Strangers need strange moments together

This book frequently uses the word ‘we’. We, as in the general public, engaged citizens, humans of planet Earth… And we, Mouna Andraos and Melissa Mongiat, together with our team at Daily tous les jours, as we seek new models for living together. Welcome to our journal.

We crave living in environments that support us, nourish us and inspire us. We dream of places to go through our lives together, inclusively and tolerantly. Can we re-enchant the raw material of our collective daily experiences?

We have been creating interactive art and narrative experiences in public spaces around the world for fifteen years. Using music, dance, art, and other mediums to emphasize the joyful, whimsical, and unexpected, we create moments of connection and care between strangers.

Through this book, we share our experience in building an emergent practice combining technology, storytelling, performance, and design, while asking fundamental questions to create meaningful work in a world in crisis. Meet us outside the urban masterplan, where we experiment with infrastructure for the human spirit.

Title: Strangers need strange moments together
Subtitle: Designing interaction for public spaces
Authors: Mouna Andraos, Melissa Mongiat
Contributing author: Eva Schindling
Contributing artists: Michael Baker, Anne Ouellette, Rebecca Taylor, Pierre Thirion.
Editorial support: No Media Co. (Chris Frey and Patrick Pittman)
Graphic design: Studio Feed
Advisor: Set Margins’

“Interrupting the drab homogeneity of the globalized city is the important work of Daily tous les jours, makers of beautiful public experiences that take place while simultaneously “place making”. The great American composer Frederic Rzewski said that the clearest objective of art is to bring people to come together, something that Andraos and Mongiat’s work does everyday, magnificently.”

— Rafael Lozano-Hemmer

“Mouna and Melissa have invented their own discipline. It was such a revelation to see the courageous journey through their beautiful work!”

— Bruce Mau