2008-2009
Site-Specific Public Art Project
City Center Square, Kansas City, MO
Artist Statement
Postage stamps adorning letters and cards represent a communal celebration of people, places, and events. Because physically sending mail is an increasingly rare choice, sharing sentiments this way is becoming more precious. For the City Center Square Window Installation I drew inspiration from postage stamps and their function to commemorate the private everyday life in a public setting.
Using toys, ordinary household objects, and routine domestic scenes, the imagery elevates the everyday and highlights the significance of the present, however wearisome it may be. The edges of the photographic images are trimmed with a decorative edge to emulate the appearance of a postage stamp. The prints feature a singular character or an object, similar to a famous person, flower, or an animal, commonly found on a stamp. Others reveal subjective environments while loosely referencing the commemoration of geographic places: states, regions, or countries. Suggestive of a commercial storefront presentation, the installation “markets” the commonplace in order to promote the appreciation of the ordinary experience.