I began conceptualizing my latest public art installation, Dialogue Project, in early 2002. My desire was to create a public art form that would spark personal inspiration and bring people together in public spaces. As a rhetoric major at UC Berkeley, I gained great respect for the transformative power of language. I wanted to try and harness this power by reminding people of some of the most compelling, genuine thoughts from world history.
It took three years, but after quite a few prototypes and setbacks, the installation was ready for its debut in San Francisco's Union Square in 2005. The project consists of nine, seven-by-eight foot freestanding screens with thousands of inspirational quotations (arranged under 18 topics such as politics, community and character) and lifecast faces on them.
When I first created Dialogue, I didn't expect the varied and deep chord it would strike in viewers. The project was such a success in Union Square that I decided to launch a national tour, starting in 2006.
After years of planning and sinking my life savings into the Dialogue tour, I was ready to hit the road. Joining me on this adventure are Sally (a life long friend and 63-year-old social activist), Sally's son Bret (a writer and philosopher) and Blake (my partner). Amazingly, we all got along and completed the first leg of the national tour -- driving from San Francisco to New York and back -- with only a few minor setbacks.
It has been a simple, yet profound, process watching the project act as a meditation and reflective panel in a variety of public spaces around the country-from decaying town squares to vibrant public parks. Because the context of the installation is always an everyday public space, it is where people gather naturally. The screens, then, have a more authentic impact and ad hoc immediacy than behind the walls of rarified museums.
We've seen thousands of viewers interact spontaneously with the project-laughing and talking or in thoughtful, meditative contemplation while the bustle of the city swirls around them. Many people end up engaging in heartfelt conversations with friends and family or new acquaintances. The project naturally forges new connections, whether for just a moment or longer-lasting.
What a pleasure it is seeing people around the country slowing down, thinking and talking with their neighbors. People in these small, impromptu groups conveying their insights to one another. Ideas get sown and reminders about our common humanity ripple outward.
Many Americans are so paralyzed by personal safety fears that they avoid novel interactions with others. By actively avoiding human contact, we are left inadequately socialized to fully participate in a lively public life. Even if for just a day or two, Dialogue is meant to help bring people back together in their town center and feel part of a whole, safe community again.
What if we had more such public opportunities where, as social policy expert Margaret Wheatley has put it, "...we're not afraid to talk about things that matter most to us. A world where we're not separated, classified or stereotyped. A world of simple greeting, free from technology and artificiality"?
Joining the Huffington Post community and posting this first blog introducing my public art movement is an exciting opportunity. In the future, I will be blogging more about the adventures we are having on this extended tour of America, public space issues (how are public spaces are managed and controlled), the power of dialogue, freedom of expression and the creative process. Thank you for reading and all the best!