Welcome to the City of Toronto website

The Market Gallery offers changing exhibitions dedicated to Toronto's history, art and culture. Located inside the South St. Lawrence Market, in Toronto's oldest neighbourhood, the main gallery occupies the 19th century city council chamber which is all that remains from the City Hall that stood on this site from 1845 to 1899. Staff at the gallery also manage the City of Toronto's Fine Art Collection.

Building a City: People, Places and Life in Toronto 1845 – 1899

Exhibition runs from March 9, 2013 to September 14, 2013

News Release for this exhibit (PDF)

Get Adobe Acrobat Reader

To receive advance notice of each upcoming exhibit, please send your mailing and/or e-mail address to marketgallery@toronto.ca.

Previous Exhibits

The Market Gallery is located at:

South St. Lawrence Market
95 Front St. E.
Second Floor
Toronto, ON
M5E 1C2
Map

Directions:

Public Transit/TTC:

From the King Subway (Yonge and King) take the streetcar or walk EAST to Jarvis St. Walk one block SOUTH to the South St. Lawrence Market (Jarvis and Front). As an alternate, take the subway to Union station (Bay/Front) and walk EAST along Front St. to the South St. Lawrence Market (Jarvis and Front). Enter the building through the main double doors on Front St. From the lobby take the elevator or stairs to the second floor.

Driving:

From the West
Exit the Gardiner Expressway at Yonge St. Turn NORTH (left) onto Yonge St. Turn EAST (right) onto Front St. Continue along Front St. to the South St. Lawrence Market. Enter the building through the main double doors on Front St. From the lobby take the elevator or stairs to the second floor.

From the East
Exit the Gardiner Expressway at Jarvis St. Turn NORTH (right) onto Jarvis St. Turn WEST (left) onto Front St. Enter the South St. Lawrence Market through the main double doors on Front St. From the lobby take the elevator or stairs to the second floor.

From the North
Travel SOUTHBOUND on Jarvis St. to Front St. Turn WEST (right) onto Front St. Enter the South St. Lawrence Market through the main double doors on Front St. From the lobby take the elevator or stairs to the second floor.

Parking:

Metered street parking is available on Market Street south of Front Street. Paid parking garages can be found on Jarvis Street just south of Front Street and on Market Street south of The Esplanade (also accessible from Church Street and Yonge Street).

Gallery hours:

Tuesday - Friday, 10 am - 4 pm
Saturday, 9 am - 4 p.m.

Closures:

The Market Gallery is closed on the following holidays: New Year's Day, Family Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Victoria Day, Canada Day, Simcoe Day, Labour Day, Thanksgiving Monday, Remembrance Day, Christmas Day, Boxing Day.

The gallery also closes for one week following the end of each exhibit to install the next exhibit. The next installation closure will take place: March 4 to 8, 2013.

Contact Us:

Phone: 416-392-7604
Fax: 416-392-0572
E-mail: marketgallery@toronto.ca

Help support the Market Gallery with your purchase of these unique souvenirs!

Historic Toronto print of St. Lawrence neighbourhood available for purchase

This 1854 bird's-eye view by Edwin Whitefield illustrates a city of over 40,000 inhabitants centred along the harbour and the original City Hall, the site of today's South St. Lawrence Market and the Market Gallery. The busy harbour and Toronto's original shoreline came up to the back of City Hall, where The Esplanade is today. Not long after this image was created, the shoreline would undergo reclamation to allow for the railways.

Large size colour reproduction print available at the Market Gallery for $20.00 ($17.70 + HST) (22" x 32") (cash sales only)

Market Gallery fridge magnet - $2.00

Features a reproduction of St. Lawrence Market from Front and Market Streets, 1943 by Nicholas Hornyansky, a lithograph in the City of Toronto's Fine Art Collection.

Market Gallery tote bag - $5.00

Features the same image as on the magnet on one side, and the Market Gallery's logo on the other side.

By popular demand, four poster reproductions of works from the City of Toronto's Fine Art Collection - $5.00 each (12" x 16")

At the time of this City Hall's construction in 1844 (ten years after the City was incorporated from the Town of York), Toronto's population was around 24,000. By the end of the century, Toronto's population had grown to over 200,000, resulting in the civic offices being transferred to what is now known as Old City Hall at Bay and Queen streets. In 1902 the south market building opened, and the front centre section of the 19th century city hall which had been enclosed but boarded up, was soon forgotten. It wasn't until the 1970s with the renovations to the south market building, that the council chamber was rediscovered and put to a dignified use as a City display space.

The Market Gallery opened in 1979 as the official exhibition space and storage of the City's permanent art collection. Since its opening the Gallery has displayed over 120 exhibitions revealing the cultural, physical, and social development of Toronto through paintings, photographs, fine art, maps, documents and other items, some dating back to the 19th century.

With downtown Toronto as a backdrop, students can participate in our many interactive curriculum-linked programs, including mapping activities and role playing. Take advantage of our location and all that the oldest neighbourhood in Toronto has to offer. Programs are available for elementary and secondary school students, students of ESL, and community groups.

Back to top