The Parkdale Residents Association in conjunction with Gallery 1313, is pleased to announce the PRETTY VACANT SPOTLIGHT event.
OPENING: Wednesday, November 4th, 2026. 6 PM to 8 PM. The exhibition continues until December 6th.
WHERE: Window Box Gallery, Courtyard. 1313 Queen Street West, Toronto
EVENT: Parkale Arts Walk, Saturday Nov 7th 2:00 PM starting at Gallery 1313
Featured artist Gary MacLeod’s neon work “OPEN/ NOPE HEARTS” will be exhibited in 1313’s courtyard WINDOW BOX GALLERY.
Inspired by text and signage, Gary MacLeod’s heart-shaped window signs reflect the tenuous state many businesses face. By alternately flashing the words “open” and “nope,” they draw attention to both redevelopment pressures and the ever-changing economic uncertainty among the buying public, while the heart shape prompts viewers to consider their connection to community.
Gary MacLeod creates outdoor-situated images that surprise and engage an unsuspecting public. These works, both sanctioned and unsanctioned, convincingly mimic the forms of street signs, commercial signage, and advertising. Gary uses wordplay and repetition to make unremarkable urban markers exciting and thought-provoking, while the neon material acts to remind us of how things used to be.
PRETTY VACANT SPOTLIGHT FALL ARTS WALK
Think you know Parkdale? We invite you to journey through what’s been, what’s coming, and the artists who materialize the magic of this community. The Parkdale Arts Walk is a guided neighbourhood walk exploring the artists, galleries, studios, and public art that shape Parkdale’s creative life. Beginning at Gallery 1313, featured artist Gary MacLeod will discuss his work before the group moves west along Queen Street. The walk pauses at key sites to highlight artworks, artist spaces, and stories that reveal the neighbourhood’s rich cultural history and its evolving creative community.
PRETTY VACANT EXHIBITION – Spring 2027
The Parkdale neighbourhood, known for its affordable live-work spaces and strong artistic presence, is navigating rapid redevelopment that threatens the very fabric of its creative identity. In response, the PRETTY VACANT exhibition will launch in May 2027, re-energizing empty storefronts and underused spaces as temporary public art venues.
Participating artists will explore the pressures of neighbourhood change, transforming vacant spaces into sites of community expression, memory, and resistance. Their artworks will act as both offerings and disruptions in our rapidly changing city.
Funded by the City of Toronto and Toronto Arts Council