Cameron House

On By ResaIn Street Art

The Cameron House was built in 1880.

In 1895, the structure became the “John Burns Hotel.”

 In 1896, it became the “Cameron House”.

In the early 1920’s it became a working hotel.

In 1981 it became a venue/hotel for the bohemian arts crowd featuring music, performance, and visual art.

It remains so to this day.

The music venue holds about 60 people.

Pics taken by Resa – September 11, 2023

Toronto, Canada

The Artist:

93 thoughts on “Cameron House”

    1. Yeah! This the third time they’ve painted it, I think. … maybe 3 1/2.
      WTF! Okay… I’m replying to you, I’m logged in, but I can’t reply because WP is telling me I have to log in.
      They need to get their latest mess in order!

      1. Timothy Price's avatar Timothy Price

        WP is up to no good as usual. People couldn’t comment on my posts last week. I guess they can now. I still can’t comment directly on you blogs. I have to comment through the Reader.

        1. Uch!
          re: WP
          and UCH re: box
          I never knew taping a box together could go wrong, until now.
          Outside flaps in, inside flaps out, packing tape everywhere, including my hair.
          I had to redo it.
          Anyway, now the lint rolling begins!
          I’ve got pristine plastic bags standing by to usher clean pieces into!
          Coffee time! xo

          1. Timothy Price's avatar Timothy Price

            You get all taped up, flapped inside and out, and it’s Not Even kinky! You would think taping up a box would be a simple process — Wrong!

    1. Thank you re: the sequence.
      I like to take viewers into the art. I like them to see what I see, as a whole and as components.
      It’s truly a Toronto art history corner. Two generations of artists have emerged from the hotel. #3 is on deck.

    1. The giant ants might be scary at night, but the first time I saw them in the daytime, they scared me.
      I wonder if they got so big due to toxic pollution? 🤔😉

  6. I love this old brick building and the art. I also love the positioning of the art. The eye at the corner of the door … love that! So much history and still thriving. Long May it stand. ❤️🤗🐭🐭🤗❤️

    1. Yes! Long may it stand!
      I haven’t been inside for years, but I used to go there a lot. I had many friends & acquaintances who lived there at one time.

      Okay, BPH paper doll has 5 outfits! I’m in the process of painting the last 3.
      2 have been proofed to make sure they fit the doll, and need minor touch-ups.
      a mini-skirt outfit
      a mini-skirt outfit with cape and beret
      an afghan coat
      a gown with short cape wrap
      A bell bottom outfit.
      x🤗🐭💃🏽🐭🤗o

    1. Thanks John!
      I like historic places too. Lol! I live in one.
      A tad hard to keep clean. 🙄
      Then there’s the – I need to do art so I’ll clean later – reality. 😵‍💫
      Anyway, the cats like it!
      So, you’ve hidden the hugs in the centre of a rectangle disguised as a camera.
      Well, one good shot deserves another!
      Sorry for the double exposures!
      📸Ẍ 📸Ẍ 📸Ẍ

      1. I’m not back. I’ve been ill so long I had to be in a place that’s odd. The old rich nutters of the village are as mad as they’ve always been. An old lady…older than me…kissed my forehead this day when I held a door open for her, as I said, ‘Ladies first’. Rosie bit a rabbits bits this morning but thankfully it got away safe and sound. I spoke to a tree today but it didn’t speak back although it grinned. The young lady bar woman there is covered in impossible tattoos…one was of a turnip, and she loved little Rosie…thankfully she didn’t keep rabbits. Shirley smiles my way because I’m not a miserable old twat right now. I’m on unusual pills for a brain/body that needs to laugh again, hence my madness. All the best, TOF

    1. True, LOTS of energy in there, and a lot came out of it.
      I adore that song. N’s guitar playing still makes me fall in love!
      You’ll enjoy this latest WP happening. I had to sign into my own blog, which I was on and signed into to, reply to a comment.
      The latest are the best glitches, ever!
      xxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo (🧽🧽🧽 just in case!)

      1. I bet it does! I was actually thinking of that while listening! 😉 xoxoxoxo
        On WP It’s been going on for some time and some are completely cut off [like S who still can’t comment or like anywhere!]. I’ve had to log in while being logged in all the time in many blogs.
        Maybe Hera should take over!
        xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

  11. The only way I could comment on this post was through the Reader. I wish WP would get its act together once and for all. In any event, Cameron House looks like a very funky place–although I’m not crazy about the giant bugs.

    1. Hahaha! Yeah, the giant bugs are icky. They are a hit with many, though. I get a laugh, as they are not real.
      I wasn’t at a coffee house in the 1960’s, but I’ve read about them. Sometimes I romanticize the Cameron House is a hard core modern version.

      WP is making me nuts with this change over in the comments thing.
      I’ve had to log into my own site to answer comments, when I am on my site and already logged in.
      WP is constantly fixing things that aren’t broken, and in the process breaking them.
      I’m waiting for a few weeks before I complain. Most times issues resolve ….but not always.
      WP bugs bug better than the CH bigger bugs bug!

      1. WP is driving me crazy as well. I’m experiencing the same problems. I really, really wish they would stop putting out software updates with bugs. Having to log in on my own site to post a response when I’ve already logged is particularly irritating.

        2. Okay…. I just had the issue where I couldn’t comment on a blog.
          There were none of those new buttons, or login with…WP, FB or Google.
          Before I went to the Reader (which I hate) I opened a new tab, went to the blog via its main url. I then opened the post I wanted, and was able to comment! WTF!

    1. It is a cool place. LOL…1 gown would fill the entire stage…..but … ya know….. I’m going to go inside and look next time.
      If there’s wall space for my art?
      Not a bad idea, Gi! xx

  15. Wow, I love how you present the history of this building from the distance to closed up on the eye and lips. The painting of the mural is exquisite! The expressions of the eye and the lips are sensational. Beautiful photography, Resa!

    1. It came about when he was drowning in Pint Glasses of beer.
      Apparently, as the misinformation theories go, there was a large butt at the bottom of one of the glasses.
      That butt became the Titanic! (in his mind)

      1. Hmmmm… I’m not sure I believe your story, lady. As a British person I can tell you no butts influenced the construction of the Titanic. It was just sheer bloody British will, I say, and that’s what sank the bloody thing, too!

        Then the CANADIANS came along and made a film about us and put Leo in the lead role. What a rotter!

        1. JC is Canadian, but ……
          Anyway, lots of Canadian talent in the USA!
          The $$$ is attractive.
          Not that we don’t have money here.
          We just don’t know where we put it, and now can’t find it.

          1. You need a space organisation like NASA – call is CANADASA. And go to Jupiter, why not! I can see it all right now. The headlines: “RESA THE FIRST HUMAN ON JUPITER! FREE WINE FOR EVERYONE!” Glorious.

            1. Well, if I could walk there I would go.
              Would there be any art to take pics of on the way?
              Is there street art there?
              These questions need to be answered.
              Otherwise perhaps Venus, Mercury or Pluto would be better.

    1. I used to hang there when we lived a few blocks away. My bf at the time played there w/his band. Lol! Now they jam downstairs. So, I still get lots of live music! 🎼💓

  21. I am admiring a stunning, traditional house. However, my attention was immediately drawn to a wall painting featuring a window in the centre. I am curious if the window was created first and then painted around or if the painter skillfully incorporated the image of the beautiful woman within the window frame. In any case, I was absolutely amazed! Thank you, my dear Resa. 😍💖🙏

    1. Yes, a blast from the past. Did you hang there, or go to see a band there?
      Anyway, an entirely new generation is making music and art there.
      It’s a pretty cool place.
      Beats Grossman’s Tavern!!!!! LOL!!!!!
      xoxoxo

      1. I was there once, I can’t even remember who was playing. But pretty nostalgic place my friend! Grossman’s Tavern, now why does that ring a bell? 🙂 ❤ xoxo

        1. Grossman’s is on Spadina at Cecil street, which is a block south of College. It’s like a big kitty corner across Spadina from the El Mocambo.
          It’s been there since 1943.
          It’s never been a hot spot, like the El Mo, but it’s been a steady rock and jazz music watering hole since I can remember.
          Much like the Cameron House, it’s been a place for up comers, although it lacks the “cool” caché.
          In 1990, a Toronto act having success was B. B.Gabor. He had some cool hits. Anyway, he was playing, or about to play at Grossman’s. I was planning to go see him, as I lived 1 block away.
          I never got to see him. He committed suicide.
          So, he was all over posters -playing at Grossman’s, when he died.
          It was a big deal in the arts/music community for a minute.
          Ring a bell? xxxxx💓

          1. Wow! Such a rich history. I’d never heard of Grossman’s, and especially that it was across the street from the El Mo. I grew up at the top end of the city – in the burbs, so I missed a lot. ❤ xoxx

            1. Ah!
              I was a runaway and got involved with the arts crowd at a young age, so always lived in “alternative” dwellings around Kensington Market and Chinatown.
              Our lives are so different, yet we have a connect. I love it! ❤ xoxx

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