Haydain Neale, 1970–2009
Transit City and Transit Cities
Peeve Patrol
Newsstand: November 23, 2009
The Making of a Medley
Looking north on Spadina Road at Lonsdale Road. Top: 1929, City of Toronto Archives, Fonds 207, Item 56. Bottom: 2009, Jeff Low.
Even though he denies it, Jeff Low is providing Toronto with a valuable service. In his spare time, Low (or "Mustapha" as he's better known online) recreates vintage photos from the Toronto Archives and then posts the then and now photos at Urban Toronto (a popular Toronto design and architecture forum). Low isn’t the first to recreate Toronto’s vintage photos, or even the best, but his collection is the city’s largest, and since starting in April 2008, he estimates that he’s recreated more than a thousand photos. "Urban Toronto inspired me," Low told Torontoist. "There was already some of that going on on a spotty basis—I decided to make a regularity of it."
Low’s technique is simple: he prints a picture from the archives and then uses it to orient his shot. For the most part, this method has worked. However, extensive redevelopment in some areas of the city has made certain photos tricky or impossible to reproduce. "Some of Toronto’s downtown has been so totally wiped out that there are no landmarks," explained Low. "You have an old building, and you have a street, but sometimes things don’t jive, so I don’t post the picture." So far, he has only been using images from the Toronto Archives' digital collection, but he hopes to branch out and tackle new archives or maybe even people’s personal photo collections. "At some point, the low hanging fruit are going to disappear, and I’ll have to find other sources."
Low’s work has not gone unnoticed. His thread at Urban Toronto is a big hit, and he told us that he’s received word that people in the mayor's office are constantly checking out his photos. But Low's not out for recognition or to perform some great public service. "I do it for my own amusement," concluded Low. "I’m a history buff. All these old buildings that got torn down—for good or bad reasons—it’s a shame they’re gone...You look at some of these old buildings and they bring out memories of times spent there. It’s worthwhile to think about them again."
Jeff Low’s full "Then and Now" photo collection is available at Urban Toronto.
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It's really nice to see how Toronto used to look. Maybe it's just me, but the city seemed to have more character back then. Even with all the signage, it somehow seemed less "corporate". Thanks for the images!
It still has as much character. But it's not longer a blue collar sort of character.
The men's suits back in 1913 were so amazing. That guy looks badass.
I love these!
I know I'm being a curmudgeon but it's really sad to see all these gorgeous buildings just wiped out. How much nicer would the street look today if they were still there with their awnings, rather than all that anonymous plastic and glass rubbish.
You just don't see awnings anymore, outside of a few fruit&veg markets.
Hmm, I wonder if it could work even better if the modern pics were black & white?
Still a cool project and fun to compare the views!
Thanks for this! Some good city love, just when needed.
Don't get me started on awnings. They were a merchant's
cooling system in the hot weather and instant shelter for pedestrians during a cloudburst. When more businesses started to air condition, the need for awnings decreased and they came into disuse.
Then, of course, the individual store signs that hung out over the sidewalk and were illuminated by incandescent lights for a gentle warm glow.
These newish fluorescent panels and no awnings contribute to the undoing of Main Street, Canada.
It really is time to revisit the signage and lighting regulations for street level businesses and help bring some individuality back to the merchants store fronts.
and.... good feeling gone.
Thanks Stephen, it was my pleasure to speak with you for the article.
The detailed Torontoist articles about Toronto's history are something else. Informative and romantic. I can only hope to mimic the best in a very small way. :)
Jeff
Great pictures!
It must be tricky to figure out the type of lens used. I see some photos have been distorted to take out the vertical perspective, note how some hydro poles are parallel instead of converging.
These are great.
Pairing a new picture with an old picture makes the old pictures so much easier to appreciate. Every time Jeff Low makes one of his pictures he gives the picture it is based on new life.
I hope there are lots of people doing this sort of thing all over the world.
Bonus collection.
A series of photos comparing Toronto in 1977 to 2007.
thanks for this, I really loved it.