The St. Anne’s fire in Toronto highlights the significance of space for cities and communities

[Pelican Press 0]

The St. Anne’s ***** in Toronto highlights the significance of space for cities and communities

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

The public reaction to the

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

that consumed St. Anne’s Anglican ******* on Toronto’s Gladstone Street is remarkable on many levels.

Given how secular

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

, the amount of television and newspaper coverage of the ***** is striking.

Moreover, while the unique nature of the *******’s design and artwork is heralded as a national treasure (the building was designated as a

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

), the ******* has struggled

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

.

Finally, despite being celebrated for its art treasures, a great deal of the media coverage has focused on the impact of the ***** on ******* members and the local community. Beyond its own worship services, the ******* has engaged in community outreach and

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

.

These dynamics bring into clear view the often-overlooked significance of space in contemporary cities and communities, and the impact a dramatic tragedy has on public imagination and community identity.

Buildings impact their surroundings

Built in 1908, St. Anne’s was immediately noteworthy, standing out for its

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

inspired by designs originating in the Eastern half of the Roman Empire (like

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

). This was in stark contrast to the architectural style typical of the Anglican tradition at the time, particularly the neo-Gothic approach to ******* design.

Architects remind us that buildings make statements and impact their surroundings. Was St. Anne’s intended to be a more ***********-friendly expression of the Anglican ******* than the prominent Anglo-********* style of the *******? Or was drawing from Eastern Orthodox Christianity meant to inspire a vision of unity across different denominations?

The concept behind the design has remained a puzzle and been much debated by art historians like

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

and

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

.

As Coffman notes, when St. Anne’s was built, some ********** observers objected to the building’s dome because it made them think of a mosque or synagogue. This highlights the impact architecture can have on observers as it aligns or deviates from the attitudes and culture of the community it is located in.

Distinct artwork

In 1923, the peculiarity of St. Anne’s was enhanced by the commissioning of a team of artists from the Ontario College of Art to decorate the ******* interior with Byzantine-style art resembling eastern iconography more than dominant styles in western ********** art.

Much of the work was done by three artists (including

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

) who would become part of Canada’s famed “Group of Seven.” The result was a ******* building

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

, leading many architectural historians to describe it as “

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

.”

In recent decades, scholars have emphasized the significance of place for shaping community and identity. Environmental issues, the impact of globalization and the rapid pace of urban redevelopment have elevated the significance of place and geography, prompting new attention to the nature of human identity, belonging and the ethics of decisions over the use of shared space.

Collaborative video from St. Anne’s and the McMichael Collection of ********* Art examines J.E.H. MacDonald’s works in St. Anne’s and links these with his Group of Seven paintings.

These reflections have heightened awareness of how power dynamics, cultural meaning and ecological implications affect decisions about the use of space in societies. These considerations are also prominent in dialogues between Indigenous Peoples and their neighbors, in which the

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

and one’s

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

are key themes.

Space as ‘social product’

As the

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

argued, space is not simply inherited from nature, but “is a social product.” Space is shaped by human activity, based on certain goals and preoccupations, and is thus not merely a neutral backdrop.

Lefebvre was particularly concerned with ways that modern capitalism encourages fragmented spaces that prioritize efficiency and consumption over community life and social interaction.

More recently, the ******* philosopher

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

discusses space as the venue in which a sense of self is shaped and individual and communal identity formed.

Lefebvre’s conception of space helps one understand how the idiosyncratic design of St. Anne’s

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

and culture at the time the ******* was built—including the impact of changing demographics, rising cultural diversity and local religious rivalries.

How we think about and value space

Lefebvre’s work also highlights how changes in the economy, urban planning and cultural norms modify how people think about, value and organize space. In the late 1990s, St. Anne’s struggled to pay to renovate its

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

. One question the St. Anne’s ***** highlights is the nature of churches as sites of cultural heritage amid a

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

.

Sloterdijk’s emphasis on how space shapes identity highlights how the loss of such space can result in a lost sense of identity. This resonates with a theme emphasized by the rector of St. Anne’s,

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

, following the *****. Beyers describes disorientation and deep emotional turmoil experienced by members of the ******* and the surrounding neighborhood. A connection to a place brings meaning to human lives. The loss of a cherished space is often not only painful, but even traumatic.

The St. Anne’s community will have to face navigating

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

, particularly once media interest fades.

The leadership of the ******* appear to be alert to this, and poised to respond. Nevertheless, navigating such disorienting emotional dynamics will be challenging.

Identity, space and environment

It will be interesting to observe whether the sudden appreciation for the significance of the St. Anne’s space will be lasting, or whether this recognition will quickly fade as the news cycle moves on and the redevelopment frenzy of urban Toronto resumes. Perhaps the media attention to the St. Anne’s ***** signals that at least to some extent, many Canadians are becoming increasingly attuned to connections between identity, space and the environment.

As the Osage theologian

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

writes, “a firm sense of filial attachment to particular place” is related to “a responsibility to relate to the land.”

If the tragic ***** of St. Anne’s does indeed inspire people to be more attuned to such issues in ********* society, then perhaps hope can indeed be found even amid this disaster. As Beyers has said in interviews, the people of St. Anne’s believe that new life emerges in the wake of ******.

Provided by
The Conversation

This article is republished from

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

under a Creative Commons license. Read the

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

.

Citation:
The St. Anne’s ***** in Toronto highlights the significance of space for cities and communities (2024, June 17)
retrieved 18 June 2024
from

This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair dealing for the purpose of private study or research, no
part may be reproduced without the written permission. The content is provided for information purposes only.

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

Science, Physics News, Science news, Technology News, Physics, Materials, Nanotech, Technology, Science
#Annes #***** #Toronto #highlights #significance #space #cities #communities

This is the hidden content, please

• Sign In
• or
• Sign Up

For verified travel tips and real support, visit: https://hopzone.eu/