Two years in Toronto

With friends and family asking about the cultural life of Toronto, it’s easy to argue that the city deserves its international reputation as a metropolis for the arts. Sure, it lacks the tradition of London or the opulence of Milan, but artists from around the world are attracted to Toronto for its ambitious aspirations and sizeable budgets. With several leading venues in walking distance, and tickets often heavily discounted or even free, we’ve stumbled across Canadian sculpture, Russian ballet and Caribbean jazz in the last week alone – and we’re just getting started! On Saturday we headed to the Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, where the National Ballet of Canada offered Tchaikovsky’s The Sleeping Beauty . Hailed as “a signature work”, this was the piece that made the company’s name in the 1970s – with the first tour culminating in acclaimed appearances at the Met – and it remains a staple of the repertoire. A cheap tickets scheme for the under 30s and a large

Street murals, six-floor galleries, vintage clothes and stylised tattoos – Toronto and its residents are covered in artwork! Arriving in Toronto has given us the chance to get involved in this creative community – perhaps not with tattoos – but the Toronto School of Art, the Art Gallery of Ontario and even St James’ Cathedral have given us opportunities to see and be part of this expressive city. My first opportunity to get involved arose from an evening drawing class held at the Toronto School of Art (the TSA). With the title `Perspective Drawing`, this ten-week series uses graphite and charcoal to explore one-, two- and three-point perspective, taking inspiration from the surrounding city, subway stations and even a life model. But before class can begin, students need to gather a shopping list of creative supplies. Set-square, check. Cartridge paper, check. Col-erase pencils, check. Ruler, sketchbook, protractor, charcoal pencil, putty rubber and bulldog clips, check! To p