Vancouver Transit Ad Re-appropriation Project

We were just made aware of what sounds like a fantastic project run by Jerm IX and Vegas in Vancouver. It's a pretty simple idea, you send them artwork (standard formats) and a team of participants will put up your work in the Vancouver transit system. V-TARP, which stands for Vancouver Transit Ad Re-appropriation Project, "is intended to reclaim that highly sought after mindspace used by corporations to communicate with the public."

Participants are encouraged to send work in the next month to kick start the project with bang, but submissions will be taken indefinitely. I am told works should be 283mm high and any width from 200mm-800mm and should be submitted on 80lb. card stock. A photo document of your installed piece will be posted to a VTARP Flikr page, and once the project is rolling a blog page dedicated to the updates and progress will be rolled out. Any other questions you might have can be answered by a V-TARP participant at this email address. VanTARP@gmail.com.

We are always excited about a large scale work like this. We know it takes an immense coordinating effort and a good deal of risk taking for those carrying out the action. The upside is you can create a much bigger dialogue about who has the right to use public space in this way. While the actions of one person might be seen as that of a vigilante, the actions of many become a protest. because of this I think large scale projects like V-TARP encourage a conversation around the issue of commercial/public use of our shared environment. Questions about how using public space for commercial messaging might affect the public's use of that space become something to talk about, and that can only bring good as far as I am concerned.

We will definitely be sending work to Vancouver and suggest you do the same. They have told me they can handle a large number of submissions and that the project is open to everyone. If you do decide to send something, feel free to give us sneak peaks of your works and tell us when they have gone up in Vancouver.

Vancouver Public Space Network

The Vancouver Public Space Network is yet another example of the many progressive Canadian public space activist projects going strong these days. A PublicAdCampaign reader brought VPSN to my attention and that their new magazine PubliCity was published with a map of all the non-compliant billboards in Vancouver. The manifesto is interesting to me in that they combine all sorts of public space activism with a strong influence on outdoor advertising creep.

The VPSN is a grassroots collective that engages in advocacy, outreach and education on public space issues in and around Vancouver, British Columbia.
This includes challenging the increase of advertising ‘creep’ in public places, promoting creative, community-friendly urban design, monitoring private security activities in the downtown core, fostering public dialogue and democratic debate, and devising creative ways to re-green the neglected corners, alleys and forgotten spaces of the city.

We also like to devise ways to have fun in public space. The Vancouver Public Space Network (VPSN) was formed in early 2006. Since that time our numbers have grown from a dozen initial participants to over 1500 members. The Network continues to expand: a testament to the large number of individuals who value public space and view it as an essential feature of a vibrant, inclusive city.

Members are drawn together by both a shared concern for various issues facing public spaces and public realm amenities in Vancouver, as well as a desire to celebrate the role that public space in shaping the city.

McDonald's "Free Coffee Ambient"

I'd like to thank Shai for making us aware of this insanity.

VIA Direct Daily

As part of a national campaign promoting McDonald's restaurants, a downtown Vancouver lamppost became part of an out-of-home optical illusion, appearing to pour coffee into a giant cup on the sidewalk. At the time, McDonald's was giving away free small cups of its brew for a two-week period, in an effort to attract new breakfast customers. They developed the concept for a lamppost near 6th Avenue and Cambie Street. The post was wrapped in brown vinyl to resemble poured coffee, while an oversized carafe was attached to the end.

Agency: Cossette west, Canada.