The final Chicago installation this summer of Commune-ique took place in a high traffic part of town for both tourists and residents. Despite the high amount of pedestrian traffic only about 6 people directly interacted with me to find out more about the structure, how it was constructed, its meaning and its use. Having said that, a free trolley carrying tons of tourist passed by hourly as well as quite a few CTA buses, so the structure was at least being viewed by a large amount of people. The immediate question that arose in my mind was what constitutes dialogue and interaction? When does communication happen? While many viewers may not have directly interacted with the object and its space, I noticed a lot of people pointing and talking about the structure. Is it enough to have people wonder, question and conjecture about a work? What makes the work successful? Is it successful when it meets the goals and needs of the creator or is it successful when it draws people in either visually or spatially? These were just some of the ideas that floated through my mind as I sat outside the structure this time observing people interacting with the work from both near and afar. The next installation of Commune-ique will take place randomly along my route from Chicago to Phoenix over the next week, so stay tuned!
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