Someone just created a series of Toronto neighbourhood stamps
If you're the kind of person who still sends snail mail, you'll like the idea behind the newest project by a Toronto artist, who's making stamp art of the city we know and love.
Illustrator Dave Murray — the same artist behind the popular word cloud maps of Toronto a decade ago — has come out with a series called Neighbourhood Stamps.
These square black-and-white pieces aren't really stamps (though Murray has been commissioned to make some bee stamps for Canada Post) but they are shaped like them.
Paying hommage to neighbourhoods and landmarks around the city, Murray has released the first series of 12" x 12" silkscreened artwork, which include eight iconic locales like Parkdale and the Scarborough Bluffs.
Fuelled by his interest in signage and neighbourhood development, Murray says he wanted to continue his word mapping project, but with a more illustrative approach.
"What came to me was the catchphrase: Where you are, where you've been, and where you're going," says Murray.
"It's a bit of an urban exploration in a place where I've lived for over 10 years. You'd think I'd know it pretty well by now, but I'm always surprised at what I find."
Neighbourhood Stamps is an ongoing project. New neighbourhoods and landmarks will be added eventually. Image via Dave Murray.
The Yarmouth street elephant is one spot that Murray discovered more recently; that design is slated to be part of his next release, as is the lesser-known G. Ross Lord Reservoir.
While it's challenging to fit recognizable imagery inside a rigid square format, Murray says that Neighbourhood Stamps is an ongoing projet. Areas like Roncesvalles, Cabbagetown, Leslieville, and the Beaches will eventually have their own stamps, too.
You can order the stamp artwork online for $20 a piece. All orders are silkscreened by Kensington's Kid Icarus, and will be shipped out by mid-November.
Dave Murray
