The opening of Toronto's Spirit Garden
Gow Hastings and Two Row Architect celebrate the completion of the Spirit Garden, an unprecedented landscape of learning and memorialization located at the prominent southwest corner of Nathan Phillips Square, juxtaposed alongside Toronto’s largest civic gathering space. This garden is dedicated to Indigenous history and culture. It is the first public space built in a Canadian capital city that honours those impacted by the Residential Schools program and directly responds to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Action 82.
We are honoured to have worked on this historic project with Toronto Council Fire Native Cultural Centre, the City of Toronto, Two Row Architect, and Buttcon Construction, delivering a series of impactful installations at Nathan Philip Square, which includes the work of Anishinaabe, Inuit, Métis, and Iroquois/Haudenosaunee artists. In collaboration with Two Row Architect, we guided the work of the artists set within the 30,200 square foot garden, which facilitates a place for teaching, learning, healing, sharing, and moving the dialogue forward between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities.
Led by Knowledge Keeper John Keeshig, a key site component is a Teaching Lodge constructed of ash glulam and clad in honey-coloured copper-zinc cladding. Completely enclosed with wooden benches and designed with overhead skylights, each representing the Seven Grandparent Teachings central to Anishinaabe culture and spiritual beliefs, the lodge is a resource for the Indigenous community and all those interested in learning about Indigenous culture. “I am thankful for the work of the architects who have strengthened my belief in a world where Canada can become a place where people can truly come together,” says Keeshig.
A central focus of the space is a 10-ton Indiana limestone turtle sculpture carved by Solomon King, which rises out of a reflecting pond featuring a wall with the names of the 18 residential schools that formerly operated in Ontario. The sculpture represents Turtle Island, which is an integral part of the Creation Story told by many Indigenous Peoples. It describes the origins of North America and the interconnection between humans and the natural world prior to colonial contact. Other critical components include an engraving of the Three Sisters milpa by Raymond Skye, a Métis Voyageur Canoe sculpture constructed of stainless steel with intricately etched and laser-cut artwork designed by Tannis Nielsen, and an Inukshuk built by Henry Kudluk made from rock with orange lichen–a colour associated with the orange shirts commemorating National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. A Two Row Wampum Path consisting of coloured precast concrete anchored by a white pine Tree of Peace on its south end link the work of the various artists while connecting visitors to the existing Peace Garden at the northern edge of this new installation.
“We are privileged to have been given the opportunity as the architects of this project to facilitate, assemble and realize the creative teachings and voices of the many artists, knowledge keepers and leaders within the Indigenous community,” says Gow Hastings Principal Philip Hastings, adding “The Spirit Garden embodies our firm’s commitment to listening, learning, and co-creating with our clients. Throughout the process, we have always tried to be careful listeners, acting as facilitators to help bring the community’s vision to life.”
The site acknowledges the Seven Directions in Indigenous placemaking which collectively represent a holistic approach to understanding the world and our place in it. At the intersection of the four cardinal directions (north, east, south, and west), a vertical axis exists which represents two additional directions —below us to the underworld and above us to the sky world. The seventh direction is at the point where the axes converge which represents the heart that beats within each of us. These spiritual and relational directions reflect Indigenous worldviews, emphasize balance, interconnectedness, and a deep relationship with the land, community and how we move about the earth. “As architects, we believe the tradition of building is passed down from generation to generation and in celebrating the opening of the Spirit Garden, our greatest wish is to witness the transformation of the site’s many elements into a place that continues to teach current and future generations–both Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples alike–how to live, talk and respect each other through spaces that bring us together, and do not set us apart,” says Hastings.
In summing up his sentiments towards the project, Two Row Architect Principal Brian Porter offers, “For me, the Spirit Garden is both a seed and a portal. As a seed, it provides a catalyst for the relationship between the Original Peoples of Turtle Island and all Canadians to improve and flourish through healing, sharing, and learning activities that are in alignment with the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Calls to Action. As a portal, it offers regional, national, and international visitors to Tkaronto a glimpse into the rich heritage of Our Peoples from the City’s ‘front porch’. It will encourage them to seek out more opportunities to experience the culture through the appropriate and meaningful programming that is being presented by our communities and service providers throughout Ontario and across Canada.”
Photography: Christopher Wahl