7/17/2010

This place is a wet dream for self-professed technology-meets-design-meets-media geeks like me. I knew I could really get into this little boutique as soon as I saw two different editions of Marshall McLuhan's "The Medium is the Massage" in the window. Nice.  Here, you'll find a great selection of books and magazines geared towards technology, DIY, modern art and design. A small area features t-shirts with unique designs, and there's a DVD area with a well-curated selection of documentaries (they carry Bomb It, a really good doc on the graffiti movement, among other gems like Helvetica, Objectified, etc) and experimental films. They even carry my favorite kind of journal-writing pens, Stabilo Sensors!

There's a gallery in the back, though when I visited today they were setting up for a new show and there weren't any pieces on display. I became a fan of this shop on Facebook as soon as I got home so I can check out the show openings and possibly fill up some extra space on my walls. :)

It's a little off the beaten path in Kensington Market, but definitely worth a visit.I've only been in Toronto a couple of weeks, but I can already tell that Function 13 may become an expensive habit for me down the line.

Listed in: Toronto Favorites

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3/29/2010 5 photos

As I entered Kensington Market on a rainy Sunday to do a full recon of the area, writing notes for Yelp reviews as I went, Function13 was my first stop, and was the coolest place I saw that day!

Let's start with some factual info.... it's a gallery/bookshop/DVD store/artspace which has been there since 2007. Jan, who was staffing the counter, was quiet but very helpful, as she explained that Function13 (the gallery/store - http://function13.ca/), and the Rich Media Institute (teaching/learning space downstairs in the basement - http://richmediainstit...), were under the umbrella of
Flash in the Can' (http://www.fitc.ca/), which is an arts/events organization. The store 'is the face' as Jan put it.

Now back to the store.....words like friendly, quiet, museum-bookstore-like, eclectic, urbane, and intelligent describe this really exceptional little combo gallery/store. Collectible vinyl toys/figures, DVDs (docos, art stuff), books, graphic tees, skateboard decks, art, and more are very well laid out, with a full gallery space for events and art in the back.

Open 7 days a week, this place is truly a world class find, and if I lived here I would be ALL over their classes, events, sister organizations/companies, and would want to get to know other folks who frequent their happenings. This place alone made me want to move into Kensington Market because it said that truly intellectual alternative people were in the vicinity regularly! Check it out!

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6/9/2009

Neato little boutique nestled in the depths of Kensington Market next to The Boat. Jam-packed with an array of design books, mags, t-shirts, art, posters, and knick-knacks.

Oftentimes you'll find them hosting their own evening entertainment (though of a breed unlike the boozey dance-a-thons next door). Replete with trippy visuals, this place is a place of sensory overload on event nights. Gallery openings, live auctions, DJ-sets - they all go down here (check their site for events).

By day, however, you'll find it much more... docile? The last time I was in here with 3 other customers and the guy behind the counter, you could hear a pin drop. Slightly unsettling, but maybe that's just being them being fancy.

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