In step with the ongoing $500 million expansion efforts now well underway at Cadillac Fairview's Sherway Gardens shopping centre in the Toronto suburb of Etobicoke, the work of local artist John McEwen has debuted outside of the future location of Saks Fifth Aveneue, one of the many new high-end retail options set to open in the coming months as the popular west-end mall continues its repositioning as a go-to luxury shopping destination.

Titled, "The Miracle," McEwen's latest work features two life-sized equine statues—a mare and her foal—standing astride a decorative fountain, their hollow, welded-steel bodies comprised of thousands of tiny stars, accented here and there with maple leaves, swirls, and other abstract shapes and patterns. 

"The Miracle," by John McEwen, a mare and her foal, Sherway Gardens, image by Craig White

"The Miracle," by John McEwen, mare close-up, Sherway Gardens, image by Craig White

The latest in McEwen's impressive oeuvre, examples of the Toronto artist's work can be found at CityPlace, outside of the Air Canada Centre, and to the immediate south of Sherway Gardens, across the street from the TTC/MiWay Transit Loop out front of Menkes Developments' One Sherway condos. Seen below, by way of comparison, "Spillway 2013" by McEwen, completed as a public art project for the aforementioned One Sherway, features similarly-consturctructed, hollow, welded-steel jugs, their skins composed entirely of tiny stars. 

"Spillway 2013" by John McEwen, One Sherway, image by Craig White

"Spillway 2013" by John McEwen, close-up view, One Sherway, image by Craig White

The relationship between art and architecture has thus been a staple of McEwen's artistic process, part of a larger an artistic vision shared by Sebastian Greenall, Senior VP, Architecture and Design, for Cadillac Fairview. Greenall hopes that, "customers will be delighted by 'The Miracle'," the striking showpiece of fine art to play off of the luxury-brand-driven retail experience that Cadillac Fairview has in mind for its Sherway Gardens expansion and reinvention. McEwen is equally excited to share his work with the world, reportedly, "delighted to bring 'The Miracle' to Sherway Gardens," the piece, "formed entirely of steel stars and shapes that represent the potential and exuberance of life [one which] will deliver a 'wow' factor to the Saks Court."

The artist at work, John McEwen busy perfecting a plaster cast, image by Christopher Lawson

Plaster casts sit at the ready, image by Christopher Lawson

Creating McEwen's "Miracle" involved a long, labour-intensive process, one which necessitated first creating a set of full-size plaster casts of his subject, around which the welded-together steel skin of the horse was slowly but surely formed into its final position. Similar to how newspaper can be manipulated around a balloon to create a papier maché masterpiece, the hollow, welded-steel exoskeleton was shaped with aid of the plaster cast base. Cut from a solid plate of steel using a high-intensity laser cutter, each star, leaf, and swirl was carefully cut out, assembled, and welded into place. 

McEwen uses a laser cutter to create the steel exoskeleton, image by Christopher Lawson

Individual stars assembled into place upon plaster cast, image by Christopher Lawson

Seen in the images above and below, it is clear just how much work goes into the crafting of one of McEwen's pieces. Each section must be meticulously assembled and welded together, to be further manipulated into shape with help from the pre-made plaster cast. Every section must be perfectly formed in order to ensure that the finished product is smooth and seamless. 

McEwen welds the steel pieces together, a finished section rests in the background, image by Christopher Lawson

A finished section sits ready for assembly, image by Christopher Lawson

The end result of McEwen's labour of love comes in the form of the exquisitely crafted final product, "The Miracle" at Sherway Gardens no exception. With its completion, the shopping centre has come one step closer to its goal of self-reinvention, the pairing or fine art with luxury shopping offering a glimpse of the larger transformation underway. Once complete, the Sherway Gardens expansion will bring a total of 210,000 additional sq. ft. of premium quality retail space to the mall, the headlining new anchor tenants including the aforementioned Saks Fifth Avenue, along with Nordstrom, and a Pusateri's grocery chain. Seen below, the final image includes a view of the recently-opened northern expansion, notable for its lofty glass ceiling, and collection of high-end brands and boutiques. 

Completed portion of Sherway Gardens expansion, image by Craig White

UrbanToronto will continue to provide updates on the Sherway Gardens expansion as progress continues trough 2016. For more information, our previous story covered the openings in the North Expansion, or check out our dataBase file for the mall, linked below. You  join the conversation in our associated forum thread, or leave a comment in the space provided on this page.