Queen West Sculpture Fosters Physical and Symbolic Reflection
Artist Jyhling Lee unveils new permanent public artwork Reflector
When Jyhling Lee of Figureground Studio was young, the corner of Queen Street between Spadina and Yonge was the heart of the city. “It was always a place to see and be seen,” she recalls. So, when she learned that the neighbourhood BIA was revitalizing that very streetscape with PMA Architects, she eagerly got involved. Unveiled on June 21st during a summer solstice celebration, her Queen West sculpture, Reflector, began living up to its name. With performances by Indigenous mother-daughter duo Nichole Leveck and Indiana Cada, drummer Elijah Stevens, and installations by local artist Scott Eunson and Wyandot Elder Catherine Tammaro among others, Lee’s sculpture reflects both the silhouettes and the spirit of the community.
Photo by Kurtis Chen.
Located at the northwest corner of Queen and Soho Streets, the 3.2-metre-high mirrored sculpture is made entirely of mirror polish stainless steel scales. Although Lee is no stranger to the material, this was her first time working with mirrored scale to such an immersive degree. With a dazzling kaleidoscopic effect—which oscillates equally under a blue sky, in the rain, or at night—Reflector features a structure of complex geometries. Based on origami forms Lee has played with all her life, the Queen West sculpture was imagined as a bowl, creating both a symbolic and a physical space for reflection.
“They wanted a landmark that would bring people together and really celebrate Queen Street.” Photo by Eng C Lau.
With two iterations and a two-year design process, Reflector was originally created back in 2019. By the time the project made it to the fabrication phase, COVID-19 had hit. The team ran into other challenges, like an unmarked gas line and safety concerns about sight-lines which led the smooth base being opened up into pointed ‘feet’. “That was part of the safety and design process aspect in evolving the sculptural form,” she says, “I think it actually enhanced the sculpture—these kind of pointy little feet.”
Photo by Eng C Lau.
And now we wait. How will the public react? It seems as though this Queen West sculpture has been embraced already. Even with the regular cleanings organized by the BIA to keep the steel surface shining, the mirrored exterior bears the marks of little hands and curious fingerprints. At the unveiling ceremony, Torontonians lined up—in typical Canadian fashion—eagerly awaiting their chance to experience Reflector. A wandering police officer was even spotted picking food from his teeth in the reflection. For now, Reflector seems to have captured its community.
Photo by Eng C Lau.
“People would just line up and take turns. It’s a space where people wanted to respect each other’s time within it. Everyone didn’t crowd in at the same time. It was like, all right, you have your moment to enjoy it, take your photograph, and then come out, and then the next group would go in.”
