Toronto phone booth fun house

DIY funhouse revitalizes Toronto phone booth

I can't remember that last time I used a pay phone — a failure of memory that I'm sure I'm not alone in experiencing. And yet, pay phones and phone booths still dot Toronto's urban landscape, relics from a time when a "text" was a book and a "mobile phone" meant one with a really long cord. I'm sure they get used once in a while, but their heyday has certainly passed.

So what to do with them?

Toronto phone booth funhouse

Here's an idea: let's turn them into "fun booths." Spotted yesterday on Christie just north of Dupont, this DIY mini-funhouse, complete with wacky mirrors, proved quite the lure for those passing by. I have no idea who put this little intervention together or if there are others around, but in the 10 minutes or so that I spent while taking photos of it, not one person walking by could resist taking a closer look at this strange creation. Not surprisingly, it also acted as something of a tractor beam for kids.

Toronto phone booth Street art

Who knows? Maybe this was set up for someone's birthday party, or had something to do with the Santa Claus Parade? Despite its undetermined origins, I'm a fan. What do you think — is this a street art intervention we can all get behind?

Thanks to Brian Anderson for the tip!


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