'It's what I have to do': Toronto artist paints message of support for Paris

Victor Fraser paints a chalk mural in Toronto on Monday, Nov. 16, 2015.

A Toronto street painter is using his talent to send a message of support to those affected by Friday’s terror attacks in Paris.

Victor Fraser has spent the last 20 years painting on the pavements of six different countries, inspired by events in the world around him.

And when he heard about the attacks in Paris, he knew he had to do something.

“It’s what I can do and it’s what I have to do and what I need to do,” Fraser said.

Fraser painted the message ‘Force to Paris’ in three different locations around Toronto.

“Force de Paris is the first thing that came to my head...Strength to Paris and to the people of Paris,” he said.

Fraser has been creating art on city streets for two decades. He said the paintings are indented to remind people of the events taking place around them.

“It’s not permanent, it will fade in time,” Fraser said. “It’s not supposed to be here forever.”

His work includes a Blue Jays logo, a collection of hearts outside the Sick Kids hospital, a Remembrance Day memorial and an alphabet that stretches along Danforth Avenue. Each piece is signed with the hashtag #whatsvictorupto.

But Fraser is dealing with a debilitating form of arthritis that affects the spine that could soon make him unable to paint.

He has set up a GoFundMe page to help him fund his much-needed physiotherapy so he can keep creating art for as long as possible.

Despite the pain, Fraser says he’ll keep painting “until I can’t, until my body won’t let me anymore.

With a report from CTV Toronto’s Scott Lightfoot