The end of August marks a hectic time in Toronto as crowds flock to the CNE, tourists fill the city, and back-to-school season approaches. But on a Saturday morning at The Bentway, the atmosphere is a serene contrast to the urban din. As people walk their dogs, rollerblade, run and bike, the pace here feels noticeably different from the usual city rush — as if the space itself lulls the commotion. Much of the ambiance can be attributed to The Bentway’s thoughtful summer program, Softer City, featuring six unique art installations that explore “softness as a means of humanizing our cities.”
East of the underpass at The Bentway Studio, a lounge-scape design by WIP Collaborative defies the city’s conventions of hard structures. Soft Fits, according to WIP’s Elsa Ponce, comes from an urge to address the lack of urban environments that are supportive of both mental and physical health. “Both literally and metaphorically speaking, there’s no soft spaces to be found outside,“ says Ponce.
To combat this issue, the multidisciplinary practice (the project team included Abby Coover, Elsa Ponce, Lindsay Harkema, and Sera Ghadaki) turned to teenagers to answer a survey that realized their idea for a woven installation that brings softness to an urban environment.
By weaving reclaimed cords — in a collaboration with local textile artist Colleen McCarten — the installation invited teenagers to shape their own space through co-design. Though the design was led by the ideas of teens, the space proved itself to be inclusive of all ages, as a curious group of elders finishing a Tai Chi class stopped to interact with the woven form, rustling with the fringes.
WIP Collaborative member Sera Ghadaki notes Soft Fits is not prescriptive, allowing individuals to interpret the space however they like. “We want to create spaces that can be used in a myriad of ways, because it’s not a one size fits all approach,” says Ghadaki. “Different people of different ages, different abilities, different interests will use the space in different ways.”
Whether you’re engaging physically with the lounge-scape or simply observing, WIP Collaborative hopes that the installation will spark memories and create special moments for visitors, fostering a sense of ownership and agency.
At a sound and soft sculpture installation by Toronto’s own Heather Nicol, meanwhile, following the echoing sounds of voices and wind chimes will lead you to The Bentway’s heart under the expressway. Wind Ensemble evidently sparks the curiosity of many. Passersby are quick to fill the space with spontaneous joy, as they experiment with the brightly coloured microphone cones, laughing as their voices amplify and battle with the surrounding chorus of traffic, sirens and construction.
Nearby, visitors can linger on rock benches with poetic inscriptions that are well worth the read. The words on Chloë Bass’ Perspective Alignment examine how historical and contemporary traumas, from colonization to pandemic isolation, can influence a person’s mental health. Reading Bass’ words spark a moment to ponder what it means to heal as a city, and evokes a sense of camaraderie within the community.
Amidst the moments of reflection, the most action-packed part of The Bentway is still the iconic skate trail. While the rigid architecture of the underpass stands tall, two art installations weave around this busy space to create a contrasting sense of tranquility. Holding Space by Nnenna Okore serves as a centrepiece, with its bright Ankara fabric adding a vivid backdrop to the forceful movement of two rollerbladers whipping around the trail. Posted up above on the concrete columns, Tracings by Nico Williams extends the contrast through woven fabric and jingle cones that bring a literal softness to the hard urban infrastructure.
After looping around the site, the last installation to see is Walking:Holding, an eight-portrait photography installation by Kirk Lisaj that captures Rosana Cade’s intimate performance series of strangers holding hands. Besides documenting the performance, which took place on The Bentway in May, the photos help us envision a new reality where, instead of simply passing by each other in daily life, we might pause to embrace one another.
In Toronto, where so much of the built fabric feels unyielding, spaces like these remind us that cities are not bound to their hard elements. Softness may not always be found in buildings and concrete, but it can emerge in human interaction, thoughtfully designed public spaces, and in the art that encourages us to pause and reflect. Softer City is not just a collection of installations, but a call to imagine — and create — a more compassionate urban environment. Even under all that concrete.
More information on the Softer City program is available at The Bentway website.
With six installations that spark human interaction, the linear park offers a welcoming escape from Toronto’s hard shell.