Wanted: Your opinion! West Seattle Wayfinding kiosk art

| Environment | How to help | West Seattle news

Another reason to think about spring and summer here in the heart of winter: A request for your opinion on the type of art that could grace the West Seattle Wayfinding kiosks to be installed at key walkable points around West Seattle, thanks to a $100,000 city-matching-funds grant. Two workshops have been held in recent months to invite more community involvement with kiosk development; now the “pilot” kiosk is in progress near the Delridge Library, and project leaders want your thoughts on art concepts for the kiosks that will go up in other West Seattle neighborhoods, to provide information and direction for those on foot – read on:

The basic kiosk design can be seen on this page at the West Seattle Walks site. Here’s where you come in — Seth Schromer-Wawrin of Feet First explains:

For the most part, each kiosk will be similar, but there will be parts of it that might be variable, and parts that will require community produced/influenced artwork. The kiosk shape has to be fairly similar to the pilot at Delridge and Brandon because of the design specifications from the City, so we used some photos of that kiosk as a basis.

The consensus from the group was that the most important art space was below the information (the small rectangle on the bottom of the pilot kiosk). The community would also influence the content of the information panels, but this would be mainly graphic work). If there is funding available, then the group thought it could be interesting to have several designs for the top (where the swirls of metal are on the pilot). Perhaps waves for the kiosks near water, something natural for the kiosks near parks, etc.

For the panel, we thought that it could contain information on:
– neighborhood history
– local trails
– bulletin board (if feasible)
– unique info
– cultural facilities
– view points

The group liked the brushed steel of the pilot. The art on top they felt should also be of metal. The big question was what the art in the bottom should be. The two top choices were (1) metal and (2) ceramic. There are also several different styles of both of these. The thought from the group was that a cutout metal design would be best, but we wanted other views and also know that it is dependent on the artists that wish to help out.

So here are the 5 options for ceramic – call them 1 through 3 in the first row, 4 and 5 in the second:

And the ones for metal, 1 through 2 on the first line, 3 and 4 on the second:

Got a favorite? Or some other comment? Post your thoughts here, and/or e-mail Seth: seth@feetfirst.info

rtho2 January 12, 2009 (10:31 am)

What a total waste of tax money.

alki_2008 January 12, 2009 (10:48 am)

I was wondering – what is the maintenance plan for these kiosks after they are placed? Will the community residents need to maintain/clean/fix them, or will they be maintained by the Parks Dept or Feet First members?

I’m wondering about the maintenance especially if the kiosks end up with “bulletin boards”. I’m guessing the boards would be a place where anyone can tape/staple/etc a piece of paper or flyer to the kiosk? If there isn’t sufficient cover, then the papers might become big globs sticking to the kiosk. It would be a shame if the kiosks become overrun with postings, so vigilant maintenance would be required IF bulletins are allowed.

As for the artwork – is there any difference in the ease of cleaning graffiti from metal vs ceramic? I’d probably opt for whichever one is easiest to clean graffiti from, or whichever one suffers less damage from whatever methods are employed to remove graffiti. It would be a shame to have these kiosks degrade quickly due to vandalism.

While I’m thinking of the Alki statue of liberty (which had been graffiti’d) – If I recall correctly, the salt air was the cause of degradation of the engraved bricks, so do we need to consider that metal vs ceramic might be better for kiosks close to the water?

Just a few initial thoughts.

Seth at Feet First January 12, 2009 (11:39 am)

I wanted to add information about maintenance. The kiosks are going to be maintained through an ‘Adopt-a-Kiosk’ program. Each kiosk will be adopted by a local organization who will be responsible for cleaning and updating the kiosk. Each kiosk will have protective coating to prevent graffiti and allow easy cleaning. The adopters of the kiosks will be given appropriate supplies and shown how to clean the surfaces, if graffiti should happen. The city also cares strongly about the durability of the kiosk.

Several groups have expressed the desire for a bulletin board. There are clearly issues with updating information, cleaning the space, and making sure it is weatherproof and durable. We will be looking into if it is possible to meet our desires. If we can make a bulletin board to withstand the wear of the weather, then the Adopt-a-Kiosk program will manage the cleanliness of the site.

Meghan January 12, 2009 (3:00 pm)

Public art and the sharing of community information is ANYTHING BUT a waste of money! In fact, it’s a great investment in the community. I just hope the public art isn’t too “dumbed down” like it so often is. Hopefully it’ll reflect our city and heritage without being just illustrations of waves, jumping salmon and mountains.

KSJ January 12, 2009 (5:30 pm)

I prefer the cut metal options to ceramic. Looks nice, and looks appropriate as part of wayfinding artwork. More durable too.

annette bella January 12, 2009 (5:36 pm)

Why does the anti-art movement looks so negative and do not wish to promote the first amendment rights of americans? I believe west seattlites enjoy where they live and appreciate beauty and the right to express and not repress oneself. The designs are soo wonderful and creative. I say here here! Let freedom of expression ring!

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