Articles

The Microsituations

This project is entitled ‘Microsituations’. The idea is to wander the streets of different cities and create a series of little ‘situations’ with found objects. I tried to explore the idea that the urban space is a playground where you can provoke curiosity in the passerby. The principle was to vary and repeat these subtle little interventions in a neighbourhood, and by transforming things that seem insignificant, bring them into focus and thus make a change to someone’s day to day life. The pictures below represent a small selection of  the interventions that I created over 4 years. It is an on going project, which I could now define as a practice. 

Selection of 'Microsituations' created in various cities. 2007-2014.

Since last year designer Trotereau has been wandering the streets of London and Paris reordering found objects and adding touches to them for a project entitled Microsituations.Exploring ideas of repetition and disorder, Microsituations looks at ways of changing the feel of a city by provoking curiosity in the passerby. In making several little interventions to a neighbourhood, things that seem insignificant are suddenly put in focus and make a change to someone's everyday routine. Speed is essential to the process, to minimise the chances of the artist being noticed. The focus is on someone being touched by an unexpected arrangement of fallen leaves or junk mail that mysteriously appear on their doorstep. "I had to stop doing it for a while after I found myself arranging things everywhere I went, even at parties," says Trotereau. "Now it's a habit."

 Carol Eid, Iconeye, 2010.

Selection of 'Microsituations' created during a one week Workshop at the Manufacture de Sévres. 2009.