The Annex is steeped in folklore, where one can easily imagine the creative energy that characterized the hood in the second half of the 20th century.
Historically, the Annex has been a draw for creatives and thought leaders, including residents such as Margaret Atwood, Catherine O’Hara, and Jane Jacobs. For the Annex, one can easily imagine daily life and the creative energy in the ‘hood, particularly in the 1960s-1980s, when many of the notable residents lived there.
A possible connection between artist Trisha Romance and a loft on Kendal Avenue reflects that kind of storytelling. To start, the neighbourhood vibe would have suited Romance during that era, as it does today’s creatives.
Trisha Romance is a well-known watercolour artist. Born in 1951 in the United States, she moved to Canada and studied at Sheridan College of Art and Design. She was awarded the 1995 Canadian Artist of the Year, and is also a recipient of the Order of Ontario.
Romance’s work centers on domestic life, lovely landscapes, and home interiors, among other subjects. Her artwork is simple, yet emotionally nuanced in the way she captures vignettes of everyday living. True-to-life, everyday moments may not seem impactful as you move through your daily rituals, but when captured and released through the artist’s lens, emotional resonance and quiet beauty emerge.
She’s known particularly for her use of light and shadow in her watercolours (her work is often described as “luminous”). Her technique homes in on compositional balance, tempered with nuance and interplay of light, to capture the right contrast and suggest movement in each piece.
She is an artist who draws a great deal from the circle around her: her family, friends, travel, meaningful homes and buildings, and moments captured on the road. She travelled extensively, gathering experiences the way some travellers gather souvenirs, to inform and inspire her artwork. Various bios liken her journeys to chapters in a book, or, more specifically, to art pieces to be created.
She moved around a great deal, including living in Toronto, and settling in Niagara-on-the-Lake for the last 40+ years.
With threads of inspiration that clearly connect to her surroundings, one wonders what sort of homes she has lived in that conjure these images.
Looking at this through the lens of folklore, it is less about what can be definitively proven and more about the stories that feel as though they belong to a place because of its history, architecture, and creative culture. A narrative emerges, made probable by the atmosphere and the known history of a location.
Romance herself is noted reflecting on her first studio apartment in Toronto, which she referred to as “the loft”, which she had described as an oasis in the city. Furthermore, it was rumoured to have been on Kendal Avenue. Although there is no specific evidence of the address or for said studio loft, her artwork may provide clues, especially given how she is known to observe her surroundings and incorporate them into her pieces.
Take this watercolour of hers, entitled simply “The Loft”. It captures a simple moment in daily living, with an emphasis on nuance and natural light. Look closer at the details, such as the placement of the radiator and the fenestration of the window above the loft bed.
Then, when you consider those details against this current-day photo of a loft at 15 Kendal Ave, they match.
Whether this Kendal Avenue dwelling was truly once home to Trisha Romance may never be confirmed. But perhaps that is beside the point. It feels possible, and lends itself to the creative energy that has long defined the Annex, where artists, students, and writers once lived in modest upper-floor apartments tucked inside old Victorian homes.
For house hunters today, who value storytelling and acknowledge how where you live-both in your dwelling and in your immediate surroundings- shape those stories, there is a rare opportunity to own a home that delivers good vibes only.
And when a watercolour painted decades ago appears to mirror a real room this closely, right down to the radiator and transom window, it’s a story to share.
Interested in a home with a backstory, created around folklore and creative energy? This handsome dwelling – with a storied past and many stories yet to tell – could be just the unique home you are looking for!
We call it: A Blank Canvas With Edwardian Roots In Prime Annex, Steps To Jean Sibelius Square
Nestled on a quiet avenue of century homes surrounded by verdant mature trees filled with birdsong, this charming setting for domestic bliss is a pleasing counterpoint to the ‘Bright Lights Big City’ vibes of Bloor Street to the south. This home is located just far enough from the fray that you’ll enjoy instant access to solitude and repose, yet conveniently, you’re just 400 steps to the Spadina subway station and 800 steps to a Metro Grocer, a Shopper’s Drug Mart, or the Miles Nadal JCC.
Constructed in 1900, this gracious semi-detached 3-storey double-brick residence offers over 2,000 square feet above grade. Situated on an impressive 23.08-foot x 128-foot lot, this property shares a mutual drive with its neighbour to the north, and includes a semi-detached single-vehicle carport plus 2 tandem outdoor parking spaces.
Questions? Interested in a private viewing? Contact James Ormston (james@urbaneer.com) or Steven Fudge (steve@urbaneer.com)
Since 1989, I’ve steered my career through a real estate market crash and burn; survived a slow painful cross-country recession; completed an M.E.S. graduate degree from York University called ‘Planning Housing Environments’; executed the concept, sales & marketing of multiple new condo and vintage loft conversions; and guided hundreds of clients through the purchase and sale of hundreds of freehold and condominium dwellings across the original City of Toronto. From a gritty port industrial city into a glittering post-industrial global centre, I’ve navigated the ebbs and flows of a property market as a consistent Top Producer. And I remain as passionate about it today as when I started.
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