Toronto is a true city and along with that comes the flavour of urban life. Sometimes that means street food or block parties and sometimes it means art.
It’s easy to find street art in Toronto and many people will make their way to Graffiti Alley tucked behind Queen St W, but there’s one neighbourhood that offers an urban gallery all its own, Little Portugal.
I recently took an artist-led street art tour of this neighbourhood and even as a local, I was bowled over by what I learned and the art I saw. So let’s get into what to expect from this area and tour, and why I think you should take it.
Artist-Led Street Art Tour
I took this fantastic street art tour of Little Portugal. We explored a vibrant neighbourhood, guided by a local street artist as we learned about street culture, art creation, and viewed some incredible art.
Little Portugal: An Urban Art Haven
Little Portugal is located west of downtown with the main popular areas lying along College St and Dundas St. This area, popular with Torontonians, is known for great vintage shopping, cool hole-in-the-wall cocktail bars, and some excellent local restaurants.
It also happens to be home to a large concentration of Portuguese people and their influence makes it really easy to tell when you’ve entered Little Portugal.
Portuguese and Brazilian restaurants, shops, and cafes dot the neighbourhood but the influence runs deeper than that. You’ll see Portuguese writing on everything from street signs to banks and hear people speaking Portuguese as you wander and explore.
You’ll also find art and murals throughout this area that reflect the culture and way of life, including works by some internationally renowned Portuguese artists making this the perfect venue for a street art exploration.
Toronto’s First Artist-Led Street Art Tour
They say that those who can’t do, teach. But on this tour that’s not true! As I hopped off the 505 streetcar at Dundas and Gladstone I spotted a small pocket of people sipping cold brews on the corner outside Loveless Cafe and thought this must be my tour group.
Right on time, our guide Chloe strolled out of the cafe, coffee in hand and after a quick introduction to her and each other, we headed off on our street art tour.
Chloe is an artist and street artist herself. She studied art and even works in a gallery on top of making art so we couldn’t have had a better guide to lead us into the street art world.
The first three stops on the tour were close to the starting point and really set the tone for what we could expect from the next two hours.
The first stop was a large folk art mural, a nod to Portuguese culture and an opportunity for Chloe to introduce us to the history of the neighbourhood. Understanding the cultural roots of Little Portugal makes it easier to appreciate this neighbourhood and the art it inspires.
Just a few steps further was the second stop, a gorgeous sculptural piece by one of my all-time favourite street artists, Bordalo II.
Bordalo II is a well known Portuguese street artist who blends murals and sculpture to create really inventive and eye-catching works, usually of animals, using trash and random objects.
I’ve tracked down many of his works in Lisbon so getting to see a piece in my home city was a real treat. Until this tour I didn’t even know we had a Bordalo II in Toronto but as it happens, he was commissioned to create something by the Little Portugal business association and he picked the eastern cottontail rabbit.
Chloe used this opportunity to talk to us about the crossover of street art into commissioned art and how complex a subject that can be in the street art world.
Talking about the higher end professional level of this type of art was the perfect precursor to our third stop.
As we headed back along Dundas St, Chloe stopped at a brick pillar, part of a porch of someone’s house. At first, I really didn’t see any art here but it didn’t take long for her to prove me wrong.
We’d just learned about the lucrative business of commissioned art and now we were staring at what looked like a bunch of white scribbles. This is when Chloe’s knowledge and expertise really started to shine through.
Where we saw a mess, she saw a community. As she explained the practice of tagging and the unwritten rules around respect (and disrespect) in the street art world, she casually identified specific artists, telling us about where they come from and what they’re known for.
She also was able to easily identify their mediums of choice, pointing out the difference between the likes of chalk paint and oil stick. I was starting to realize that there is so much more to street art than I’d thought.
Over the next 2 hours or so we charted our way through alleyways, parking lots, and back streets discussing and learning about a variety of street art by local artists, international artists, and even a piece by Chloe herself.
I’ve done a lot of tours in my life and I’m a big fan of street art, but what made this tour a winner was the insider knowledge that only an artist can share.
I left this tour feeling like I not only knew Little Portugal better, but that I now understood art better and saw it for more than just pretty pictures.
The Practical Stuff
So now you know I had a fantastic experience on this street art tour but you probably have some questions. Here’s some of the practical information to help you prepare for the tour and understand what to expect.
Who Is This Tour For?
This tour is ideal for anyone who has an interest in street art and wants to explore a vibrant neighbourhood tourists rarely visit. While children are welcome, this is an art tour which may not be stimulating for younger kids.
Joining & Leaving The Tour
The tour meeting point is Loveless Cafe & Bar which is easily accessible by taxi, uber, or the 505 streetcar with the stop closest to the meeting point is Dundas St W at Gladstone and the endpoint is Dundas St W at Lansdowne.
The tour guide will be able to help you with directions to wherever you’re headed if you need a little guidance. At the end of the tour you’ll also be given a little info sheet on cool restaurants, bars, and shops you may want to check out.
What To Expect
This tour runs for approximately two hours and the total walk is just over 2.5kms with lots of stopping. The ground is mostly level but you will step up and down curbs, and walk through parking areas and alleyways.
The tour is led by a local street artist and while they will share lots of information, don’t be shy! Asking questions, chatting, and sharing observations is encouraged.
The tour makes one bathroom stop at a Brazilian cafe where you also have time to grab a coffee (I highly recommend the Brockton Iced Cap) or cold drink.
What To Bring
This tour runs rain or shine and in Toronto it can get really, really hot in the summer and really, really cold in the winter so definitely dress for the weather. Here are a few things you should bring to make the most of your tour:
Preparing For A Summer Tour
If you’re taking the tour in winter you’ll want to bring everything in the list above, plus a few winter-specific items.
Please remember this is Canada and if you’re going to be outside in winter, you need to dress appropriately.
Preparing For A Winter Tour
The Bottom Line
If you’ve been following along you’ll know that at Truly Toronto we believe the best parts of the city are the parts away from the tourist trail and this tour delivers on that in spades.
Set to the backdrop of the vibrant Little Portugal neighbourhood, this tour hits two birds with one stone: exploring a very cool part of the city most tourists don’t visit and exploring the thriving street art scene of Toronto.
If you have an interest in either of these things, you’re sure to have a fantastic time on this tour.
