McMurtry Gardens of Justice Incorporated

McMurtry Gardens of Justice Opens New Website

Toronto, November 5, 2013 --- The McMurtry Gardens of Justice announces the opening of its new website describing its program for the acquisition and installation of works of art celebrating the rule of law and the system of justice in Canada.

Located in the pedestrian mall that runs from University Avenue to Nathan Phillips Square between Osgoode Hall and the courthouse at 361 University Avenue in Toronto, the McMurtry Gardens of Justice sculpture garden adds interest and beauty to this judicial precinct and recognizes the decades of exemplary public service to the people of Ontario and Canada by the Honourable R. Roy McMurtry.

Photo: Mark Stegel

The website highlights our first four statues: “The Pillars of Justice” by Edwina Sandys, installed in 2007 (shown above); “Freedom of Expression” and “Freedom of Religion” by Marlene Hilton Moore; and “Equal Before the Law” by Eldon Garnet, all installed in 2012.

McMurtry Gardens of Justice Seeks Additional Works of Art

Toronto, September 10, 2013 --- The McMurtry Gardens of Justice announces the issuance, to a pre-selected group of artists, of a call for proposals for additional works of art for the McMurtry Gardens of Justice in Toronto.

Photo: Mark Stegel

The McMurtry Gardens of Justice is located in front of the main Toronto courthouse at 361 University Avenue and throughout the pedestrian mall along its south side extending from University Avenue to Nathan Phillips Square (City Hall). A site plan of the Gardens that indicates the various potential locations for these new sculptures is shown elsewhere on this website. The new works of art, like the four existing statues, will capture the public interest and communicate and celebrate the importance of the system of justice and the rule of law in Canadian society.

Suggested themes for the proposed works include access to justice; fairness, impartiality and the right to due process; the independence of the judiciary; the lawyer as an advocate in Canadian society; the rule of law; and the charter of rights and freedoms.

McMurtry Gardens of Justice Dedicates 3 New Sculptures for 80th Birthday Celebration for Hon. Roy McMurtry

Toronto, May 30, 2012---The McMurtry Gardens of Justice celebrated the dedication of three new sculptures and the 80th birthday of the Hon. R. Roy McMurtry, former Chief Justice of the Court of Appeal for Ontario and the province’s Attorney General from 1975 to 1985.

Photo: Norm Betts

Located in the pedestrian avenue that runs from University Avenue to Nathan Phillips Square between Osgoode Hall and the Courthouse at 361 University Avenue in Toronto, the sculpture garden and education centre recognize the decades of exemplary public service to the people of Ontario and Canada by the Honourable R. Roy McMurtry, while enhancing the judicial precinct.

The Gardens presents as an ideal tribute to a man who has made an enormous contribution to our community and our country. “As a long serving public servant, elected official, jurist and diplomat, the Honourable Roy McMurtry has been widely recognized for his compassion, inspiration and dedication to the development of a fair, just and enlightened society,” said Justice Gloria Epstein, co-founder and initial inspiration behind the Gardens. As a tribute to Roy and to the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Gardens, as it comes to full symbolic bloom, will communicate to the public, through artistic expression, the values that form the foundation of our system of justice.