Theses
“Public spaces are anti-social spaces”
Stance
In busy, urban, environments that are often no more than thoroughfares, people pass many strangers without interaction. This installation uses an easy, well-known game, and applies it to an urban environment to encourage interaction between strangers and foster a sense of team.
Installation set-up
- Giant grid for naughts and crosses is set up on the ground (hard surface, with chalk)
- Sign (sandwich board) with instructions
- Coloured stickers/labels to denote team (naughts or crosses)
Installation site
- A busy public space, could be southbank markets, shopping centre or UQ
Concrete scenario of use
Participant A walks approaches the installation and sees there is something happening. Someone playing calls them over and invites them to play. Participant A joins in the game of naughts of crosses and chooses their place on the grid. They then call over another person walking past to join in. The game is one by the other team but they enjoyed playing.
Installation instructions
- Site is set-up
- Two people from the group pick a side, label themselves and begin playing naughts and crosses on the grid. Instead of writing the marks on the grid, the people are the markers.
- Once the first two ‘markers’ are placed on the grid, team members invite people passing by (participants) to join their team and take a place on the grid.
- This continues until one team has three members in a row or there are no places left.
- Winners are written on the sandwich board in no particular order, changing team names each round. This is to encourage a sense of team but not make it overly competitive (ie, it is not meant to keep a running total of blue team vs red team).
- During the game the group encourages the participants by cheering on both teams, again encouraging a sense of team between strangers.
- Once the game is over, the team invites participants to play another round. Aim for some participants to be retained for next round.
Concept 2: Park-it forward
Theses
“Society has too many prohibitions and too few invitations”
At UQ, like many busy traffic precinct, parking can be expensive and hard to come by. By paying the half-used parking tickets forward, participants are invited to subvert this. As this practice already happens in part at UQ, this installation would deny this theses.
Installation set-up
- A couple of boxes to hold tickets
- Large sign “Free Parking”
- Post-its and pens
Installation site
- UQ Casual all-day parking lot
Concrete scenario of use
Participant A is driving to UQ and sees a ‘free parking’ sign at one of the casual, all-day car parks. They enter the car park and are handed a free parking ticket with a post-it attached reading ‘Enjoy the free parking’.
Participant B is leaving UQ after being there for a few hours. Upon leaving the car park, they are approached by the team and asked if they would like to donate their parking ticket to ‘park-it forward’ for someone else to use.
Installation instructions
- Team members set-up at parking lot P7 at UQ approx midday
- As parking users leave, the team asks if they would like to ‘park-it forward’ and donate their half-used ticket to the next person looking for a park.
- When the participant hands over the ticket, the team ask if they would like to leave a message for the next person, prompting them to think about their action. The team write this message on a post-it to put on the back of the ticket so as not to hold up the driver.
- Once the team has a ticket, one team member can hold up the ‘free parking’ sign at the entrance of the parking lot to alert potential participants.
- When a new participant enters the parking lot, they are handed a ticket.
Research
- Parking lot P7 at UQ has the most number of casual parks at UQ and is full first in the morning from monitoring http://www.pf.uq.edu.au/parking/availability/)
- Many parking users sometimes hand their ticket to the next car but can only be done if someone is coming as you are going
Concept 3: Send a letter to get a letter
Theses
“Public spaces are anti-social spaces”
Public spaces do not aid communication between strangers and provide no way to encourage each other, especially during stressful times or bad days. This installation challenges this by allowing people to pass on encouraging words to other people in the same space. It expands on the Letter Writer’s Alliance motto of “To get a letter, you need to send a letter” by extending this to strangers in a more instant form
Installation set-up
- Space to write (table)
- Pens and cards
- Jars and labels
- Welcome sign
Installation site
- UQ thorofare
Concrete scenario of use
Participant A walks past the installation, sees the sign and is intrigued. They read the instructions and write a short, positive note to a random stranger, choose an appropriate jar and deposit their card. They then choose a container to withdraw a card, and read their note from someone else.
Concept 4: Ring hello
Theses
“Society has too many prohibitions and too few invitations”
Parks have many rules about what you can and can’t do in them. Similarly, cycling also has many law around it including that your bike must be fitted with a bell. This installation takes this law and invites participants to use it to communicate in a positive way with the people around them.
Installation set-up
- Signs
Installation site
- Park bikeway
Concrete scenario of use
Participant A is riding their bike through a park. They see a sign ahead that encourages them to ring their bell to say hi to people they pass
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