Back Lane Studios

This exhibit, which opened on Dec. 7 and was closed for an art exhibit, will re-open in January. 

Lucy Maud Montgomery spent a lot of time in Toronto, especially during the last seven years of her life when she lived at 210 Riverside Dr. in Swansea. Her ghost is everywhere in this city, with the evidence recorded in her copious diaries. It’s surprising how much she accomplished in the last seven years of her life, despite depression, worries about her sons, money concerns and her husband Ewan’s mental illness. We’ve collected some archival photos and combined them with quotes from her journals.

We’ve also explored some themes that run through her novels and her diaries. One great irony stands out; Her fictional creations represent wish fulfilment, a fantasy of what she would have wanted things to be; her life, on the other hand, was in stark contrast to the world she dreamed of.

Many of the photos in the exhibit were taken by Maud herself. She was accomplished and knowledgeable in so many fields.

Mark Sunday, Jan. 26, 12:30 pm on your calendar for our next Extraordinary Woman event at the Revue Cinema. We’re exploring the life and legacy of ballerina Maria Tallchief. From a Native American community in Oklahoma, Maria Tallchief (1925-2013) became America’s first prima ballerina. As a girl in Los Angeles, she was able to train with Bronislava Nijinska, the sister of Vaslav Nijinsky. She was mentored by George Balanchine and later married him.  Her partnership with Balanchine helped create the New York City Ballet and changed the course of ballet in America. Rare archival clips and stills from the 1940s through her retirement in the mid 1960′s trace this important period of ballet and American Indigenous history. The 2007 documentary was directed by Sandra Osawa.

Welcome to OldTO. It’s an interactive map featuring a wealth of digitized historic photos from the City of Toronto Archives.

Are you interested in what your neighbourhood might have looked like? Do you want to revisit downtown before all of the condos went up? Have a look at the map and see. There are thousands of images, some dating back to 1856.

The map was originally created by Sidewalk Labs, the Google affiliate that was planning a downtown development in Toronto’s Portlands. Sidewalk abandoned its project in 2020 and eventually stopped hosting OldTO.org. However, they kindly left the source code freely available.

At Back Lane Studios, we were sad to see OldTO.org vanish. One of our main projects is our Mapping our Memories endeavour. This photo map parallels this interest, and we are thrilled to be able to restore it.

We will be forever grateful to software developer Michael Lenaghan for his terrific work bringing this mapping tool back to life! (Check the browser you use to access oldto.org. Try Chrome if you’re having problems.)

Read the article about OldTO in BlogTO!

Join us for the first Back Lane Film Club screening of 2025 on Sunday, Jan. 5 at 2:00 pm. The film: Camille Claudel (1988).  Actor Isabelle Adjani earned an Oscar nomination for her performance as the sculptor who was mentored by Auguste Rodin and became his lover.

With the new year, we are asking members to pay $25 for their year long membership. All screenings are free for members. Please send an e-transfer to ellen@backlanestudios.ca or pay in cash or by credit card at the studio when you come for our screening.

The club focuses on little known or forgotten gems that should be seen. It’s also an opportunity for discussion, meeting and enjoying some snacks! Members will receive a link to reserve a seat at our studio. (Attendance is limited to about 30.)

What: Camille Claudel

When: Sunday Jan. 5, arrive between 1:30 and 1:45 pm – film starts at 2 pm

Where: Back Lane Studios, 9 Neepawa Ave., Toronto – side door

If you are not a member of the film club, please email us if you would like to attend: info@backlanestudios.ca. The fee is $5.