Toronto's iconic soap factory mural is in search of a new home — the question is, where?

Michael Smee · CBC

· Posted: May 01, 2025 5:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 30 minutes ago

The hunt is connected for a caller location for the monolithic mural that, for decades, was good known to drivers connected the Don Valley Parkway and Gardiner Expressway.

Sunlight Mural is an astir four-storey-high coating that overlooked the highways from its spot precocious connected the occidental partition of the Lever Brothers soap mill from 1987 to 2023.

The colourful mural, which showed the factory's interior workings, was painted by creator and teacher Phillip Woolf, portion helium worked connected the factory's assembly enactment successful the 1980s. Woolf, who went connected to go a well-known creation teacher astatine Seneca College, died of crab successful March 2023.

The works closed successful 2009. In 2023, the mural was transferred from Woolf's canvas onto 24 panels, each of which is five metres by 1.2 metres as the tract was being levelled successful mentation for the caller East Harbour transit-oriented assemblage task — a monolithic redevelopment inactive mostly successful the readying stages.

"The mural showed radical making soap which was a immense manufacture successful Toronto — it employed generations of Torontonians," said Leslie Barnes, a subordinate of the Toronto and East York Community Preservation Panel (TEYCPP), which has been trying to find organizations consenting to show the mural.

Barnes said her radical has been successful interaction with the Lever and Woolf families, and both have expressed an involvement successful the mural being placed successful a nationalist area. 

"Everyone wants this beauteous mural enactment somewhere. They privation nationalist entree to it. They privation radical to bask it," she said.

The question is where.

A past that deserves to beryllium memorialized: councillor

Michael McClelland, a practice architect not connected with the redevelopment project, said it's important the mural beryllium placed successful an concern setting, successful keeping with it its past.

"I'd similar to spot it enactment connected the site, due to the fact that it's truly a bully practice of a portion of the metropolis that doesn't truly beryllium determination anymore," helium said.

That portion of Toronto — adjacent the ft of Broadview Avenue and extending eastbound on Eastern Avenue — was erstwhile a thriving concern area, said Coun. Paula Fletcher, who's represented the neighbourhood for much than 20 years. And that past deserves to beryllium memorialized, she said.

"I deliberation it's important to admit what built our city," she said. "I don't cognize however overmuch manufacturing we'll ever person immoderate more, truthful it's beauteous historic, and I'd emotion to find a spot for it."

Although it was for decades a gritty concern area, the 25-hectare tract is present considered premier existent property with a monolithic caller improvement successful the works that volition see much than a twelve bureau and condo towers, parks, shops, and motorcycle paths arsenic good arsenic a transit hub, which is being built by Metrolinx.

Both Fletcher and the TEYCPP said they'd heard Metrolinx had been contacted astir the mural. Calls and emails from CBC Toronto to Metrolinx astir the mural's aboriginal person been unanswered.

Unclear precisely wherever the mural is 

In fact, it's not adjacent wide wherever the mural is.

Emily Ngui, an relationship manager with North Strategic, Cadillac Fairview's media relations contractor, told CBC Toronto successful an email "the mural was taken down successful November 2023 and is safely stored privately." However, she refused to fto CBC Toronto instrumentality pictures of the mural successful its retention facility.

CBC Toronto has besides asked wherever specifically the mural is present and successful what conditions it's being stored. Ngui has not yet responded to those questions.

The TEYCPP besides has besides been contemplating different ideas for a aboriginal location for the mural, according to seat Adam Wynne.

The Museum of Contemporary Art Toronto, the 401 Richmond Street West Arts Hub, oregon erstwhile concern silos on the waterfront could besides beryllium due homes for the mural, helium said successful an email to CBC Toronto.

Barnes said a caller parkland planned for Regent Park could besides location the mural eventually. The biggest challenge, she said, is the mural's size:

Fletcher agreed the mural's size could beryllium the biggest situation to uncovering it a caller home.

"It's precise large. That mightiness beryllium the lone hindering aspect," she said. "I'm hoping those who emotion this mural volition inquire the city, done the preservation board, for immoderate help, and suggest we look for a determination for this (mural)."