For the first time, I set up a display of The Honest Letters Project on the streets of Downtown Mountain View. It’s the first time I’ve done anything like this. I was nervous and anxious (I even had a nightmare), but I wouldn’t be going into this alone. A new artist friend, Aurum, would be there and set up his own public installation. His presence made it easier to do something so intimidating.

Given that these letters tend to admit something, I wanted to display them in a way that captured their vulnerability—hence the drying rack, a play on “airing our dirty laundry.”

I received feedback from another artist who said I should try elevating the display so it’s at eye level and grabs people’s attention from further away. I originally wanted to create an actual laundry line to hang letters from, but my drying rack was the easiest way to get this installation going.

Another piece of advice I received was to make the installation more interactive and to have people writing in person instead of having them go online to submit their letters. This reminded me that installations have a greater impact when observers get to interact with the installation; it’s about creating a tangible experience for the passersby that will be more memorable.