Some billboards bleed. Some offer diamond earrings. And almost all shout a call to action. But the Fairground Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation that was set up and funded by ecostore founder Malcolm Rands to create a healthier, more sustainable world, has taken a different approach to grabbing people’s attention after unveiling what it likes to call the “un-billboard”.
Rather than yet another commercial message, Fairground Foundation’s un-billboard, which is located on the side of its Freeman’s Bay premises in Auckland, is more philanthropic: the artwork created by local artist Rachel Walters showing what looks to be a dog covered in spaghetti sitting in front of a curtain is intended by Rands to be a gift to the community.
It’s suppoed to be a conversation starter, and it’s also another example of ecostore providing a connection between art and creativity, innovation and business. It’s also a bit weird, and Rands hopes it will invite a range of responses from passers-by.
“I find the piece a bit spooky and challenging and also quite hilarious,” Rands says. “I was particularly pleased the other day to see a backpacker standing over the road taking a photo of it. Our hope is that people will see it and talk about it and maybe some will even enjoy it. Unlike most billboards it’s not promoting consumerism and people can just appreciate it as a piece of conceptual art.”
In keeping with ecostore’s environmental values the billboard skin is fully recyclable and will be the canvas for a series of artworks to come.
