't know that her son is the world famous Banksy, thinking instead that he's a house painter and decorator. His choice to remain anonymous probably began because graffiti is illegal in most places, and, I imagine, continues because anonymity would deliver a much easier way of life for a man who has become one of the world's most famous living artists.It is believed that he comes from Bristol England, and I estimate that he's about 40 now. He began creating his brilliant works of graffiti in England the mid to late 90s. In 1997 he met a photographer named
Steve Lazarides, when Lazarides was asked to follow him around the streets and take pictures for a now defunct indie magazine called
Sleaze Nation.Based on the decade long relationship between the two, during which Lazarides acted as his agent, the two hit it off. Lazarides opened a studio and shop, where Bansky prints were produced and sold, along with the work of other street artists. This coincided with interest in street art taking off and quickly lead to remarkable sums being paid by collectors for Banksy originals and limited-edition prints. By early 2008 an original called "Laugh Now" sold at auction for 228k pounds, the equivalent of about $450k Canadian at the time.So, based on my estimation of Banksy's age, by the time he was 30, he was creating artworks that collectors were willing to pay nearly half a million dollars for.The relationship between Banksy and Lazarides came to a complete end around that time, indicating that commercial success was not the route that Banksy chose to follow. He has subsequently made it clear that his motivation to make art is in no way financial. Rather, he is intent on delivering an ongoing commentary on the human condition and injustice in this world, though his ongoing clever and humourous street art.I personally became aware of Banksy, when he came to Toronto in May of 2010, and created seven pieces in different locations downtown. I became caught up in the story, as most were painted over or destroyed nearly as quickly as they went up (boo!). Two of those works remain, one is where he originally placed it, now protected behind a piece of plexi-glass, and the other, which was painted on a concrete, is enclosed within a display case, slab of concrete and all, somewhere in the city's underground pathway. I vow to go find "our" two Banksys and I'll report back once I do.While he has chosen not to pursue success in the traditional art world, Banksy continues making his statements. In fact, according to
his personal Instagram account, he is currently busy at work leaving treasures hidden in the streets of Paris.I encourage you to look at photos of his awesome street-art
on his site. There's a slide show of 115 images that are so so good.
Wednesday, 4 July 2018
c="http://www.loulou.to/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/canada-day-bbq-dinner-party-toronto-lifestyle-blog-canadian-blogger.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="480" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-39960">Hello! If you're in Canada, I hope you had a great
Canada Day weekend, and if you're in The United States, happy Fourth-of-July to you. If you're elsewhere, welcome ... I hope you're all having a good Wednesday!We had our friend Andrea and her boyfriend over for a BBQ on Sunday. It was the first time we had the pleasure of meeting Geoff and we were glad to do so. Everyone got on well, as we talked late into the evening. As we relaxed, we looked up at the stars, finding the big dipper directly overhead.As it is for many right now, we were (still are) in the middle of an extreme heatwave here in Toronto, so while I was setting things up outside, I wondered if we would be better off hanging out inside with the A/C on. But no, we stayed outside in the heat, keeping comfortable in the shade. No doubt, we were hot, but we Canadians will take it when it comes!We decided on a vegetarian menu of grilled Halloumi Cheese, Portabello Mushroom Burgers and barbecued mixed vegetables. Those were served with slices of
Nick's homemade pickles and hot peppers, tzatziki sauce, dijon mustard, ketchup and
Matouk's Hot Sauce. (Ha, click that hot sauce link and you'll gat a blast from the past. It's one of the first blog posts I ever wrote here, 7 years ago and coincidentally also posted on a July 4th. Things have changed since then, but we still get Matouk's at Carlos' House of Spice in Kensington Market. In fact, we were just there getting some on Friday, and, I kid you not, Nick was wearing that same shirt!)We'd never had Halloumi Cheese, which is "a semi-hard, unripened, brined cheese made from a mixture of goat's and sheep's milk, and sometimes also cow's milk, originating in Cyprus" before, although we have had Paneer, which is similar but originates in India. The attractive feature is that both have a high melting point, so can be cooked directly on a hot grill.And now I know that I totally love grilled Halloumi! Yum!As is usual, Nick did the cooking, and I helped out where I could.
Thursday, 28 June 2018
ass="aligncenter size-full wp-image-39930" src="http://www.loulou.to/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/lunch-menu-kost-toronto.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="480">I was treated to a great afternoon out with my friend
Julie, as a belated birthday gift. It was a surprise, so, aside from the date and time, all I knew about the outing was that we'd be having lunch, we'd be able to walk there from my place, and that I was to "wear something a step above casual". The destination was an intriguing mystery and I was pretty excited!The day came, and along with it, skies as cloudy as could be, and it was suddenly quite cool out; this after a mini heatwave of record breaking temperatures on the days leading up. It didn't matter though, as it wasn't raining out, and perfect walking weather.As we walked eastward along King Street West, past Spadina, approaching Blue Jays Way (which is Peter Street north of King.) I still had no idea where we were going, when instructed to turn right. Then, we soon made another right, and were suddenly facing a pair of huge black doors, with ornate golden handles.
Monday, 25 June 2018
Hello! Today I'm sharing some pictures Nick and I took during a recent walk through Grange Park, located right behind the Art Gallery of Ontario.This park has been revitalized, thanks to the generosity of
"The W. Garfield Weston Foundation", which contributed many millions to make the transformation possible.The two-hectare green space has been a city park for over a hundred years, since 1911, however it was originally the front lawn of The Grange House, an estate built in 1829. The building is Toronto's oldest brick home still standing, and is a beautiful feature of the park. You can get a good look at from inside the park.The Grange House became Toronto's first major art gallery after the family bequeathed it, and today remains part of the AGO, being used as a Members' Lounge -- I was inside with my friend Julie and her son James (when he was only 3 months old!) and photographed and wrote about it in
in this post, if you'd like to see. In fact, in one of the photos in that post, taken while looking through the window of the mansion, you can see the park in the first stages of revitalization.The project took about a year and a half to complete, beginning in February of 2016 and finishing in July 2017. The work went on around the variety of mature trees that were already in the park, and 80 more were planted.First, we'll look at the park as it looked when we recently visited, (and then, we'll go back in time) ...
Tuesday, 19 June 2018
I'm thinking that you probably guessed Mexican, à la Chicken Enchiladas, or maybe Italian, especially after I add that noodles and a red sauce were included in the dish we ate, too.
But no, the "Chicken, Cheese and Noodles in Red Sauce" dish that we tried, while out for a Sunday lunch with our friend Andrea, was enjoyed at a Korean restaurant.
The date came about after talking to Andrea about her time spent living in Korea. Nick and I were not very well acquainted with Korean food, so we asked if she would show us the ropes.
She gave us a choice of a place that serves BBQ, where small grills are provided right at the table and you cook the food yourself, or a restaurant that specializes in a chicken dish called "
Dakgalbi", which is a popular Korean dish made with sauteed marinated Chicken and a spicy red chili paste based sauce.
Hancook, located in Korea Town at 605 Bloor Street West (just west of Bathurst), goes a step further with the traditional recipe and offer it with grated cheese over-top. In fact, their complete name is "Hancook Cheese Dakgalbi".
Our curiosity won out and we selected the latter.
