SIDEWALK TETRIS
In an effort to use existent materials we gathered around sixty broken down cardboard boxes that had been bundled for pick up and set about using duct tape to return these boxes to their former stature and then assembled them into new formations using the basic design of Tetris shapes (the somewhat primitive video game in which the player must fit falling cubic structures together like a puzzle). After taping together these new configurations we set about playing “Tetris” in about twenty feet of sidewalk underneath a scaffolding, at times leaving the boxes in a maze-like structure, and occasionally re-arranging them.
BIRDS OF A FEATHER
In this installation we used white faux birds carrying shipping tags adorned with silk screened illustrations of birds, strung in a flock formation throughout a large corridor of scaffolding on Avenue A between 4th and 5th streets. The materials were chosen to act as a simulation of a simulation (in 3-D and 2-D), and to reference an archaic form of communication, the carrier pigeon. Many stopped to gaze and smile, while many others tried, even begged, to purchase some of the birds, only to be disappointed by our not-for-profit ideals. Our only mistake was initially hanging the flock a little too low—one woman clothes-lined herself and simultaneously destroyed the installation, and then walked away huffing obscenities under her breath.
MIRROR TAGS
In this installation we silk-screened gold and black mirror frames onto self-adhesive reflective mirrored Mylar. These small and large mirrors were installed a number of times over various walls and surfaces throughout the city—over advertisements, on telephone booths and bus stops. This piece literally reflects the audience, catches their attention in a way that the typical landscape of advertisements does not, and playfully pokes at narcissism while commenting on the greater issues of constructed identity within a consumer culture.
STORM DRAIN SAILING
This installation was intended specifically to engage strangers in a playful and accessible way. We constructed boats from cork, wooden skewers and paper sails to be placed in post-thunderstorm puddles. Some boats were left in puddles, some were raced down storm drains, and some were enthusiastically played with by children and adults alike. Playing in city puddles may not be the best idea, however, this installation served to juxtapose gloom with lighthearted play, and encouraged the public to revisit the way that they perceive what they are normally overlooking, or overstepping in this case.
AM-ing (Antiquated Messaging)
This project examines the difficulty of truly communicating despite the ever-increasing glut of options provided by new communications technologies. Illustrations of carrier pigeons and The Pony Express were silk-screened onto shipping tags, which contained romantic and proverbial messages, from “I miss you” to “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.” After inflating around fifty helium balloons and attaching these cards, we headed to the river to release the messages with the help of anyone we found along the way. We’re not sure if anyone ever received any of these messages, we just hope that we didn’t cause too much harm to the environment.
