CurioUs
A participatory experience in the NYC subway station.
A service-performance hybrid
We surprised New York subway commuters with a facilitated exchange of 'wishes and dreams'.
These exchanges were facilitated by WPA-inspired servers and a carnival-like barker, during the height of the holiday shopping season.
A holiday shopping intervention.
Our hope was to make commuters more aware of each other, feel a sense of community and generosity while considering the value of non-commercial exchanges - particularly relevant as this was during prime holiday shopping.
Participants filled in the prompt, ‘i would like you to have my ________________.’ Placed it in its CurioUs envelope and back in the server’s tray. Then they chose, often gleefully, a separate envelope to see what a stranger wished for them.
Serious play
Utilizing the mechanics of narrative, props, and performance in public space, CurioUs was designed as a prototype for potential design methods and tools to be used by organizations to engage with communities. Inspired by the experience of gifting and the current political and economic climate, CurioUs provides a platform for active participation in a community through the exchange of wishes, hopes and dreams.
By using narrative as an element of play and performance, CurioUs engages with a range of critical themes such as the romanticism of the New Deal and holiday celebrations of consumption, while exposing participants to the benefits of sharing (a culture invigorated during WWII) and community.
Commuters identified us instantly as performers even as we entered the station.
Give one. Take one.
By sending signals of performance through our staging, props, and scripted interactions we were able to engage with commuters in an intimate way, asking them to share their dreams and wishes with fellow commuters.
Many participants took time, contemplating the gift they would give. Some were so excited about their exchange that they followed up with us excitedly telling us what they had received.
Participants clearly saw value in the interaction, thanking us for the experience, asking when we would be back, and in some cases offering us money.
The CurioUs art intervention took place on a Union Square subway platform in New York, NY, in 2011.
Thank you to everyone who helped us make this project a reality. Extra thanks to Jayson Rupert for joining us in Union Square and taking photos and video.
CurioUs was created and performed by Amy Findeiss, Kelly Jo, and Eulani Labay.