Keeping Us Safe (English)

Toronto History Museums Artifact Collection

Installation Images

Face Shield, 60.5 cm x 45.5 cm

Temporary Identification badge, 16 cm x 6.7 cm

City of Toronto Information Signage (Park), 60.5 cm x 45.5 cm

City of Toronto Information Signage (Stay Apart), 60.5 cm x 45.5 cm

PPE Medical Isolation Gown, 64 cm x 101.6 cm

Installation Details

These artifacts were collected by City of Toronto staff members during the pandemic. While they were redeployed and working elsewhere, they collected many different kinds of objects knowing we would one day reflect on how they changed the landscape of our daily lives.

Memorable examples that visually transformed our environments are two City of Toronto information signs: Do Your Part / Stay Apart and About the Length of a Hockey Stick.

Richard Gerrard, a Historian with the City, was redeployed to work in long-term care homes during the COVID-19 pandemic to cover unplanned staff absences due to illness and COVID-19 isolation requirements. Acquired into the collection were Gerrard’s personal protective equipment (PPE) daily kit: medical isolation gown, face shield, and temporary identification.

All objects acquired in 2020 and provided by the Toronto History Museums Artifact Collection.