Second Shade

Mary Mattingly

Part of Sun/Shade
Project Render

Echoing both the towering structures of downtown skyscrapers and a forest of trees, Mary Mattingly’s Second Shade combines lush greenery and repurposed construction materials to make a unique 20ft tall urban canopy, showcasing the cooling potential of green roofs, soft landscaping, and responsive architecture.

As temperatures rise and the city continues to grow denser, the need for cooling strategies in Toronto has never been more urgent. Dominated by concrete and glass, urban environments absorb, retain, and omit heat, making them increasingly inhospitable areas in the face of global climate change. In response, how can we design our built landscapes to better regulate temperature and create more livable and adaptable public spaces?

Situated atop the hill along Strachan Avenue, on the west edge of The Bentway site, Second Shade is a new sculptural installation by artist Mary Mattingly (New York, USA) that envisions the city’s evolving skyline as an integrated, climate-attentive ecosystem. Combining lush greenery and repurposed construction materials, the piece forms an abstracted urban canopy—a powerful signpost for the cooling potential of emerging architecture as the city continues to grow.

The design echoes both the towering structures of downtown skyscrapers and a forest of trees, each acting as multileveled community systems that support life and survival. The sun-loving and heat-tolerant plantings demonstrate the capabilities of green roofs and soft landscaping, highlighting the importance ofvegetation that can combat heat absorption. By repurposing and reimagining the materials that shape our city, Mattingly highlights the potential for a built environment that doesn’t just grow upward and outward but creates new possibilities for responsive architecture that cools our public spaces against a warming environment.

What to expect:

  • A site-specific installation made up of scaffolding, pipe structures, and reclaimed industrial materials constructed to replicate an urban skyline. The towers become nesting grounds for plant life indigenous to Southern Ontario.
  • The installation is visible from a nearby accessible pathway, and located on a grassy, uneven hill. Visitors are not invited to climb the hill or scaffolding towers. There are two accessible paved sidewalks to view the structure very close by.
  • All-gender and accessible washrooms available on-site nearby at The Bentway Skate Trail. Please visit The Bentway’s homepage for current washroom opening hours.
  • Benches are located nearby to the north of the installation for those who require seating.

collaborators

project team

Fabrication: Action Scaffold, Steel & Oak Designs

Nursery: Beech Nursery

supporters

Commissioned by The Bentway

Sun-safety partner
David Cornfield Melanoma Fund

Supported by
Balsam Foundation
City of Toronto
TD Bank Group
and The Bentway’s growing family of friends and supporters

With help from partners at
Save Your Skin Foundation

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