What the Land Knows, Fill Remembers

Both a process and product, this paper charts the evolution and implications of changing definitions of fill —material generated through demolition and excavation used to create new landforms— through its application at three human-made landscapes along Toronto’s shoreline; the Leslie Street spit, Ontario Place and Humber Bay park. In doing so, it considers what memories relocated matter embodies. Following fill through various material compositions as awareness of its impact on the water grows, this paper contemplates how new landscapes made with old material are inscribed with layered histories of physical and political transformation.