The CHALLENGE
Seaport is a neighborhood in Boston, MA that has undergone a series of transformations in the past 150 years. From a muddy spot in Boston Harbor in the 1800s, it evolved to a thriving port that received raw materials and upheld local textile factories in the early 20th century. After becoming a decrepit no-man’s land of parking lots and abandoned warehouses in the mid-1900s, it has grown into a place where cranes rise every week, erecting office buildings, condominiums, retail stores, restaurants and many fun places to visit. It is a place many people call home today.
But it was an odd place: with only steps away from downtown Boston, a historic city center, everything in the Seaport is new. It is yet to have an identity, it yet needs a sense of community.
THE SOLUTION
Dear Seaport is a public art program for people to share what they think of Seaport. In July 2017, three “Dear Seaport” mailboxes were installed in the neighborhood, residents and visitors alike were encouraged to write to the Seaport, describing feelings they associated with the neighborhood.
More than 1,000 feelings were shared, and 200 words were initially extracted from mailbox submissions and transformed into colorful magnets. All magnets are on display on a 24-foot long interactive wall at an open green space. With this interactive display, residents and visitors are once again invited to “talk“ to the Seaport, this time playing with magnets on the wall, take away their favorite magnets, and speak to their friends and neighbors about what they think of the neighborhood.
People are still submitting new words through the three “Dear Seaport” boxes and more magnets are periodically added to the wall featuring new words.
WHAT I DID
Design Research + Strategy
User Journey + Visual Design
Content Strategy + Copywriting
Project Management
Prototyping + Installation
Post Installation Support
Basically, everything.
A Full List of Words on Display (as of 17/12/2017):
#so-cool | <3 | accomplished | active | alive | amazing | ambivalent | at ease | athletic | attractive | awesome | bad ass | beautiful | benevolent | better | black & proud | blessed | blissful | blooming | blossoming | booming | bostony | breezy | bright | brilliant | bubbly | bustling | busy | callipygian | calm | changing | chic | childlike | chill | class | cold | colorful | compassionate | conflicted | confused | connected | constructive | contemporary | content | cool | cozy | crazy | creative | crowded | crunchy | cute | delicious | different | diverse | divine | dizzy | dope | dreamy | dreary | dynamic | easy - breezy | ecstatic | effervescent | elegant | enchanted | energized | engaging | euphoric | everything | evolving | excited | exhausted | exhilarated | exotic | expectant | expensive | extraordinary | exuberant | exultant | f**king awesome | f**king beautiful | fabulous | fancy | fantabulous | fantastic | fine | flabbergasting | flavorful | for lovers | foreign | fortunate | free | fresh | friendly | frustrated | fulfilled | full | fun | futuristic | gay | gentrified | getting better | giddy | good | grateful | great | great(ful) | groovy | growing | happy | happy-as-a-clam | hedonic | hip | home | hot | humbled | humorous | hungry | hungry | in love | inclusive | incredible | indefatigable | innovative | inspired | interesting | intrigued | invigorated | inviting | irrelevant | jet lagged | joyful | juicy | liberated | life | lit | little | lively | lonely | lost | loud | love | loved | lovely | lucky | magnestic | magical | magnetic | magnificent | majestic | meh | memey | metamorphosing | meretricious | mighty | mischievous | modern | multi-cultural | my happy place | nautical magic | new | nice | nostalgic | not bad | okay | older | optimistic | optimistic | overwhelmed | oxygenated | peaceful | peachy | playful | pleasant | poor | powerful | pretty | proud | pumped | purrfect! | queer | ready | refreshing | rejuvenating | relaxed | relieved | revolutionary | romantic | sad | safe | salty | sassy | satiated | saucy | savvy | sensational | serendipitous | sexy | shiny | silly | sleek | sleepy | small | snazzy | soothing | soulful | sparkly | special | spicy | splendid | sporty | stressed | stressfree | stunning | stylish | sunny | sunshiney | supercalifragilisticexpialidocious | swagalicious | sweaty | sweet | tan | teal | thankful | thirsty | thriving | tickled | tipsy | tired | trail-blazing | tranquil | transcendent | transformed | trendy | unbelievable | uncertain | up-and-coming | uplifting | urbanized | vegan | vibrant | vindicated | wanderlusty | warm | weird | welcoming | wicked | wicked classy | wicked magical | wonderful | wowed | young | youthful | yummy | zajebisty | zen