unsaid nyc: truths in public space

atmospheric question

what happens when a practice of truth telling moves from a private booth into the middle of a city.

unsaid nyc is a continuation of the voicing booth series. it tests what changes when unsaid truths are invited not in an enclosed space, but in public, in the flow of everyday life.

the intervention

the project began as an attempt to replicate the first voicing booth created in sarajevo, bosnia & herzegovina. for the new york edition, the plan was to host a structured event in a partner venue.

civichall nyc joined as host and culturehub as outreach partner. after months of preparation, only two people had confirmed by the time we arrived in the city. the format did not match the pace or habits of new yorkers.

the work shifted. instead of asking people to come to us, we went to where public life was already happening. washington square park became the setting. a simple table covered in fabric and a growing wall of cards invited passersby to record an unsaid truth.

what began as a contingency plan became the project itself.

atmospheric method

• a visible table and wall of truths placed in a busy public square
• short, clear prompt inviting people to write one unsaid truth
• participants could stay anonymous; handwriting replaced the need for conversation
• no sign up, no schedule; people joined while moving through their day
• the archive built in real time as the wall filled with overlapping voices

in sarajevo, privacy enabled vulnerability. in new york, public visibility lowered the barrier to participation.

what emerged

across several hours, more than one hundred people participated. the openness of the park created a constant flow of voices that reflected the density and diversity of the city.

the adaptation revealed that the voicing booth series is not a fixed format, but a responsive method. each city demands its own conditions for truth telling.

• context shapes whether privacy or visibility makes honesty feel safer
• in fast paced environments, simplicity and immediacy matter more than formal structure
• public space can become a temporary archive of interior life when invited with care

methodological insight

once a concept is solidified, it can be carried into different contexts and tested through real-time experimentation with people. not everything worked—we tried structured events, formal sign ups, and indoor venues. each attempt revealed a misalignment with how new yorkers move through the city.

through these failures, the project gained clarity: participatory design evolves through practice. when the right conditions are in place, even minimal invitations can generate meaningful, impactful experiences. when the conditions are wrong, the work must adapt or relocate.

unsaid nyc became proof that the method grows through iteration, not fixed planning.

this iteration expanded the archive of unsaid experiences and generated practical knowledge about designing participatory interventions in public space.

team

kirsty leech, ana paula munguia ayarzagoitia, magdalena pieńkowska, juan flores