As part of the new Bantam Jeep Festival that begins next week here in Butler, my company, Big Big Design, is participating in a public art project. Seventy Bantam Jeep silhouettes were created, and businesses and individuals could purchase them to decorate and place out in the community.
I thought through a range of design ideas, mostly focused on technology, creativity, and change. But I found it really hard to settle on one idea.
So instead, I decided to create our sculpture so that it was itself changeable. We painted the jeep with chalkboard paint — black at first, and then when that seemed a bit too drab we added green chalkboard paint as well. We talked about outlining it with white or other color acrylic, but I decided to leave it open for now. We can always add more detail later.
Then we got some sidewalk chalk. The chalk will wash away when it rains of course, but that’s part of the experience. I’m looking forward to seeing how it looks partially rained off too.
Today I made my first drawing — more of a doodle than a drawing. I wanted it to be clear that this is chalk we’re working with, so the design is simple and goofy, a little kid-like.
Over time we can try other styles, and I’m looking forward to writing messages: a welcome note for a new visitor to the office, greetings to passersby, jokes and trivia questions. We can always draw a URL for someone to visit to get the answer or to respond to questions.
Having this capability within the silhouette of a vehicle is a little unusual, but the constraint of the shape will just provoke creativity.
If you’d like to see our Bantam Jeep sculpture in person, it’s at 129 Pillow Street, Butler, PA — next door to Pullman Park.
Very cool. :)