Tag: Cool Cities Initiatives

Play Me, I’m Yours

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Luke Jerram creates live arts projects. This summer he has placed thirty pianos around London (http://www.streetpianos.com/london2009/).  Each is uniquely decorated and all say, in big letters, “Play Me, I’m Yours.” There’s a wonderful slideshow of people interacting with the piano’s at http://www.streetpianos.com/london2009/gallery.
 
An of course, there is a growing body of YouTube videos of people playing the pianos. Here are some of my favorites so far:
 
“I’m A Believer” on Carnaby Street

You can also watch this pianist lead choruses of “Hey Jude,” “Help Me,” and “Daydream Believer.” 
 
The Gents: “Let’s Have Us a Singy Song” in Soho Square and on Carnaby Street

 
Katzenjammer Play 24 Pianos in 8 Hours

 
Here’s one where the piano at the Millenium Bridge is used in a rather more high production number:
 
Andrew Balkwell “Nothing (‘Bout Your Girl)” 

Slow Down London . . . Living Life in Real Time

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Slow Down London is a project to get Londoners to adopt a slower pace, at least for a week. The campaign runs from April 24 to May 4 and has events around the city designed to get people to slow down and enjoy the moment.
 

Part of the campaign includes a Slow Exposure Photo Contest designed to encourage Londoners to pause and look about them. Some of the photos are stunning.

ArtPrize – Rebooting the Conversation Between Artists and their Audience

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Rick DeVos today announced ArtPrize, an annual artcompetition that will be judged by the public and will pay the winning entry$250,000, the largest prize of any competition in the world.   Thefirst annual competition will be staged from September 23 to October 10, 2009, inGrand Rapids, Michigan.  DeVos expects artists in every medium from aroundthe world to be lured to Grand Rapids to take over the city for 16days.  Winners in the competition will be determined by online voting.  

ArtPrize’smission is “to reboot the conversation between artists and audiences on agrand scale.”  Its mission statement explains:

Weare living in a time of great change. New ideas, fresh inspiration will move usforward.

Thereare enough art competitions where the winners are decided by a jury of experts.That’s not the competition we are creating. We’re looking for a giantconversation to happen between artists and the public. That is why we developeda radically open framework for this event, which gives power to everyone’sopinion.

Wheneveryone’s opinion counts, everyone is included in the conversation.

In addition to the first prize of $250,000. ArtPrize willaward a second prize of $100,000, along with $50,000 for third place and $7,000for fourth through 10th places.

For information about ArtPrize, go to www.artprize.org.  

Rob Bliss Is At It Again – This Time With Sidewalk Chalk

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Sidewalk_chalk_flood

Rob Bliss, founder of The Rob Bliss Urban Experiments, is at it again. The man behind the world’s largest zombie walk and the world’s largest pillow fight has announced “The Downtown GR Sidewalk Chalk Flood.” On Saturday, April 18, between noon and 5:00 p.m., The Rob Bliss Urban Experiments will hand out 10,000 pieces of sidewalk chalk in Rosa Parks Circle and set people loose to decorate downtown Grand Rapids.  

Here’s a video from the zombie walk this past fall: