A Sweeter Journey
“A Sweeter Journey” is one of my ongoing projects; it is an artistic exercise in the form of a social experiment. The project undertakes a comparative study of social interactions or the lack of it, in urban public spaces, such as that of mass transport systems. Initiated in Hong Kong, the project extends its geographical scope to Mumbai, Zurich and Hamburg. To me it is contradictory that an integral public space, where millions of commuters spend a substantial amount of time each day should remain a place for deliberate social disengagement and isolation. The project attempts to get past the unsociability in order to create an enjoyable social exchange. Would the commuters be receptive to such an exchange should an opportunity present itself? To find out, I intervene in the local metros by distributing pieces of candy to commuters unknown to me. A simple and seemingly harmless action lends itself to being read in various ways, depending on the age, gender, ethnicity of the participants as well as their social and cultural contexts. My aim is to evoke a response, hopefully positive. The interaction is documented as video recordings and photographs. As an artistic exercise, I paint the temporary relationships I establish with strangers during the process./ Paintings: Acrylic on linen canvas, 200 x 300 cm / 100 x 150 cm/ Video documentation