Swap Box Project in the news!

It looks like the Swap Box Project got some press. In the Montreal Gazette, specifically.

“First, there were random acts of kindness.

Then there was book crossing – the practice of leaving a good book on a park bench or a bus seat for a stranger to discover and enjoy.

The latest concept in the tradition of small acts of humanity in the urban jungle is the swap box – a receptacle for small gifts that invites people to help themselves and pass on the favour by leaving a trinket for someone else to find.”…

The reason this article reads so choppy and disjointed is that I wound up being interviewed via e-mail for something which was being rushed out. There are a couple flubbed or poorly chopped quotes of mine there…for example, while I love the Reflectorman Project I’ve got no intention of copying its robot characters. I have some ideas for using similar materials though…

On the topic of the Champ-de-Mars station redesign, I’ve been giving some thought to the idea of what a public park designed by a street artist would look like. I don’t want to mention too much and give too many ideas away, but I’m looking at interactivity and year-round connections. It has to be engaging, fun to look at and be in and open up a section of space to a wide range of possibilities.

Quebec has policies in place to give design contracts to sculptural and visual artists, and I’m definitely considering the question of what kind of public art to bring in. As I’ve said before, the problem with public art is that most of it is bland, useless and puzzling…

How then can one go from ephemerality to designing something semi-permanent? The former’s my art of choice. And this is the question that’s rattling round in my head.

A new project, writ grand…

Well folks, I thought I’d write a bit about a new project I’m working on. Namely, the redesign of the area around the Champ-de-Mars subway station in Montreal

I’m working on an entry for an open design competition which, time and sanity permitting, I will submit at the beginning of February.
This is the metro station…
(photo by Humanoide on Flickr)

Its famed stained-glass window
(photo by Moyogo)

Plans are under way to cover a stretch of the Ville-Marie Expressway, which currently cuts through a significant stretch of Montreal. Construction on covered areas of the Ville-Marie has been awkward in most places and has resulted in large stretches of parking lots and poorly-used parks. The challenge here will be to design a new public space that facilitates pedestrian and cyclist movement and relates well to its surroundings (Montreal City Hall, Viger Square, the Quartier des Spectacles).

I’ll discuss some ideas in a few days…

sleepy…

You know what beats on you pretty nastily? Grad school.
At least that’s my excuse for not uploading more of an actual update. Yep, I know I promised photos a while back as well as some worthy content, but I’ll just have to leave folks hanging again for a little while. Content, at least. Here are pics of my last two artings.

I’ll be in New Orleans five days from now and may end up working on a collaborative project or two down there.

well…

Not really much to report today. Except that I’m putting up some streetart soon and will have pics in a couple of days for you all here.

Until then, check out the wonderful website Information Is Beautiful, which is chock full of astonishingly gorgeous and informative visual renderings of data.

Also, check out the work of Spanish street artist “Spy” here