Sharing Wishes on Public Displays: Using Technology to Create Social Places

We present a public-display-and-mobile-based digital art installation named WishBoard that translates the essence of a chalk-and-wall based art installation called ‘Before I Die’ into a technological communal expression. Our studies show that public sharing of personal wishes leverage the connection inside a community, creating a feeling of neutral ground for gathering, giving a sense of third place independent of physical constrains, named thirdplaceness. The installation allows people to freely express their wishes, with certain personalization, and provides a public visualization of all shared wishes promoting face-to-face conversations. We conducted two deployments using our installation in a ‘socially abandoned’ space. Analyzing the shared wishes content and people’s behavior when observing the wishes popping up on the public displays, we were able to notice the essential role that public displays combined to mobile devices interaction can play in creating a community meeting place when providing a way for self-expression.