London 2009 - Leicester Square piano
Street pianos are appearing in cities across the world. Located in skate parks, industrial estates, laundromats, precincts, bus shelters and train stations, outside pubs and football grounds, the pianos are for any member of the public to enjoy and claim ownership of.
Street pianos have been placed all around London as part of ‘Play Me I’m Yours’ for the City of London Festival, an interactive art project meant to challenge people to come out of their urban insularity and also to provide some summertime music.
“They’re out there to get people talking to one another and to claim ownership and activate the public space,” said the creator of the project, Luke Jerram, an artist who lives in Bristol. He previously brought incarnations of it to Birmingham, England; São Paolo, Brazil; and Sydney, Australia. “It’s a blank canvas for everyone’s creativity.”
The pianos, which are secured to the ground with metal cables and have plastic covers in case of rain, have proved a huge hit. All of them are still there — outside the Natural History Museum, on Portobello Road, in Leicester Square and in the churchyard of St. Paul’s Cathedral, among other spots. None has been vandalized. People have tended to relinquish their places courteously after a while to allow others to perform.
A blog will be active during and after the Festival for people to record their encounters at www.streetpianos.co.uk.
“Play Me, I’m Yours” is the creation of artist Luke Jerram, whose artistic products include installations, sculptures, and live art such as Play Me.
Related link: All Around London, an Invitation to Make Music from The New York Times
~MadSilence
4 Comments
July 14, 2009 at 8:25 pm
I’ve been following this story and continue to be fascinated by it. I love that it’s spreading to places beyond London. Such a positive, exciting, expressive project. Thanks for the extra info.
July 15, 2009 at 8:34 am
I heard about this project on NPR. It’s a really cool idea!
July 15, 2009 at 9:41 am
I learned of this project from a report on CBS Sunday Morning & the idea caught my fancy. I’m a fan of neither conceptual not installation art (could this be considered a site-specific project?) but found the idea fascinating. Maybe we need a new vocabulary to label this type of activity… I believe Jerram considers it to be “live art.” This participatory, community-building activity, where individuals can display their creativity anonymously in public, is just great. It transcends site-specific installations by allowing the viewer to participate, to be viewed. Similar to those art projects in which individuals are encouraged to grab chalk and draw on the public pavement. A group activity where the audience members can all join in.
July 17, 2009 at 3:29 am
wow not only a great artistic idea but incredibly creative…i would love to take part and play in public like that……will have to keep an eye out and ear…zman