The Collector: a multicoloured midtown rental bursting with over-the-top opulence

Alex Donovan hoards beautiful things. The 53-year-old decorator bought his first piece of art—a vivid screen print by Ann-Marie LeQuesne—in 1982, after moving from Woodstock to Toronto to study art and design. He’s since lent his flamboyant sense of style to homes all over the city, both as an interior designer and as a buyer for upscale furniture showrooms like HorseFeathers, 1212 Decor and Barrymore. All the while, he’s amassed his own cache of treasures, transforming an 800-square-foot rental apartment near Yonge and St. Clair into an explosion of colour and art. The five small rooms, which he shares with his bichon frise, Flanders, are chockablock with enough canvasses, sculptures and ornate furnishings to fill a Rosedale estate. But Donovan doesn’t mind the tight squeeze. He loves reading magazines and watching TV in his hot pink sitting room. Client meetings take place at an antique desk piled with books, candles and curios. It’s tricky to keep things organized—one reason for the ever-growing collection of antique armoires—but Donovan has never been tempted to move into a bigger place. “Why should I?” he says. “This way, I can always reach my drink.”