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Jason Allies Photographs at Danforth East Arts Fair

Photographer Jason Allies had never participated in an art sale or exhibit before last year’s Danforth East Arts Fair. He gathered his courage, printed umpteen copies of his vivid photographs, rented a tent and hoped for the best.

Within hours, he had sold out of several of his scenes of Toronto, including an iconic photograph of a red streetcar, one of which was purchased by ward 31 Councillor Janet Davis. Now, here’s the good news: he is back at this year’s arts fair, so you will have another chance to buy his work.

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Allies, who recently moved to Toronto’s east end from western Alberta, approaches the city with a fresh eye, seeing the Toronto we all take for granted in a refreshing light.

“I tend to focus on the world around me as a subject and the city of Toronto being new to me provides many opportunities,” says the photographer, whose day job is creating graphics for a television channel. “I’ve learned over the years that plenty of patience is required to capture certain subjects. There is nothing like being in the right place at the right time to capture something special that is once in a lifetime.”

In Allies’ photographs, a mess of wires above a busy intersection criscross at perfect angles to play off the gray clouds moving in. Through his lens, the suicide barrier enclosing the Bloor Viaduct becomes an object of beauty, rather than scorn. Another scene captured at just the right vantage point shows the hidden, back-alley houses of Kensington Market that most people miss as they wander by.

Since his debut at East Lynn Park, Allies, 35, has enjoyed a successful career. True Brew Café displayed his photographs for months. Not long after, BlogTO featured his shot of Gerard and Broadview as a photograph of the week. And even now, people are contacting him for prints of that iconic streetcar, which just might become his calling card.

Allies’ photographs, which range in price from small $10 prints to $200 for larger, framed versions, will be for sale at the Danforth East Arts Fair in East Lynn Park on Sept. 18 and 19. For more information, visit www.deca-arts.ca or on facebook.

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Grade Eh Design

In the second in our series of artist profiles leading up the Danforth East Arts Fair, writer Gillian Grace introduces us to Sara Deacon of Grade Eh Design.

As a kid, Sara Deacon loved her first time away at camp so much she stayed on for another session. Now, the Danforth East local has left a successful career in marketing to start a housewares company based on wilderness motifs called Grade Eh Design.

Grade Eh Design is Canadian in more than just its name.  As a country, Canada is now made up of mostly city dwellers, but our most-loved design icons — from the Cowichan sweater to the Roots beaver — have always been outdoorsy. So, too, are Deacon’s designs.

Working with organic cotton, vintage textiles and eco-friendly felt, Deacon creates handmade place mats, pillows, tea towels, aprons and wall art with appliquéd felt icons, including Castor canadensis moose antlers and maple leaves. And because a sense of humour is just as Canadian as a way with a paddle, Grade Eh incorporates such north-of-the-forty-ninth-parallel stereotypes as “eh?” and “hoser” into its designs.

Deacon still heads for the woods when she can, regularly canoeing and hiking with her husband and dogs. While at home, she spends most of her time at the sewing machine (a cottage industry in influence and practice, all Grade Eh Design’s products are made in her house).

The true test of Grade Eh’s success? Deacon’s goods are low-key, yet still pack a graphic punch, and, like all good Canadians, are at home in settings both rustic and urbane. Pick up some of Deacon’s cushions or tea towels to brighten up the cottage, or stow them away as gifts for the next dinner party or housewarming you attend.

Deacon’s wares, which range in price from $7 to $45, will be for sale at the Danforth East Arts Fair in East Lynn Park on Sept. 18 & 19, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, visit www.deca-arts.ca

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Kate B Textile Designs

The Danforth East Arts Fair is coming soon to a park near you on September 18th and 19th.  In the coming weeks, we’ll be telling you about a few of the artists you’ll find there.  First up, a profile of Kate Busby, by writer Gillian Grace.

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Kate B Textile Designs

Duvets have had a long and fluffy reign on our beds, but a growing love of all things fresh, local and hand-crafted means blankets and quilts are returning to our mattresses.  Kate B. Textile Designs (the “B” stands for Busby) creates “modern-day heirlooms” reworking vintage blankets, washing, rebinding and adding fabric appliqué to create a unique blanket-quilt hybrid.

Many of the textiles Busby uses are hand-printed or hand-dyed; her pieces reference quilting tradition — a fence rail here, a house there — while adding modern texture and fabric. Busby, who lives in the east end, first became interested in quilting while completing a fine arts degree at U of T.  Also a grad of Sheridan’s Crafts and Design program, she was a featured artist at the Textile Museum of Canada’s shop and is one of the founding members of Toronto’s Contemporary Textile Studio Co-Operative, a collective of fabric artists working out of the 401 Richmond building.

“I think we become connected to the fabrics in our life — be it the satin edge of a baby blanket, or the embroidered stitches on a smocked dress, or even the familiar weight of a bedspread. Textiles have a great way of absorbing and relaying memories,” Busby says.

Look, too, for her modish hand-silkscreened tea towels, and gingham napkins playfully appliquéd with vintage fabrics (you can get a preview on her website).  And give those duvets (and dingy tea towels) some competition.

Kate B.’s wares, which range in price from $20 to $550, will be for sale at the Danforth East Arts Fair in East Lynn Park on Sept. 18 & 19, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

For information about other artists and details about the fair, visit www.deca-arts.ca