[in]duce at Melbourne City Square

http://vimeo.com/15524575 from quinn delany on Vimeo.

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We took our slot card experiment to Melbourne City Square to test reaction and engagement. As this is a popular place for corporate Melbourne to lunch, we were hoping that the City Square would provide us with a different atmosphere to that of the Queen Vic Market. Unfortunately this was not entirely the case on the day that we visited due to a cycling event which created a similarly festive vibe.

Once again, we found kids to be the most easily attracted to the activity and so we actively focused on attracting adults to the activity. The reception was mixed, with a relatively equal number of people refusing and accepting our offer. Amongst the acceptees, we were pleasantly surprised at the readiness and williness to engage, although we did find that the engagement was kept to a much shorter passage of time than that of the children.

[in]sert

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We designed and prepared seven bottle receptacles out of found materials and posted them in seven different locations around the Melbourne. The receptacles had instructions inscribed onto them so that it was clear what they were for.

The aim of this test was:

• to gauge where the most public engagement occurs in Melbourne
• to propose a new way of disposing rubbish
• to display the discarded object with a sense of preciousness

Unfortunately, we weren't overwhelmed with public engagement through this test. However we were successful in gaining a response in four locations.

The placement at the corner of Swanston and Lonsdale was the most successful, possibly owing to a highly frequented tram stop at this location.

Engagement at other locations, involved the taking away of pieces of the structure.

[in]lighten

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Test:

To see if the public would engage with 'garbage' that had been recycled into an object they where familiar with, a light. And furthermore to see if that engagement would continue with no given incentive.

We decided on the idea of a light not only for something the public could recognise but to also draw attention to the appropriated piece or 'garbage' in the evening.

To begin we went to the streets to find 'garbage'. After sifting through bins and smelly alley ways for half an hour we found: A water bottle, beer bottle, glass coke bottle and a plastic bag.

To turn this trash into treasure we placed battery powered LED'S inside of them. We then also attached a set of instructions to the light that read:

[in]lighten needs your help!!!

what you need to do:

1. pick up the light that you have found

2. read the map provided below to find your bearings.

3. make your way to Corrs Ln.

4. Place the light in Corrs Ln however you wish.

-note: if you do not wish to take part in this exercise please leave it here for someone who will.

regards, [in] design team.

We set the lights up at 7.30 pm on a Monday night as a trail from Corrs Ln to Russel St along Lonsdale St in Melbourne's CBD.

We observed from a distance only checking in every half hour.

At first the public was not engaging with the lights, mostly people just accepted them as street art.

After half an hour we decided to leave a note on each light saying 'please read me'.

This began to prompt engagement. Over the course of 2 hours all the lights where engaged with and taken to Corrs Ln.

We also noticed that people engaged with the light but decided not to further there engagement by taking it to Corrs Ln. But what was excellent to see was that they left it for someone else to find.

All in all a great success in observing engagement in an urban setting.

[in]duce

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Test:

In this test, we created cardboard pieces that slot into one another. The pieces contained our logo and blog address on them. We took the pieces to the Queen Victoria Market on a sunny afternoon and first set up a few pieces to show people what could be done with them. We then placed some of the pieces around the structure, and began handing out the rest. We asked people if they would like to join in and help build a structure and told them they could put a piece wherever they liked. The aim of this test was to get people to engage with recyclable materials and one another in building a structure in a public place.

[IN]trigue

TEST:

The idea of [in]trigue was to attract people in public to share their opinion on cardboard posters with perforated holes in an intriguing way. The location, three bus stops along Elizabeth Street, contributed to the aim inasmuch as people are spending their time waiting for trams and buses which provides time to think and react to the given structure. Cardboard, here used as a matter of advertisement as well as a message board exposes possible new utilizations for recycled materials.

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[IN]troduction

Concept diagram of main idea of [IN]

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[in]put

Our first testing of structures happened at the 8x7 event for interior design at RMIT.  We made a structure that was designed to hold beer bottles that were being served at the event.  The idea of the structure was that once people finished drinking their beers they would add their bottle to the structure, making it into a light.  Later in the night we turned on the light that was inside the box to illuminate the bottles. As our first attempt, it went alright, but there is definitely a lot more testing to do!

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what's [in]?

We are a group of students from the Informal Urban Practices studio at RMIT.  As a group we are interested in the following:

-Trail of Intrigue
-Interaction/ Reaction
-Connection
-Engagement
-Recycled Materials/ Everyday Items
-Activation of Space
-Questioning Public / Private

We are interested in creating 'situations' on an urban landscape for the public to engage with everyday objects/'rubbish' then re-use/recycle these to create something new.
This will create awareness and challenge societys attitude towards everyday objects/rubbish. We are looking at how the experience the public engages in becomes an interior.

Over the next few weeks we will be testing various situations and structures that will cause the public to become involved and interact with everyday objects and each other. From each test we will be looking at how we get people invovled, why they become involved, how to get people out of their daily routine, different ways to incorporate everyday/found objects, and what exactly is a structure/art.  Stay tuned to see all that is to come!

[in]