“Before I Die transforms neglected spaces into constructive ones where we can learn the hopes and aspirations of the people around us.”
Candy Chang transformed an abandoned house at 900 Marigny Street into a place of hopes and dreams… literally. Using the side of the house as her canvas, she installed a chalkboard with the phrase “before I die I want to _________.” She then invited everyday people to fill in the rest. I saw this at LifeandTimes and headed to Candy’s site to learn more. It’s a really inspiring project, and as it turns out, has taught Candy a lot of valuable lessons as well. She wrote on her blog, “It’s a question that has changed me in the last year, and I believe the design of our public spaces can better reflect what’s important to us as residents and as human beings. It’s easy to get caught up in the day-to-day and forget what really matters to you. The responses and stories from passersby while we were installing it have already hit me hard in the heart.”
More pics of the project are below, and the full piece is found here.
