Public Art – Page 4 – OttawaVeloOutaouais

Chunks of Old Buildings

Over the course of my local velo adventures I’ve happened upon a number of old architectural ruins selectively placed throughout the city. On Saturday I re-visited three of them. Here’s how the grand tour panned out.

The first, located behind the Royal Ottawa Mental Health Centre, is this handsome entrance to what was once the E.C. Whitney Building. I can’t find a description of the original building, or who E.C. Whitney was, however there was a successful general manager of a wood mill in the township of South Algonquin community of Whitney by that name who appeared on the scene way back in 1895.

Next stop brought me to the edge of the Rideau River near Bank St where this commemorative wall is located. It is constructed of stones that formed part of a blacksmith’s fireplace dating back to 1814, which was disassembled in 1960 to make room for road construction. Two interpretive plaques are mounted on the wall, one facing the bike path which includes a rendering of the original fireplace. The other plaque is attached to the other side, and describes Braddish Billings on whose estate the blacksmith shop was situated.

The last bunch of ruins on this tour can be found in Rockcliffe Park just east of Acacia Avenue. They are my favorite.

This fountain is actually a faux ruin. It was designed by the sculptor René Bertrand Bouté 1912 to look like one. But who’s splitting hairs? I love it.

These columns come from the Carnegie Public Library, which was located at the corner of Laurier and Metcalfe from 1906 to the early 1970’s.

I think this tumbled column and the scattered capitals near the fountain come from the same building.

This variation of a Corinthian capital, located away from the other ruins near Acacia Avenue, reminds me of the sad legend describing how this architectural order came to be. I’ve included Vitruvius‘ telling of the story below the photo.

“Now the first invention of that capital is related to have happened thus. A girl, a native of Corinth, already of age to be married, was attacked by disease and died. After her funeral, the goblets which delighted her when living, were put together in a basket by her nurse, carried to the monument, and placed on the top. That they might remain longer, exposed as they were to the weather, she covered the basket with a tile. As it happened the basket was placed upon the root of an acanthus. Meanwhile about spring time, the root of the acanthus, being pressed down in the middle by the weight, put forth leaves and shoots. The shoots grew up the sides of the basket, and, being pressed down at the angles by the force of the weight of the tile, were compelled to form the curves of volutes at the extreme parts. then Callimachus, who for the elegance and refinement of his marble carving was nick-named catatechnos by the Athenians, was passing the monument, perceived the basket and the young leaves growing up. Pleased with the style and novelty of the grouping, he made columns for the Corinthians on this model and fixed the proportions. thence he distributed the details of the Corinthian order throughout the work.”

Biking to the Jim Durrell Recreation Centre

My son had an afternoon game out at the Jim Durrell Recreation Centre. I’ve biked there before and wound up going through the intersection of Bank and Walkley which is terrible, awful and terrifying. But today I discovered two ways to avoid it! Red line’s how I got there, blue line’s how I got back, with a stop off at La Salle Académique at Ottawa U to help install the latest set I’ve designed for the play Unity by Kevin Kerr.

Someone carved this great little chair out of a stump sitting on the edge of Dow’s lake. The surrounding saw dust suggests a chainsaw was the sculptors tool of choice.

There’s much less water flowing under Hog’s Back bridge these days, exposing the stone river bed. A bunch of seagulls looked like they were having a great time playing in what little water was there.

The secret to avoiding the corner of Bank and Walkley when following the Hogs Back route is this section of unmarked path to the south of Ridgemount High School.

Bicycling directions to Grasmere Crescent - Google Maps — Unmarked shortcut to avoid corner of Bank & Walkley

I was so excited with this discovery that I over shot my mark and had to circle back to get to the Recreation Centre on Walkley.

The route I followed back towards the centre of the city after my son’s game (win!) took me along Alta Vista Drive. I was anxious at first, because even though Google Maps said there was a bike lane, Alta Vista has always been a pretty busy street. But ya know, it wasn’t bad! Folks were driving at a safe pace. Maybe the bike lanes help keep things calm.

Today’s ride reminded me it’s the crisp air of November and how it holds up rich smells to sample, like burning wood or freshly fallen leaves, that helps make biking at this time of year special. And the rich smells were in abundance biking along the Rideau River.

RideauSkyline — Evening sky along the Rideau River

Another Big Hardware Store in Gatineau – The Saga Continues

I needed to find a particular shade of 1/4″ plywood for the latest theatre set I’ve designed. I found out there’s another big hardware store on the Quebec side that is accessible by bike path. It’s a Rona on Boulevard du Plateau, so I went and had a look. The blue line on the map is how I got there. The red line is how I got to Réno-Depot from Rona after not finding what I wanted, and then home.

The design of the bike path I followed along Boulevard des Allumettières was influenced by popular struggles to minimize the negative impact this major traffic artery would have on the social fabric of the area. This interpretive panel located in front of one of the three traffic calming round-abouts describes in part these struggles.

InterpPanel — Interpretive panel along Boulevard des Allumettières

For example one of the things they managed to set in place was no transport trucks allowed.

Boulevard des Allumettières is only five years old. It’s name is in reference to les Allumettières, female employees of EB Eddy, whose dangerous job it was to prepare and package wooden matches, a major local industry at the time. Their story is explained in this article.

It’s great that organized activism resulting in benefits to the community are acknowledged as part of the history of the area, as is the case with the above interpretive panel.

Backing up a bit, here is the path along Boulevard des Allumettèries just up from the Ruisseau de la Brasserie Pathway.

These are some of the sound dampening walls separating the traffic from the bike lanes and houses.

I had trouble figuring out how the path continued beyond the Promenade du Lac des Fées off-ramp, until this bicyclist, who had just passed me, suddenly appeared on the other side. I realised then that I was to follow a pair of switch backs that circled under the off-ramp. I guess the message spray painted on the concrete barrier is meant to discourage pedestrians tempted to hop over and avoid walking the longish switch backs.

After riding through part of Gatineau Park I arrived in the area in which the Rona is located. All very new development. Here’s what a section of Boulevard des Grives looks like. Note the designated bike lanes. Well done Ville de Gatineau.

So, I didn’t find what I was looking for at Rona. Glad I checked it out. Now it was time to head to Réno-Dépot.
Retracing my treads, I rolled back onto the Ruisseau des Brasseries Pathway and headed North. If you come upon this incredible graffiti painted on an errant boulder, and you are still planning on going to Réno-Dépot, you’ve gone too far. You should have turned left over a small bridge a hundred yards back. I’ve made this mistake a few times.

BUT continue on a bit further before turning around and you will come to this underpass, one of the more worked over graffiti sites I’ve happened upon on the Quebec side.

Got to Réno-Dépot. No luck. I’ll have to visit the orange bib brigade this side of the river and see if they have what I’m after.

By the time I headed home the sun had sufficiently set for the lights on the Rue Montcalm bridge to start twinkling.

Théâtre de l’Île

Gatineau’s Théâtre de l’Île and the island on which it sits, just off the Ruisseau de la brasserie Pathway, are local treasures.

Yesterday morning I biked over to take care of a few details on a set I designed for a play called ‘Sous-sol à louer’ that opens on the 31st. This old stone bridge leads you onto the island.

bridge2 — View of stone bridge from the island

The 120 seat theatre is located in the Hull Water Works. Originally built in 1886, it was converted to its present use as a theatre in 1976.

The secluded grounds that extend behind the theatre are quite zen, especially in the spring with the sound of water gurgling by on either side.

This sculpture by Victor Tolgesy is located at the far end of the grounds.

This piece titled Sortie côté jardin was sculpted by Denis Charrette from a maple growing on the site. The tree was in bad shape and had to be cut down. The title of the piece is a play on words, côté jardin being the equivalent of the theatrical term ‘stage right’. The sculptor was inspired by a play written by Hedwige Herbiet, called La légende du Théâtre de l’Île.

It’s a great destination for a short ride, or a fine place to pause on a longer journey.

Carlingwood Mall via Crestview

Last Wednesday night I attended the Citizens For Safe Cycling AGM where Olivia Chow made a strong argument for truck sideguards. The keynote speaker Ralph Bueler presented loads of great facts and observations towards enhancing the presence of bicycling in urban communities. For example I learnt that the more bicyclists there are out there the safer it is for all of us. Strength in numbers. So here’s hoping that this blog encourages folks to travel and commute via pedal power, like those living in the neighbourhood of Crestview!

There were some streets in Crestview that I had yet to visit, so that’s where I headed Wednesday morning. The red line shows the route I followed to get there. The blue line is how I got home.

On the way there I biked through the Arboretum and along the canal which is in the process of being drained for the winter.

Hogs locks — Looking down the canal from the locks at Hogs Back

Here is a very accomplished mural located in General Burns Park I discovered en route.
UPDATE: Fall 2015 – Sadly the mural is no more. It’s been scraped down to a bare cinder block wall.

Crestview is a residential community with big old power lines cutting through north to south.

Consisting of mostly single detached dwellings, some of the houses date back to the mid 40’s. This one caught my eye. Even with recent vinyl siding, it has managed to maintain it’s mid-century modern look.

On the way back I stopped off at Value Village on the corner of Clyde and Baseline to find props for a play. The very kind woman at the cashier told me exactly where to find the one prop that was eluding me. “Carlingwood Mall! Just head down Clyde Avenue, which becomes Maitland, then turn up Carling and you’re there!”…… After thanking her I headed out to my bike and consulted my trusty map. Bicyclists unfortunately have to avoid Maitland and Carling if they can as they are filled with aggressive speeding cars. My map shows Clyde Avenue chopped in two just north of where I was. My instincts told me there must be a link accessible by bike that joins the two sections, so I decided to try my luck.

Clyde ends where it meets the Experimental Farm Pathway, however there is this little dirt trail that continues north, veering off to the right.

Making my way carefully along this muddy path I happened upon… an old ski tow?

The path opened onto a hill which must indeed have been a ski hill in the not too distant past.

I made my way down and joined the northern section of Clyde Avenue. Looking south at this vertical cliff, I came to understand why Clyde was chopped in two.

Wove my way through residential streets north of Carling to the Carlingwood Mall, found what I needed, and pedalled home along our majestic Ottawa River.

To market, to market, Ottawa side. Home again, home again, Gatineau ride!

Perfect Fall afternoon for a leisurely ride, so Carla and I set off for the Byward Market with panniers ready to be filled.

canal — Great view of the Rideau Canal locks looking up from the Ottawa River

Behind the National Gallery sits this wonderfully playful sculpture called Majestic, yet it’s playfulness shields gloomier origins. All of the lamp posts that have been combined to create this piece originally illuminated various streets of New Orleans but were blown over by Hurricane Katrina.

After locking our bikes in the market, we shopped! Our goal was to buy sausages at Nicastro’s, but we also wound up getting yummy brussel sprouts, beets, and pie pumpkins from some of the various market stalls, such as the one in the photo below. Carla designed the Byward Market graphic identity and it’s various environmental graphics applications as seen on the lamp post and the seasonal banners up above, as well as all the street signs throughout the market area.

If you require visiting the facilities while meandering through the Market Mall, you will need to go upstairs, which will afford you great views of this wonderful sculpture by Victor Tolgesy.

We biked across the Alexandra Bridge and headed home along the Gatineau Side. Check out theses amazingly red leaved bushes along the edge of the Museum of Civilization.

Carla was very smart to have packed a thermos of tea, which we paused to share at this spot along the river.

I love this sculpture by Phyllis Kurtz Fine that sits on the edge of the path before arriving at the Portage Bridge. It stands proud but isn’t overpowering. It’s smooth curve and elongated slits with rounded ends soften the rawness of the rusting steel it is made of. A play of contrasts.

steel — Commentary, by Phyllis Kurtz Fine

UPDATE: April 2014 – Because this route requires riding along the section of Murray Street between Mackenzie and Parent which can get pretty frantic with traffic rushing over the Alexandra Bridge, I often prefer riding up through Major’s Hill Park and locking my bike to the fence at the top of the stairs that lead down to the market, as described in this post.

Regina Lane Mural

Some local communities are having success in addressing crime and safety issues through the creation of public art murals initiated by the Pinecrest-Queensway Community Health Centre. One impressive work located down Regina Lane was unveiled in late September. House of PainT Festival of Urban Arts and Culture was involved. Yesterday morning I biked over and checked it out. Lots to take in. While in the area I also took the opportunity to cover a few yet-to-be-explored streets on the south side of Carling.

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Images of the mural in its early stages of creation can be found on this site.

And here is the completed work. I wound up having to shoot a bunch of pictures and splicing them together to create one cohesive image. Click on it a couple of times to zoom in and get a good view of the entire piece. I highly recommend heading over and taking a look.

On the way back I noticed that the channel of water just before the Mill restaurant has been emptied. At the bottom there is a smaller channel carved out of the rock, partially covered by old timbers which look like they’ve been there for a long time.

I believe this channel acts as a reservoir for No.2 Generating Station, which houses some of the oldest operating hydro-electric equipment in Canada.

I visited the station a couple of years ago during the annual Doors Open weekend in June and remember the phenomenal power of the water rushing through by the rotational velocity of the huge turbines and the very loud humming noise they create. This clip gives you an idea of what it looks like inside.

Prince of Wales Drive During the Day

I often bike along Prince of Wales Drive on my early morning and weekend rides as it’s a convenient route to areas south of Ottawa. It has wide shoulders most of the way and the traffic is light at those times. Yesterday I went for a ride at noon to cover some short streets off of Prince of Wales between Hog’s Back and Hunt Club Road. Here’s how it went.

The painting within the tympanum over the garage of this house just south of the Hog’s Back intersection always attracts my attention whenever I go by, so this time I paused to take a closer look.

Decorated tympanum — Not your typical tympanum

The angel appears to be receiving a violin lesson from an older man. The black wings could be interpreted as a symbol of imperfection as he attempts to master his instrument. The woman embracing the sleeping infant adds to a theme of nurturing.

The first side street I biked down was Rideau Heights Drive. This blunt channel letter sign communicates loud and clearly to travellers heading into town along Prince of Wales. UPDATE Dec.6 – Someone has since changed the sign to a poor shadow of it’s former glory! ‘sniff’

Down the road beyond a whole mess of big new houses is this small campsite with lots of camping trailers.

Not much of a view looking north from the campsite towards a fuel company’s truck parking lot, but they did have this great old steel wheeled model parked out by the street.

Continuing along Prince of Wales, I turned up Hunt Club Road to check out Laser Street and Grudwara Road. Nothing of visual interest to report here, unless you’re a fan of giant inflatable ATV’s.

Heading back into town I ventured down Wellsmere Crescent, Stephanie Ave and Rideau Shore Crescent hoping to catch a glimpse of the Rideau River, but the view is blocked by houses like these.

So, would I recommend riding along this section of Prince of Wales? Early in the morning yes, otherwise no. It is bike-able, thanks to the generous shoulders along most of the way, but the traffic is really aggressive during the day. Lots of trucks too. Prince of Wales and Hunt Club came fifth in the rating of most dangerous intersections in the city last year with 30 accidents. Hunt Club and Riverside just over the bridge was the runaway champ with a whopping 53! UPDATE: Jan 2017 – Still the worst intersection according to the latest statistics – 60 crashes in 2015. Prince of Wales & Hunt Club also tied for 5th once again, up from 0 to 36 crashes.

Heatherington Neighbourhood via Fabricland

There are a few streets in the Heatherington neighbourhood I still hadn’t travelled down, so that’s where I biked to on Saturday morning. But first I had to go to the theatre for a meeting, and then to Fabricland on Walkley Road to buy a whole lot of canvas.

The Heatherington neighbourhood has seen troubled times, such as this guns and ammo seizure in August. However I have always felt very safe biking through the neighbourhood.

A lot of the houses are similar to these ones on Heatherington Avenue.

There’s this sprawling electric transformer depot.

And there are these great murals covering all four sides of a small service building in the centre of Fairlea Park.

There have also been successful community based initiatives to deal with problems in the area.

On the way home I discovered an unmarked path leading through Pleasant Park Woods off of Rhodes Crescent.

There are alot of trails throughout these woods I didn’t know existed. Can’t wait to check them out.

Fieldwork art installations

OK, I’m cheating a bit on this post. Carla and I drove to the amazing Fieldwork art installations site over the weekend for their 5th year anniversary barn dance. HOWEVER I did bike there when we first visited the site earlier this summer. Here’s the route I took.

Now the reason I’m cheating is because this art phenomenon is worth breaking a few rules for.

The images below are just some of the installations presently on display throughout the field and adjacent woods. The photos don’t do the works justice, as these sculptures are very much influenced by the surrounding natural environment in which they are located, and how one discovers them while progressing through the varied landscape. Definitely worth a visit.