Credit: Instagram
A few weeks ago, unusual street signs began popping up around some of New York’s most highly-trafficked areas. Put in place by a fictionalDepartment of Well Being, the signs broadcast cheerful messages like “Honk Less, Love More” and “New York Loves You.”
The life-affirming signs are the brainchild of British artistKilly Kilford, who moved to New York in January.
“The City and the people have inspired me beyond comprehension and triggered a new artistic phase for me,” Kilford writes on his website. “Inspired by New York street signs, this new phase focuses on the creation of Happy Street Signs using paint, mixed media and live performance installations in cities around the world.”
In a previous life,TIMEreports, Kilford worked for Britain’s Office of National Statistics, where part of his job involved quantifying and measuring well-being around the country.
His mission, he says, was “to give little moments of joy to New Yorkers and to understand what they thought of Happy Street Signs. We’ve asked almost 1000 New Yorkers so far and will shortly be collating the data into a report for the Mayors Office.”
Follow Emily Johnson on Twitter @emilyjreports
