BOS logoIn June, 2014, the Uni Project was a winner of Boston’s first-ever Public Space Invitational, a competition organized by Mayor Martin J. Walsh’s Office of New Urban Mechanics.

For the competition, we proposed a portable reading room that would bring out the best in people and in neighborhoods, and also make public spaces more inviting, functional, user-friendly, and fun. We proposed that the reading room start on the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway, a 15-acre linear park in downtown Boston serving multiple neighborhoods.

Thanks to sponsorship from Robert Half, the new portable reading room kit launched on Saturday July 19, 2014 (photos!) and continues to serve Boston today. Thank you to Höweler + Yoon Architecture, who fabricated this portable reading room in their shop near the Greenway!

The Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway Conservancy is a key partner in this Boston effort, and Conservancy staff manage the reading room’s schedule, locations, and programming. Another partner is the Boston Public Library, which offers information about library services and special programming. Students from Simmons Graduate School of Library and Information Sciences join Greenway volunteers to staff the reading room. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt is supporting the project with a generous donation of books. Other supporters include: Candlewick Press, Institute of Contemporary Art, Diana Limbach Lempel, Massachusetts Historical Commission, Kimberly Sobieski.

Sponsor:

Robert_Half_600

Partners:

BOS partners

Press:

Mayor’s Office Debuts Portable Reading Rooms by Uni Project
Jul 23, 2014 | Boston Magazine


Video–Maker Chats: The Portable Reading Room
Jul 23, 2014 | City of Boston

Mayor Walsh “Rolls Out” The Portable Reading Room
Jul 23, 2014 | City of Boston Press Release

Boston Gets Its First Pop-up Library
Jul 18, 2014 | Radio Boston/WBUR

Boston’s public art gets a lift
Jun 11, 2014 | The Boston Globe, Editorial

A simple way to add art in Boston
Jun 8, 2014 | The Boston Globe, Yvonne Abraham column

Boston’s Public Space Invitational winners announced
Jun 5, 2014 | Boston Magazine

9 bright ideas win funding to refresh Boston’s public space
Jun 5, 2014 | 90.9 WBUR, The ARTERY

Walsh announced winners of city redesign contest
Jun 5, 2014 | Banker and Tradesman

Coming soon to a public space in Boston near you
Jun 5, 2014 | Curbed

Contest nets new faces for public spaces
Jun 5, 2014 | Boston Herald

Contest aims to enliven public spaces in Boston
Jun 5, 2014 | The Boston Globe

Books:

Explore the Boston Uni’s collection, curated and donated by institutions and others:

Books from the Institute of Contemporary Art Boston

Neighborhood Explorers collection, curated by Diana Limbach Lempel

(More collection documentation coming soon)

Mayor Marty Walsh (l); William Driscoll, President, Robert Half (r)

Mayor Marty Walsh (l); William Driscoll, President, Robert Half (r)

Our blog posts about Boston:

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