public phenomena by Temporary Services
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
A cool little art book about the everyday, and mostly inadvertent, aesthetic experiences that turn up as people attempt to the adapt the urban environment to their needs (and occasionally as the urban environment adapts to people). Photos range around the world showing everything from post-snowstorm parking blockades in Chicago to makeshift barriers in Ljubjana to ghost houses all over. The book itself is a form of the adaptation it celebrates. Taking note of the aesthetic content hidden in plain view by the side of the road is a way of turning the otherwise quotidian ugliness of the everyday into something interesting.
I should admit to being pleasantly surprised on finishing the book to find kind words directed at my own somewhat related effort that is housed at interestingideas.com.