Casa Loma definitely needs 'something' but I definitely wouldn't sell it, no matter what
Well, I know it might
sound terrible at first, but functioning well as what it was intended to be isn't such a terrible fate for Casa Loma. It's still a part of the built environment that we can enjoy without it being public property. Most buildings in the city are privately owned. I'd rather it be all it can be, rather than languish in its present state. Leaving it in the hands of government is the biggest problem...they are usually poor stewards of things like this, and in a lot of cases, simply demolishing things so they don't have to worry about them anymore is their favourite thing. We are VERY lucky Casa Loma wast simply demolished (Chorley park wasn't so lucky).
But yea, that wouldn't be my first choice either. And it's highly unlikely anyway.
and I just don't see the fit with a modern art museum here. I can't help but feel that modern art needs a blank canvas around it, and Casa Loma definitely isn't a blank canvas.
Oh...that's just the conventional wisdom. And when it comes to modernist art, convention is sometimes the enemy. Modernist art in traditional spaces can be a wonderful juxtaposition, just as modern furniture can look best in a traditional space (I can't imagine a better place for an Even Penny than Sir Henry's bathroom). We have come to see using old industrial space as a gallery, as the Distillery District has shown, so why not a castle? It isn't like it is a new idea....what do you think the Louvre is? Closer to home, where do you think the AGO started...what was once a private mansion. Sorry, but the idea that art is always best enjoyed in a void is not an idea I support.
The problem with the castle is that as with the city it lords over it suffers an identity crisis.
Oh...not that old story again. Cities don't have identity issues...people do. I for one, identify quite strongly with the city, and more importantly...in a very positive way. If some people don't...that's their problem.
The very thing that makes the castle interesting is in fact its history and the story of the hubris of its owner and the classic downfall, all against the backdrop of the Edwardian Toronto (so on and so on).
Heck, time the whole thing with a made-for-television movie or something and do a massive, creative add campaign around the city.
To be honest, it really isn't all that interesting of a story. If it is...write a book. Ooops...they already did. Riches to rag stories and the downfall of the wealthy has always been popular with regular folks. Watching trainwrecks is our most popular pastime...hence the popularity of reality tv. I don't think that route is the one for Casa Loma. Let the CBC do a made-for-tv movie about the life and times of Sir Henry. Some people might even watch it...but I don't see this as the long term goal for the building. History is full of barons and industrialists...Sir Henry is just not that compelling as some kind of poor Canadian version of a Vanderbilt.
It just needs to raise its profile.
And the best way to do that is to put it to good use. And promoting Canadian art is far more useful than trying to interest people in the life and times of one Sir Henry.
Improve the quality of the narrative and tours, improve the restoration, add more artefacts and more context, and brand it better, quite simply, and Casa Loma could be one of the more interesting sites to visit in the city.
But that is never going to happen, because doing so would require an amount of money that is NEVER going to materialize. This only works when the contents are intact. Casa Loma was acquired by the city empty and only partly finished, for the owed back taxes ($27k). It should have paid Sir Henry for the contents, and then at least it would have had a chance. As it stands, putting Casa Loma back to its proper context would cost so much money, the city couldn't afford to buy a single painting, let alone fill an entire castle full of the appropriate stuff. Walking around there looking at the bits and pieces of junk they have in there now is laughable.
Its current status is probably more of a reflection on Kiwanis than on the merits of the site itself.
Sure it is. But who kept it that way for 74 frigging years? The city. Like I said...as the owners, they are the ones who couldn't come up with anything better for 74 years. The Kiwanis are just doing what they do...try and raise money for their causes. And while they have many good causes, Casa Loma is not one of them unfortunately. They only use it as a cash cow to do other things.