the big, fat inflated rat pokes its pointy snout above a crowded new york city street, a catchy mascot for the exterminator’s car. the architect robert venturi noted in his seminal book, learning from las vegas, that when the commonplace is made large— the kitsch, the surreal, and the decorative, become instantly memorable as cultural markers, especially when there is little or no historical urban context in sight.
and in los angeles, what a happy street when competing smiles call for our attention. when the lights go out, the avenue must be a lonelier place.
what stands out today against the noise?
in new york, Archie Gottesman, the marketing chief for her family’s property company, creates clever copy that stops us in the street.
The oversized and fleeting moments like the fat rat, the happy face, or the snappy words make us pause and smile.
