“Guild Park’s first officially recognized heritage plaque was informally unveiled by a small group of volunteers on June 28, 2020.
The plaque commemorates The Guild of All Arts, which operated as a unique artists’ community on the site from 1932 to about 1995.
In keeping with the current Covid-19 restrictions, only a few people gathered by the plaque, while they maintained physical distancing and wore protective masks to watch the proceedings.
The new plaque, which includes text and photos, was authorized and approved by Heritage Toronto. All previous plaques on the site had been installed privately, without the benefit of rigorous historic research.
Once the Covid restrictions are lifted, a public celebration for the heritage plaque will be held for supporters of Guild Park and Heritage Toronto, plus park officials and stakeholders.
Meanwhile, excerpts from the recent informal unveiling are shared in the linked video. Included are comments from:
• John Mason, Friends of Guild Park
• Ulrik Westergaard, Guildwood Village Community Assn. (GVCA)
• Janet Heise, Guild Renaissance Group (GRG), and
• Dorsey James, artist-in-residence, during the Guild of All Arts era.
The thousands of dollars raised for this heritage plaque came from Guild Park’s many supporters, including the GVCA, the GRG, Trafalgar Travel and hundreds of individuals. Thanks to everyone who contributed”
Guildwoodian 