The South Bayview Bulldog

The internationally-known art and framing service at 75 Laird Drive is one of those places that just quietly builds business around the world while remaining an unobtrusive fixture in its own neighbourhood.  As told by the owner of Emmet’s Custom Framing, it’s been a good place to grow and prosper. Emmet Maddix is surrounded by thousands of frames and samples in his cavernous showroom. A large and wide soft-covered counter stretches six feet near windows where paintings and other works can be examined. Overhead, a mirror reflects the work and offers an alternative view. One of the paintings hung nearby is a portrait of the owner done in 1985. And after 51 years in the framing and restoration business (33 of them on Laird) Mr. Maddix is  feeling optimistic about the continued success of Emmet’s. He is looking forward to his son Adam taking over. “He has a very good eye for period frames,” the senior Maddix observes. Emmet’s is a mostly wholesale business, providing framing, cleaning and advice on art of all kinds. It receives much of the business of framing portraits and documents of the Ontario Government.

Paper restoration

Emmet’s undertakes, through specialists, tricky cleaning and even paper restoration. That’s the arcane task of removing black fungus spots from historic documents, agreements and letters. It’s a process known as “foxing”.  Emmet’s showroom and offices are in the unobtrusive gray building at the corner of Laird and Canvarco  Road.  It is what was the street frontage of the long since dissolved Canada Varnish Company. The original Canvarco property stretches down the side street named after the company, comprising many acres. It is owned primarily by three separate parties, one of whom is Mr. Maddix. He wisely saw the value of buying his location soon after moving there. He recalls that the owner of the varnish company was an accomplished organ recitalist and had this musical instrument in his office. He fitted speakers on the roof and played Sunday morning concerts to all of Leaside within earshot, whether they liked it or not. According to Mr Maddix, the music was well received. It is a vision that stretches the imagination of what it was like to live in this part of Leaside shortly after the mid-point of the 20th Century.