BOOK 1: MEMENTO

a thesis study of memory, ephemera, & cityscape by Heather Fulton

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SIC TRANSIT GLORIA MUNDI IS A LATIN PHRASE THAT TRANSLATES TO

THUS PASSES THE GLORY OF THE WORLD, AND A MANTRA THAT HAS INFLUENCED THE UNDERTONE OF THIS PROJECT. THIS PROJECT BEGAN IN SEPTEMBER OF 2011 WITH THE IDEA OF CONTRASTING THE THEMES OF MEMORY AND EPHEMERA.

The term ephemera encapsulates fragments of our environment that are produced without the intention of permanence. Flyers hastily taped to telephone polls, outdated maps in which roads since demolished appear, ticket stubs, and scrawled notes found in library books . These are all ephemeral in their nature. Flyers are lost to the test of weather and removal, road maps lose function, ticket stubs crumble as the venues they feature are torn down, and notes scrawled

fade into the paper as the library book becomes dog-eared and spine broken. Memory, both personal and collective, is subject to the same fleeting and transitory qualities as ephemera. Memory fades, forgets, rewrites and reworks itself- a target of its own ephemeral nature. This is illustrated by Florence King, who writes:, True nostalgia is an ephemeral composition of disjointed memories. The third piece of this project is cityscape. Urban life is ephemeral in itself.

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Our landscape changes everyday by building new memories and forgetting old ones. This happens on small and large scales from the renaming of a park to the loss of a monument. Memory lives in crumbling mortar, in dust under floorboards; it sleeps and grows in soil, it exhales into the air we breathe. Its what makes a house into a home. Memories illuminate the world we live in. It is for these reasons that place and location inform such a large

portion of this project. The process of selecting each location was arduous, but incredibly enlightening. The list was ever-growing and ever-changing, but in the end, five locations were chosen based on the status of their existence in the past, the present, and the future of Toronto. At each location, a poster was erected. The posters were made with specific types of paper and ink that were particularly vulnerable to the rain and snow of a Canadian winter. This was a conscious choice that rendered the posters themselves as fragile

as a the heritage they represented. From the moment they posted at their respective locations, the posters began their process of decay. Backed by extensive research on the study of memory, ephemera, and landscape, Forget to Remember examines five of Torontos lost buildings and the legacies they left behind.

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THE BIG BOP

651 QUEEN STREET WEST

1980s-2010

Memories sustain a distinctive identity

-Pascal Boyer

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The Big Bop was music venue at the corner of Bathurst and Queen that had three separate stages: the Reverb, the Kathedral and Holy Joes. It was known for hosting many musical groups, mostly focusing on rock, punk and heavy metal genres. Visually, it stood out on the block after its brick exterior walls were painted indigo. The closing

of the Big Bop in 2010 meant something more than the closing of a concert venue. It meant the closing of a gathering place that existed for a collective identity or spirit that embodied the crowd of regulars that one would find there on any given night. The closing of the Big Bop, arguably, created a physical and figurative displacement of a

sub culture. It directly impacted the live music scene in Toronto. However, what this choice of location illustrates is that through collective memory that spirit and identity still exists. The question is whether or not this will fade, and if so, how soon?

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MID 1980s- 2010

The building itself predates the ownership of the Big Bop by over a century. It was built in 1876 as a Masonic lodge called the Occident Hall, only later to be modified to be able to house three individual businesses, such as the United Cigar Store. One of those spaces turned into the Holiday Tavern in the 1960s, which was also a music venue that featured Jazz and R&B musicians. In 1990, the building was sold and transformed into what we now remember as the

Big Bop, which functioned as an underground staple of Torontos live music scene for twenty years. In 2010, the Big Bop closed and was bought by CB2, a furniture store owned by American furniture giant Crate and Barrel. This is largely due to the area itself going through a phase of gentrification. CB2 tastefully pays homage to the Big Bop by keeping its sign on display inside their store.

1928 PRESENT

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1948-MID 1980s

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29/02/2012 The poster for the Big Bop was posted the night of Friday February 24th. It was first taped to a telephone pole across the street from the building, on the northeast corner of Queen and Bathurst.

29/02/2012 The poster shows signs of having endured the winter precipitation which included snow, rain, and wet slushy mixture of the two.

COLLECTIVE MEMORY CONSTITUTES THE SOIL IN WHICH HISTORIOGRAPHY IS ROOTED

-PAUL RICOEUR
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04/03/2012 On March 4, upon checking on the poster, I noticed that it had been removed, and the telephone it had been taped to was scraped clean. Likely the consequence of city workers.

11/03/2012 The second poster was taped to a pole on the northwest corner of Queen and Bathurst and remained visible until Sunday March 14 when I found it still taped to the pole, but covered by a deluge of concert posters.

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ODETTE HOUSE
81 WELLESLEY STREET EAST

19th CENTURY -2012

Both memory & forgetting are subject to power, & thus also subject to abuse
-Anne Galloway

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81 Wellesley Street East, also known as the Odette House was a property that for the last twenty years, had been the home of the Wellspring Cancer Support Centre. However, the building had existed for years before thatin fact, the home dated back to the 19th century and was in the process of acquiring heritage status, until the vulnerability

of an administrative loophole was taken advantage of by developers. The building was within arms reach of a heritage status which would nullify the chance of a demolition. The only obstacle was time. It was on a long list of other buildings awaiting their heritage status, and was not approved in time to save it from demolition.

On January 18th 2012, a demolition crew swept in and tore the house down. Without prior notice, the area woke up to the sounds of wood splitting, glass shattering, and walls being caved in with a crane. A heritage home, a community landmark, and most importantly, a piece of Torontos past was torn apart before their eyes.

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24/02/2012
The poster was taped to a Canada Post box across from the site. It was the only poster of the entire project that didnt have to be replaced or relocated.

29/02/2012
After a night of heavy snowfall, I found the poster covered in a thick layer of ice and snow. All but two tear away tags had been taken.

MEMORY CONTINUALLY FABRICATES NEW VERSIONS OF PAST EVENTS TO SUIT THE IMMEDIATE INTERESTS OF THE PRESENT
-CATHERINE LUPTON
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04/03/2012
The posters ink has faded to an eerie fluoresence. The extra tearaway tags I attached last visit are falling away.

11/03/2012
The post remains, and half of the extra set of tags have been removed. The ink shows less saturation.

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347 YONGE STREET

SAM THE RECORD MAN

1961-2007

Every memory can create its own legend.

-Chris Marker

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Sam the Record Man, a chain of record stores that began in 1937, was founded by Canadian music mogul, Sam Sniderman. Their flagship location, built in 1961, was adorned with two large scale neon records that eventually became a Toronto landmark. The store was known for hosting concerts as well as promoting Canadian musicians,

making Sams a beloved staple to the Toronto music scene. In 2007, the store closed its doors stating that the retail chain had filed for bankruptcy. This profit loss is largely attributed to the changes that occurred in the music industry once digital downloading became a popular means for acquiring music. The site is currently an empty

lot owned by Ryerson University, who plan on using the space to make campus additions. Littered with trash and construction debris, the current state of the lot offers no tangible memento from the lost record store, leaving the public to rely on faded memories.

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THE SITE BEFORE SAMS

THE FLAGSHIP LOCATION IN 1973

FROM THE MID 70s UNTIL THE MID 90s, A&A RECORDS WAS SAMS CLOSEST COMPETITOR.

AS SAMS ACQUIRED MORE SPACE, THEIR NEON DISPLAY GREW.

SAMS DOORS CLOSED PERMANENTLY ON JUNE 30 2007.

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24/02/2012
The Sams poster was stapled to a public notice board next to the location late at night. Finding a spot to place the poster was difficult. The area around the site is heavily protected by a Business Improvement Zone which restricts posters and flyers of any kind. I was lucky to find a designated notice board paid by the City of Toronto located just to the right of where the original Sam the Record Man entrance was.

26/02/2012
Less than 42 hours later, the first poster was gone, much to my surprise. I hadnt expected there to be an issue simply because the poster was stapled to a notice board, and complied entirely with the rules of the Business Improvement Zone. I quickly learned to avoid that particular notice board as I began to notice it was always bare save for the staples and flecks of paper from flyers other posters that too were torn down.

MEMORY IS INHERENTLY CONTENTIOUS & PARTISAN: ONE MANS ACKNOWLEDGMENT IS ANOTHERS OMISSION
-JEFFREY BLUSTEIN
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01/03/2012
I placed the new poster in a different location, with hopes that it would be discrete enough for the B.I.A. not to notice, but visible enough for the public to see. This location was the side of a newspaper box less than a block south of where Sam the Record Man used to sit.

04/03/2012
The poster is once again removed.

THERE IS A DEGREE OF INSOMNIA, OF RUMINATION, OF THE HISTORICAL SENSE, THROUGH WHICH SOMETHING LIVING COMES TO HARM AND FINALLY PERISHES, WHETHER IT IS A PERSON OR A PEOPLE OR A CULTURE
-FRIEDRICH NIETZSCHE
11/03/2012
A new and final poster is taped to a different newspaper box, on a quieter corner across from the location.

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PAGES BOOKS
256 QUEEN STREET WEST

1979-2009

To what degree have they given consent to their own evaporation?

-Stephanie Marlin-Curiel
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Pages Books & Magazines was a book store that operated from 1979 until 2009 at Queen and John St. More than just a retail store, Pages Books went above and beyond for their customers and the reading community. They created a series of lectures entitled This is Not a Reading Series which still continue today, despite the stores closing. Their storefront always featured

detailed displays by talented local artists, and their shelves had a great deal of space reserved solely for zines and local authors. Pages Books, like many independent book stores, suffered from the presence of big box retail book chains as well as online stores that are quickly swiping the competition out from under the feet of

independent book stores. Queen West, the area that pages called home, began a clear and steady process of gentrification a few years before Pages closed its doors. Large retail chains take up most of the space in the area now, leaving independent, community-based stores such as Pages in their wake.

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FUTURE GENERATIONS FORGET WHAT THE PRESENT VOWED TO REMEMBER BECAUSE OF THE SOCIAL AND OTHER CHANGES THAT THE PASSAGE OF TIME BRINGS WITH IT
-JEFFREY BLUSTEIN

26/02/2012
The poster was taped to a newspaper box on the night of February 24. Two days later, the poster is seen still in tact.

29/02/2012
Three days later, the poster has been torn down. Other posters in the surrounding area have not been touched, leading me to believe it was taken down by the sites current tenants or by a passer-by.

04/03/2012
The location of the new poster is chosen and the replacement is posted.

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THE PAST EMERGES FROM THE VERTIGINOUS FOLDS IN OUR MEMORY

-AMRESH SINHA

11/03/2012
The posters ink begins to show some damage and discoloration.

11/03/2012
Drips and splatters show where and how the ink moved.

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RUNNYMEDE THEATRE
2223 BLOOR STREET WEST

1927-1999

To live in hearts we leave behind, is not to die

-Thomas Campbell

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The Runnymede Theatre originally served as a vaudeville theatre, attracting a large crowd in the west end of Toronto. As vaudeville declined in popularity, the theatre then made the transition to a movie theatre in the 1930s. The theatre suffered with a decline of customers at the

end of the century, and closed its doors in 1999. The decrease in business is largely attributed to large theatre chains dominating the market at that time, closing many neighborhood theatres. Chapters book store took over, utilizing the space to sell books and gifts. Chapters has made

every effort to keep the old theatrical architectural features on display and untouched, and even has displays with photos and information about the old theatre, tasteful and heart-felt reminders of what once was a cherished highlight of the Bloor West village.

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1930s

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| PRESENT 67

26/02/2012
The poster was taped to a newspaper box on the night of February 24, right in front of the doors to the location. Two days later, the poster remains.

29/02/2012
The poster shows some weather damage, having lost some saturation in the ink. Many tear-away tags have been taken.

29/02/2012
A close shot of the poster shows the details of the disintegration process that began after the first snow fall.
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NOTHING TELLS MEMORIES FROM ORDINARY MOMENTS. ONLY AFTERWARDS DO THEY CLAIM REMEMBRANCE ON ACCOUNT OF THEIR SCARS.
03/03/2012
Having found the original poster missing, I relocated a new one to a different spot: a newspaper box across the street.
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11/03/2012
The poster shows clear signs of weather damage. Ink bleeds can be seen around the edges and the entire backing of the poster has fallen away.

-CHRIS MARKERS LA JETE

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THE WALLS OF MY ROOM ARE CURRENTLY CONCEALED BY A JAGGED VEIL OF OLD PHOTOGRAPHS, UNDEVELOPED NEGATIVES, NOTES TO MYSELF, CLIPPINGS FROM EXHIBITION CATALOGS AND POSTCARDS FROM DECADES AGO.

They are my own fragmentary reminders: yellowing, cornercurled scraps of paper, that remind me why i began this project seven months ago...Forget to Remember began with a concept and an intention. The concept was that the fleeting aspects of a cityscape are directly comparable to the ephemeral nature of personal and collective human memory. The intention was to bring this theory to light through the commemoration of a handful of Torontos beloved buildings and establishments that have been lost to the transitory nature of the urban cityscape. The extensive research, planning, and fabrication that went

into the design and creation of the posters ultimately lead to the idea that their purpose was to intervene within public space and spark communal discourse. The simple initiation of this discussion would serve as an (un) intentional awakening of memory that could scatter and illuminate through the private contemplation and public conversations of others. Beyond the meticulous research and planning that went into this project, there were factors of urban life that were outside of my control that effected the narrative of

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this project. Posters were taken down either by city workers, or by the public for reasons I can only speculate. Posters were covered by other posters whose messages varied from concert listings, retail sales, workshops, or the search for a missing loved one. Often, my zealous efforts to replace them were rapidly reciprocated, and the posters once again lost to the fast paced temperament of the city of Toronto. Some posters survived only hours, others lasted weeks. But no matter how long they managed to adorn our cluttered

urban streets, I wholeheartedly believe they served their purpose as illuminations of the past and catalysts of thought. It is only fitting that the eventual vanishing of the posters was more so a product of human nature than of elemental nature. Though the results varied from my plans and predictions, they are a solid testament to the initial seeds this project grew from. With that, I peel the ephemera away from my wall and hold in my hands those tangible, fragmentary reminders that

have been with me for the duration of this project. Upon reflection in their presence, I feel that even in the fast paced cycle of chaotic urban life, in small ways we may be unaware of, our collective past remains near to us, and it is through the ephemeral scraps of our city that we both forget and remember.

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WORKS CONSULTED
Bergson, Henri, and Arthur Mitchell. Creative Evolution,. New York: Modern Library, 1944. Print. Blustein, Jeffrey. The Moral Demands of Memory. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 2008. Print. Creet, Julia, and Andreas Kitzmann. Memory and Migration: Multidisciplinary Approaches to Memory Studies. Toronto: University of Toronto, 2011. Print. Donato, w w. The Ruins of Memory: Archeological Fragments and Textual Artifacts. MLN 93.4 (1978): 57596. JSTOR. Web. <http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/2 906595?uid=3739448&uid=2129&uid=2&uid=70&uid=37 37720&uid=4&sid=56006785663>. Duras, Marguerite. Hiroshima Mon Amour. New York: Grove, 1961. Print. Fleming, Marnie. Regan Morris : In Absentia /. Oakville, 1992. Print. French, Sarah. From History to Memory: Alain Resnais and Marguerite Duras Hiroshima Mon Amour. Electronic Melbourne Art Journal 3 (2008). Web. <http://www. melbourneartjournal.unimelb.edu.au/E-MAJ/pdf/issue3/ french.pdf>. Galloway, Anne. Collective Remembering and the Importance of Forgetting: A Critical Design Challenge. Purse Lips Square Jaw. Dr Anne Galloway, 2011. Web. <http:// www.purselipsquarejaw.org/papers/galloway_chi2006. pdf>. Guerin, Frances, and Roger Hallas. The Image and the Witness: Trauma, Memory and Visual Culture. London: Wallflower, 2007. Print. Harbord, Janet, and Chris Marker. Chris Marker, La Jete. London: Afterall, 2009. Print. Hetzler, Florence M. Causality: Ruin Time and Ruins. Leonardo 21.1 (1988): 51-55. Web. Hiroshima, Mon Amour. Dir. Alain Resnais. By Marguerite Duras, Sacha Vierny, Takahashi Michio, Henri Colpi, Jasmine Chasney, Georges Delerue, Giovanni Fusco, and P. ,. Calvet. Prod. Samy Halfon and Esaka. Perf. Emmanule Riva, Eiji Okada, Stella Dassas, Pierre Barbaud, and Bernard Fresson. [Zenith International Film Corp. Presents], 1959. DVD. La Jetee ; Sans Soleil. Nouveaux Pictures, 2003. DVD. Lau, Beth. Wordsworth and Current Memory Research. Studies in English Literature 1500-1900 42.4 (2002): 67592. JSTOR. Web. <http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/ 1556291?uid=3739448&uid=2129&uid=2&uid=70&uid= 3737720&uid=4&sid=56006785663>. Lauterwein, Andra. Anselm Kiefer/Paul Celan: Myth, Mourning and Memory. London: Thames & Hudson, 2007. Print. Lupton, Catherine. Memorys Apostle: Chris Marker, La Jete and Sans Soleil. 2007. Print. Merrick, Jay. Heritage and Heresy. Architects Journal 233.13 (2011). Web. <http://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/ critics/cronocaos-heritage-and-heresy/8613616.article>. Nietzsche, Friedrich. The Genealogy of Morals. New York: Dover Publications, 2003. Print. Nora, Pierre. Between Memory and History: Les Lieux De Memoire. Representations 26 (1989): 7-24. Web. Ricur, Paul. Memory, History, Forgetting. Chicago: University of Chicago, 2004. Print. Roth, Michael S., Claire L. Lyons, and Charles Merewether. Irresistible Decay: Ruins Reclaimed. Los Angeles, CA: Getty Research Institute for the History of Art and the Humanities, 1997. Print. Sinha, Amresh. The Intertwining of Remembering and Forgetting in Walter Benjamin. Connecticut Review 20.2 (1998). Print. Toronto (Ont.). Urban Development Services. City Planning Division. A Glimpse of Torontos History : Opportunities for the Commemoration of Lost Historic Sites. Rep. Toronto, 2001. Print. Zucker, Paul. Ruins- An Aesthetic Hybrid. The Journal

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Look how Im forgetting you... Look how Ive forgotten you. Look at me.
-Hiroshima Mon Amour

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