Paying Attention -- and the Surprise of Discovery

Over my years of walking, both in urban and wild areas, I've learned about paying attention. Many of the photos that I post in these blogs are taken when I slow down, and really take notice. It's when I look at the landscape closely, that I might discover subtle features that may not be overt and obvious.

I recently heard someone say that when we pay attention, we feel connected. They may have been talking about paying attention to another person, but it also applies to the landscape we walk through. I like this observation; we all crave connection. Perhaps slowing down has many side benefits!

Here are a few examples of hidden art, or artistic perspectives, that I've discovered when I slow down and pay attention:

The orca on the roof is one of a number of painted orcas that can be found around Victoria, from an arts project a few years ago. This one on roof, however, is not easy to notice -- especially if a person is engrossed in conversation! The location is the 5th Street Bar and Grill.

A window display is easier to notice than an orca on a roof -- unless it's on a hidden side street! This one is in the window of March Restaurant, downtown on Langley Street.

Uptown Mall has many hidden details tucked on walls, or high up, out of the general view of the passer-by (such as this frieze!).

Uptown has used repetition of geometric elements throughout its development. I appreciate that the mall developers went to some effort to go "above and beyond" what might otherwise have been a utilitarian commercial mall. This geometric pattern is only seen up close by people on the escalator between levels.

Another geometric element hidden high on a wall at Uptown.

Sometimes we may discover something that is in plain sight, but we don't notice it, in our haste to get to our destination. Here are a couple of examples.

One final image from Uptown. Though this sculpted face is at eye level, it's easy to whiz by and not notice it.

While the eye might be drawn to the words advertising the noodles on offer, I enjoyed the decorative floral motif surrounding the writing.

This bold window display, with its primary colours of red, yellow and blue, is hard to miss. But, a passerby might not take the time to stop and absorb the imaginative geometric design, and the intricate details reminiscent of careful embroidery art.

Here is one more window display on a busy Fort Street print shop. It's a high impact storefront, also one that is hard to miss. It's fun and vibrant, with strong colours and a bold design. But it requires a pause to stop and take in the curvilinear design. Hopefully others besides me appreciate the cheerful contribution to the streetscape.

Moving from colour to more muted discoveries, here are a few that I've noted.

A hidden detail in the Lebanese Emigration Plaza, honouring the role played by Lebanese immigrants in Canada. The plaza was a gift to the citizens of Victoria by the Lebanese community, "in appreciation of their (ie the citizens') hospitality, friendship, and inclusivity". A person has to stop and really slow down to notice details like this.

A cemetery invites us to slow down. This detail is from a weathered gravestone at Ross Bay Cemetery.

This frieze looks like it could also be from a cemetery. In this case, though, it's detail from a sculpture near the Rose Garden at Beacon Hill Park.

A simple but elegant design on a hidden window on Wharf Street.

One of several unique stepping stones at the Beacon Hill Park "Watering Can". I loved the subtle artwork. Somebody went to a lot of work to make this out-of-the-way design, along with the unique designs of each of the other stepping stones.

While walking past the Parkside Hotel a few weeks ago, I noticed the curvilinear glass front, and how it reflected.

Artistic shadows, and reflections, at the Parkside Hotel.

Details from another walk-by, this time, the Glenshiel Seniors Residence.

Detail from the brick wall of the Glenshiel, Victoria. Built in the early years of the last century as a luxury hotel, the building is now a seniors' residence. I was intrigued at these deformed bricks sticking out in random places on the wall. After googling, I believe they are "clinker" bricks. These are over-fired, misshapen bricks, and were used in the early 20th century to provide decorative features. 

Wider view of the brick wall at the Glenshiel. The extruding bricks are probably clinker bricks, so named because they produced a metallic "clink" when banged together, due to their density, produced at firing at intense heat.

The photo below is of sidewalk directly adjacent to a building. Not too many people would walk over these designs...or perhaps, even notice them!

Sidewalk inlay outside the BC Liquor store in James Bay.

And here's another example of something that was directly beneath my feet:

I was deep in thought when I encountered this little scene, in the grounds of St. Ann's Academy. I walked right by, and then, my sub-conscious processed what I had just seen. So I turned around to investigate. The debris was beneath a Giant Sequoia; was I looking at debris from a raptor? I welcome reader comments.

 This is a great out of the way mural:

This mural is outside the Fawcett Mattress store. (These mattresses are made locally!) I loved the play with the word "dreaming", and the way a mattress might appear in a dream! The artist had to have been a surfer.

Intricate window art, Good Earth cafe, downtown. This isn't obvious unless the passer-by walks through this space to enter the Bay Centre.

And this art is really hidden! It's at the coffee shop at Whole Foods, under the counter.

I will finish this tour of hidden art waiting to be discovered with three images from nature, and the amazing art that a flower shows.

Evening light on the head of a cow parsnip plant illuminates the detail of each individual flower.

Detail from a rhododendron

The foxglove design hides from human view... a person has to bend down low, and look up, to see the attractive markings on the inside. Note: Foxgloves are highly toxic!

There is much wonder waiting for us to be surprised! May you enjoy your own walk-abouts.

Portals and Thresholds

As January comes to a close, I think about portals and thresholds. The name "January" is derived from the Roman god Janus, who presided over doors and beginnings.

When the year began, new "beginnings" was a theme. Out with the old, in with the new. But a portal is an opening, from one space to another, a transition. What are we leaving behind, what are we moving into? 

To help inspire our reflection, I've collated some images of portals. There are many wonderful examples in Victoria. Doorways that have grace, or colour, or express an invitation to move through them. Doorways that have humour or flair. Elegant doorways. Colourful ones. 

This arched doorway with its recess invites me in. Built in 1938, this building on Burdett Avenue has undergone extensive renovations. This is the office of a law firm; the doorway speaks to solidity and elegance.

This is another recessed doorway, also in downtown Victoria. Note the slight arch at the top, which softens horizontal lines, and is repeated in the window beside it.

Grounds of Government House. This doorway, with its unique arch, feels like a transition... I am invited to go through, to the other side.

Douglas Building, corner of Government Street and Superior Street. This is an incredible doorway, lined with a massive amount of marble. The art deco building was built 1949 to 1951, specifically to house government offices. With such an ornate doorway, the building architect has suggested that significant activity takes place within.

Another doorway that makes a statement -- Christ Church Cathedral. The five pointed rose window above the door is significant in Christian traditions.

From the massive doorways of institutional buildings, let's turn to more casual examples.

A gate is a portal, transitioning from roadway to yard. I liked the character of this one on Battery Street, with its beautiful delicately-wrought tree.

A simple gate to an intimate sitting area, Ashcroft House, Batter Street.

This intricate James Bay doorway makes a statement through its choice of colour.

Another intricate James Bay doorway, opening into an enclosed vestibule.

Many of the buildings in James Bay, being older, were built with long sets of steps to access them. Note the five mailboxes in the vestibule of this building.  Planners use the term "house-plex" to describe this multi-unit strucutre. This attractive entrance may help offset any intimidation created by the long set of steps.

Estevan Ave., Oak Bay. An inviting doorway angled across the building corner. I am not sure what material the hanging decorative balls are made of, though I'm sure it's a natural fibre. 

A uniquely decorated doorway on Broad Street. 

I opened this post with an image of an arched doorway of a building on Burdett Street. Here are a few more arched portals.

Detail of the Rithet building interior on Wharf Street. The circular form on the left is an old well, discovered when the building was renovated. Originallly this was a one storey building built in the 1860s; the well was the only water source for the "Commercial Row" area, until a pipe was built to pipe water from Elk Lake.

Another detail of the interior of the Rithet Building with the arched doorway.

Arched doorways have grace, and are a stable architectural form. This gigantic flag was placed over the main entrance of the Legislature shortly after the threat from south of the border that Canada become the 51st state.

I like this repeating set of archways. This is Helmcken Alley, connecting Bastion Square with  Langlely Street. Some of these buildings date back to the 1880s and 1890s. This represents a more visceral part of Victoria's past;; prisoners were transported through this narrow alley which connected the jail to the courthouse and gallows. Some say the area is haunted.

The choice of green paint to complement the red brick has made this doorway interesting, along with the bug images.

The arched entrance of the old Carnegie library, now the Indigenous Justice Centre on Yates Street. I posted about Carnegie and his impact in 2020. See  https://linesfromthecoast.blogspot.com/2020/07/an-american-philanthropist-in.html

The back of the BC Legislature. I enjoy the south-facing back of the Legislature more than the much-photographed front, featured earlier in this post. Besides these impressive doors, the back of the Legislature has the beautiful Centennial fountain, one of my favourites of the city. For a photo of that fountain, check out https://linesfromthecoast.blogspot.com/2022/02/oh-fountains.html

Doorway to "Bard and Banker" pub. The "bard" was Robert Service, who worked in the bank formerly located here for a year. And the reference to "banker" is the building's long-standing role as a bank (until 2008).

Before finishing this post I'll include a few doorways that impress in a more casual way.

Here's a portal that promises an entry into the world of imagination. Shenanigans Bookstore in the Cook Street Village.

The invitation of an open doorway festooned with flowers on either side. Who couldn't resist going into this store?

The iron arched entrance for this patio off an end unit of the Redstone, on Parry Street. Originally a garage built in 1918, the building has been converted to residences. Coupled with the two pillars, this gate makes a strong statement of transition from the sidewalk to the private patio space.

This entrance makes a statement, between the rainbow gate and the honour-system kiosk for selling produce from this urban farm in James Bay, to the prayer flags and the old-fashioned hollyhocks.

This entryway is intricate and detailed in its finishing.

And to close ... a portal to another world... One of the fairy gardens on Pilot Street.

To finish this quick look at some Victoria portals I'll quote from John O'Donohue's book "To Bless the Space Between Us". A threshold is not a simple boundary; it is a frontier that divides two different territories, rhythms and atmospheres. Some portals and thresholds have that kind of deep significance, and the kind of doors we build can pay homage to that significance.