This project was based off of a chance process that I worked on with a fellow designer, Megan Atsoff.
The process started out with choosing 12 places we were intrigued by that were on our route from home to school. We then wrote these locations on post-its and put them on the front windshield of Atsoffs’ car. We drove the car around Detroit and waited until we only had four post-its left on the window. The next step was to investigate the locations, which were Palmer Woods, The Whitney, Ye Olde Butcher Shoppe, and The Majestic. All places up and down Woodward Ave, in the great city of Detroit. Upon visiting all of these sites, we noticed a common feeling in the atmosphere, which was isolation, and neglect. The places were barren and cold, most of them closed, locked up, and dark. We felt we were always being watched by an unwelcoming eye. This inspired us to create a series of painted boards, with positive messages on them. We then put these boards in various locations around Detroit in hopes to brighten up someones day, and make the city feel a little more optimistic and happy for a change. The idea was that these boards would be photographed and posted on a corresponding website we designed, and people could find them and take them to another place that they felt might need some uplifting words, and that person would photograph, and post it to our website with a description of where they placed it, and why.
