Your Councils

Abstract

Your Councils re-presents the city council desk, a literal and psychological divide between the public and the government. City councils are the only branch of government that community members can directly interact with, yet the form of the council desks situates the public as an audience and the councilmembers as a cast. This project re-renders city council desks, which stretch across entire rooms, as soft fabric objects open to adaptation and reuse.

The cumbersome wooden desks are redrawn, and unfolded, as sewing patterns, which will then be made into soft sculptures; some will drape over bare frames made of welded steel rod, others will lay limply on the ground. The patterns will be publicly available for download, allowing anyone to reclaim and create a council desk of their own. Available for use in community theaters, classrooms, and so forth, the soft council desks will exist as evocative props, encouraging playful learning and interaction.

Your Councils reiterates the importance of public facing governmental institutions, while proposing that we re-examine the basic schema and roles that are encouraged. At a moment when many U.S. residents feel abandoned by their political systems, Your Councils insists that these institutions be shared with the public, and proposes that the forms which construct civic space be accessible and open to alteration.