‘BLOOD, WATER & BATHURST STREET’ (BW&B) is a participatory, textile-based mapping project by Naomi Daryn Boyd that explores the histories, communities, and journeys that have shaped these lands.  Encompassed within an 18-metre-long wool scroll, stories, experiences, and land-based knowledge are translated and brought into conversation through materials. Experimenting with a wide variety of textile handicraft techniques and processes, primarily in wool and found natural materials, ‘BW&B’ is a site for ongoing material experiments and dialogue, growing with each new addition from the public.

The map surveys Bathurst Street and its geographic surroundings, from the current shoreline of Niigani-Gichigami (Lake Ontario) up to Steeles Avenue (the City of Toronto’s northern boundary). At a scale of 1:1000, where 1 metre of fabric represents 1 kilometre of land, it offers a highly focused and tactile reading of an often underappreciated swath of this vast metropolis. ‘BW&B’ is unequal parts family tree, topographic exploration, material research, and—with growing contributions from visitors—community-sourced historical document.

First exhibited in March 2023, the map returns to the public with ‘Chapter Two: Shorelines to Shorelines’. Located at the intersection of Front and Bathurst Street, Stackt Market is a significant site in relation to the map itself, nestled among railway lines, Fort York and Garrison Common and, of course, the ever shifting shorelines of what we now know as Lake Ontario. All visitors are welcome to contribute their own stories, experiences, and perspectives to this collective project.

–––

‘BLOOD, WATER & BATHURST STREET’ is one of 12+ projects at STACKT Market for the 2024 DesignTO Festival. Celebrate these projects with a free, site-wide party on Sat, Jan 20 from 6-10:30pm. Visit ‘Design Collection Opening Party @ STACKT’ to learn more.