Ulli is staying with us here on Beach Hill for a few days, so we are dragging her around to some favourite places. An attempted visit to the Ydessa Hendeles gallery was a bust because it was closed for installations, so we walked Queen Street West instead.
The Drake Hotel Café served us lattés and scones and let us wander around to look at the art pieces on display in public areas of the hotel. The sculpture of the bald guy is over a stairway: Evan Penny, BACK OF KELLY, V.2, 2005, silicone, pigment, hair. Donna and Ulli sat in Liang Yue’s The Quiet Room and watched 3 screens of video.
Seeing The Gladstone…
The Gladstone is a public art gallery as well as a functioning hotel. Everyone is welcome to enjoy the original art that is displayed in the public hallways and lounge areas and there are 4 floors to explore. Displays change constantly and the building itself has been preserved to a large degree. Very warm and friendly. Look at the height of those baseboards on the staircase! The elevator…vintage 1907… continues to serve.
TVO has a great documentary about the transition of the Gladstone, from a low income rooming house to the hotel it is today. You can watch it here.