28-30 August 2009

A site-specific sound installation remembering the history of Sunnyside Bathing Pavilion and its surroundings. Inspired by erased historical fragments, the ghost-like presence of the installation evoked traces of the past, a response to the site at once nostalgic and uncanny. The installation focused on the lively 1920s and 30s era of the beach pavilion, as well as its subsequent abandonment.

Striped beach changing room cabana iconography was used to create a landscape evocative of a time gone by, when there once existed a lively amusement park at Sunnyside, to be demolished later through fire and construction of the Gardiner Expressway in the 1950s. Burned miniature cabanas swayed off a rickety carousel structure in the East Tower while eerie sounds of children's laughter, merry-go-round music and 1950s car commercials filled the air. Fragments of a single deconstructed cabana were found throughout the site like scattered debris , sound emerging from within. Repetition and changes in scale explored the idea of an impossible space.

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Location: Sunnyside Bathing Pavilion, Toronto

Part of Sunnyside Beach Juried Art Show & Sale

Collaborator: Ania Gorka

Materials: striped fabric, bamboo, elastics, wood, mp3 players w/ mini speakers

28-30 May 2010