Monumental Interventions Walking Tour

About the Walking Tour

This tour looks at a half century of artist-led engagements with, and creative resistance to, public forms of memory in Toronto. From painting statues, to floating them down the Don River, to celebrating Indigenous languages and presence in the urban environment, participants will hear how these artistic interventions represent significant forms of cultural production, storytelling, and acts of care for all people who call this land home.

This tour will be led by Andrew Lochhead. Andrew is a multidisciplinary artist and PhD Candidate at Toronto Metropolitan University. His dissertation project focuses on the role of walking in telling stories about the often complex and contested relationships that are celebrated and obscured by Toronto’s street names––particularly as they relate to systemic and structural racism, injustice, and ongoing colonial violence. Andrew’s research and advocacy work around public memory practices have been featured in a number of documentary films including CityTV’s “What’s in a Name?” and BBC Scotland’s “Scotland, Slavery, and Statues”.

Content Advisory: This tour will in part address topics such as Residential “schools,” racism, colonialism, enslavement, police violence, and death which may be upsetting for some participants. Please bear this in mind if you are planning to attend. If you or a loved one is experiencing distress related to these subject matter, or are in crisis for any reason, you may reach out 24h/day 7 days a week to the National Indian Residential School Crisis Line at 1-866-925-4419 (Residential School Survivors and their families), the Toronto Distress Centre at 416-408-HELP (4357), or simply dial 211 to be connected to additional mental health supports and services.

Further Information

This tour runs rain or shine and lasts approximately 90 minutes. Please wear comfortable walking shoes and consider bringing sunscreen and water to make your tour as enjoyable as possible.

This tour is approximately 2.8 kilometers in distance and takes place predominantly on paved city sidewalks and streets. There are some unpaved portions of the route that take place in city parks.

If you have any questions prior to the tour, please contact us at [email protected]. If you have any issues finding the group on the day of the tour, you can reach staff on-site at (647) 542-3450.

This tour uses individual audio headsets. All registered participants will be provided with an individual headset that will allow you to hear the live tour guide throughout the tour.

If you share our passion for accessible and inclusive heritage programming, we invite you to make a donation while on the tour to help fund one of our next walks. Staff can accept donations via credit or debit card onsite, and gifts of $20+ will receive a charitable tax receipt. Cash donations will not be accepted.