The opening of a new joint mural project signals the future westward expansion of The Bentway’s programming offerings and trail, under Strachan Ave into Exhibition Place.
On the occasion of the opening of a jointly-commissioned public art project, The Bentway and Exhibition Place revealed plans to build a connection point between our two sites, adding 60,0000 sq. ft. of new public space along the Gardiner Expressway.
new mural project
Rebecca Munce’s vibrant new artwork, entitled Petal and Stone, is presented along a massive 10,000 sq. ft. concrete wall built below the Gardiner facing Liberty Village, at the current threshold between Bentway Phase 1 and neighbouring Exhibition Place.
The project’s large canvas makes it visible to thousands daily, including GO and VIA rail passengers, nearby high-rise residents, and pedestrians on Strachan Ave crossing beneath the Expressway.
Petal and Stone reinterprets the highway’s concrete wall as a veil between the two sites, signalling their future connectivity. Munce’s design offers a series of dreamlike, ornate passageways, indicating the transformation of the Gardiner into a new front door and referencing Exhibition Place’s historic architecture. It is the Toronto-born artist’s first foray into public art and her first project at monumental scale. Petal and Stone is expected to remain in place for 2 years, the first in a new rotating Gardiner Wallworks series.
future bentway extension
This new public artwork sits along a future Bentway extension that will connect both sites together. Funding to kick off early designs has just been confirmed by the City of Toronto, and will be supplemented by The Bentway’s growing family of supporters.
Once complete, visitors will be able to pass seamlessly across The Bentway’s multi-use trail, past Fort York, under Strachan Ave, into Exhibition Place through to Manitoba Drive – forming a vital first-mile/last-mile connection to the nearby Ontario Line currently under construction. Locals and visitors alike will be able to “take the Bentway” to the new Exhibition subway station.
(contextual map)
Led jointly by both organizations, the design process will build opportunities to extend The Bentway’s landscape strategies, wayfinding/identity features, and programming offerings – both outdoors and within a large enclosed interior space under the highway.
Following the appointment of a design team in early 2026, initial concepts for the extension are planned later that year. Construction is expected to follow in a few years’ time once Metrolinx’s Ontario Line work in the area has been completed. Future financing is anticipated from a range of public and private sources.
shared vision
Through this partnership, Exhibition Place is proudly playing a leadership role in supporting The Bentway’s work to “unlock” new possibilities below the Gardiner Expressway; an opportunity prioritized in the Exhibition Place Master Plan.
While The Bentway was first envisioned as a single site, the organization’s impact and ambition have grown. The Under Gardiner Public Realm Plan, approved by Toronto City Council in 2024, offers a comprehensive vision for all the underutilized spaces below and adjacent to the highway along its full 7km elevated length (from Dufferin to the DVP).
Implementation of this plan is now in motion. A second Bentway site (at the foot of Spadina Ave) is already in design, led by landscape architects Field Operations and Brook McIlroy.
The westward extension announced today is another exciting step in continuing to reimagine how the highway can connect, perform, and inspire.
supporters & partners
Petal and Stone was co-commissioned by The Bentway in partnership with Exhibition Place.
Supporters: City of Toronto, Manulife, Balsam Foundation, RBC Foundation, Waltons Trust, Ontario Arts Council, and The Bentway’s growing family of supporters
Special thanks to: Metrolinx, Connect 6ix, Rhapsody Property Management
Producer: ASHOP Productions
