Speed Dreaming Notes

Speed Dreaming I - Exploring the Visual Elements of The TTC + Bringing The Outside In


Underground flipbooks, an idea for giving the tunnels an experience beyond damp and dark. There is already some level of plan for advertisers to do this on the TTC subway system. The idea is to place images along the subway tunnels that animate in a flip-book style as the rider moves past them.

Experience of coming out of the tunnel onto the bridge above the don river, 'wow there's a real world out here', kids love it.

Someone mentioned an artist (germany?) who did flipbook effect in tunnels depicting fish and tree roots (fits with bringing outside in concept). This seems to be the guy and the art is actually projected from the moving subway car onto the tunnel walls.

Idea for specific streetcars, that act a constant moving galleries

Concept of requiring creative standards for advertisers, as a compromise between accepting advertising on the TTC but wanting a more visually pleasing environment.

Suggestion for sponsorship of 'art' to replace advertising with visualy interesting stuff, while retaining the commercial aspect.

Onestop Media Group (the firm installed the new subway platform screens) are open to community approaches for showing different stuff on the screens, according to the OMG staff person who was in the room.

flickr photos suggested as a onestop source of material that is locally relevant to show on the screens. [note: by using Creative Commons licensed pictures they wouldn't even neccesarily have to contact the photographers, though that would be nice.]

Julia suggests an advertiser supported contest for artists. Union station has musicians on a rotating basis, could artists have a similar access. Apparently this happened in New York Grand Central Station with local art schools getting gallery space.


The project Yugo Next where art school students turned donated Yugo cars into sculptures was displayed at Grand Central in NYC. The students took the cars part and reassembled as: diner, fireplace, shower and tub etc...

TTC staff member said that the architects within the engineering department manage the art in the stations stuff. People in the room who have tried to contact TTC staff to get things done around art in the TTC, without much success.

Saul Colt has experience about buying space for ads on the TTC. Would it be an option to fill art in the 'remainder' spaces, eg movie ads that are running weeks after it closed because no one has bought that space.

Have subway stations being more representative of the neighbourhoods where they exist, e.g. Museum and Osgoode exist in physical places that have a particular character, the stations could reflect that.

The Leslie and Sheppard hand written tiles are very cool. Apparently each tile is unique and was written by a local person.

Comment about station design, that they have awful colour combinations (terrible blue meets ugly yellow). Refresh the colours for an interesting environment.

Discussion around tiles, problems would be huge costs and they have a 30 year lifespan so it whatever you put in has to be 'timeless'.

Online resources for the history of the subway systems design and tiles: www.poslfit.com/jbb/Pages/subway-tiles.html

Idea to do spacing buttons style stuff outside the TTC structures, to demo that this stuff works and is interesting.

Matt B idea for a poster competition, themed by location or subway/streetcar/bus and offer a gallery show and/or book of the best.

This builds support but can be organised without huge TTC input. Competition theme thoughts, seasonal (streetcars in summer).


Idea to design the metropass through a competition. Possibility of selecting your metropass design, like you can with credit cards or phone cards for personalisation - issues with visual inspection for drivers, needs to be quickly recognisable as a valid Metropass.

TTC calendar, that the imagery fits with other stuff that's going on with the 'art' on the TTC that month.

Space for art, the Spadina station tunnel. Use it for an installation, actually becomes a destination rather than a crazy long tunnel.

TTC has a lot of photos in the archives which are available as a resource, TTC is already considering using these.

Alice, Head of TTC marketing, wants to hear about the kind of stuff we're talking about today. An informal proposal is the way to approach her. The route through the TTC organisation of ideas depends on various criteria, but she can route appropriately.

Toronto arts Council might be a relevant group for getting this stuff to happen.

Musicians program is handled by TTC Marketing, Alice recognises a similar model with outside expertise to do this for art might work.

Idea for a poster-worth of space as a corkboard for a take-a-picture leave-a-picture idea. Some sort of submission process might be needed, to avoid the 'wrong' stuff.

Eli - how can communities of individuals be created on the streetcar. Perhaps a book exchange system at specific stations. See bookcrossing.com. An interesting alternative to the Metro free rag newspaper.

Idea for an art in motion party, where people actually create on the TTC.

More kids involvement with the TTC's art, Inner City Angels could be a good tie-in. Gets the idea of transit out to kids so they feel involved with the system.


Matt B: includes kids/young adults in TTC gallery.

Eli: there are multiple communities that are relevant, where do the drivers hang out. Would a TTC -related photo show in the TTC drivers lunchroom be good, to spread the word on the enthusiasm for the system. Staff feeding back their stories.

Idea to give digital cameras for a week to drivers, so they can document and share their experience and their is a feedback loop between transit-fans and transit-staff. There are some amazing streetcar characters, that could use another outlet (think of the subway drivers who do the super humurous/dramatic annoucements).

Are there TTC drivers who blog? There should be.

Doing this stuff, especially party/intervention stuff, it's important to be aware that some people don't want it, they just want to get on with going to work or whatever.

Recorded announcements for subway stops will replace the human announcements, to much dissapointment in the room.

Could we have a really great, enthusiastic driver as the recording to keep come character in the system? Rotating, publicly submitted stop announcements. To keep some interest. You could have local celebreties for the relevant stops, e.g. David Miller at the stop closest to City Hall or a Leafs player near the ACC.

Idea for a play where you follow the actors around the city, possibly combined with the fringe. A specified single car in the train that's going to be the 'play' space.

How do we take advantage of the fact that the TTC is a network, with specific geographic connections?

Scavenger hunt? photo scavenger hunt. See the Toronto photo meetup group who have done something similar.

There is a distinct absence of sociability on the TTC, especially in the age of the iPod. Buskers on the streetcar to create shared experience.

Idea for knitting, socialising, playing, art cars so people can opt-in or out. Convention for swingers cars in NYC subway apparently exist (unofficially we presume).

See wiki: TTC Design History for relevant links.

The Toronto Star are interested in running stuff that's produced from the visual part of the dreaming.