The Plain Janes and public art

I read "The Plain Janes" on the train to work this morning. I was very impressed, although some of the incidental characters were a bit weak, and the ending leaves a big gaping hole for a sequel...(which I understand is already in production)


There is a lot in it about spontaneous public art - which I am really keen on. It chimed with me as well because there is a lot on Banksy, and similar artists, in the press at the moment (see the current Time Out London)

I wanted to list a couple of my favourites, with comments where appropriate.

• Origami birds in Vauxhall tunnel - near where I work
• Zebra Crossing Road Sign - near my parents house in Dorset. I might (hhhmmmppph) know who did this one (it wasn't me though!).
• Super Mario "Power up Boxes" in Ohio - though the police thought these were bombs and over reacted. (read the link for more).
• Zombie Walks: "What do we want? Brains! When do we want them? Brains!". See also the Toronto Zombie Walk photos on Flickr

I see lots of parallels between spontaneous public art and spontaneous public gatherings (aka Flash Mobs). Both are really just people wanting to express themselves in public, and make someone smile.

It is all the more sad when authority freaks out about it (as in the Mario example, or in the Plain Janes book).

The whole point of this post I guess is that a lot of adults have lost the ability to play (particularly unstructured play), and this saddens me. Play is an important learnign tool, but it is underused in the modern world.
I appreciate we live in a dangerous world, but we also only live once - so we should enjoy it!

Oh - and anyone fancy a Zombie Walk to School? Lets face it, kids in cars are zombies first thing in the morning anyway!