About City Breaks
Minna Suoniemi, Nov 2004

In City Breaks project I have taken on a more direct approuch than I normally use. I decided to concentrate on what I choose to see in a strange environment in conparison to what I see in my usual own environment. I visited London for the first time and formed my map of London during the 2 week residency in October 2004. In a strange environment I was constantly aware of my routes and my position in the city. I began looking at other people and their routines. Being out of my normal routine, I found it possible to survey some mechanisms in certain situations which are typical of a city environment, part of existing in a city. When I am somewhere as a tourist, I watch people more closely than at home. In a strange city I am taking an observing position, whereas in my own city I am one of the “actors”.

What caught my attention was how people create a safe space around them in public places. I was spying people who where waiting for somebody or otherwise taking a break from the busy rhythm of the city. The people always had something to do, like smoking a cicarette after another or texting with their mobile or fixing their suit. These actions were signs to other people saying that they were not just standing there, that they were waiting for someone, that they were not alone. The other situation where I noticed people stopping and taking a break from the walking crowd was posing for a photograph. I was filming tourists who had their picture taken, how they were posing to make that moment unforgettable and then moving on to the next moment worth remembering. These two materials form an interesting comparison of people who take their private space in a public space, either with a very conscious posing action or more non-functional safety actions.

As the project continues, I want to try to visit my own city, Helsinki, as I was a stranger here. To take a position of an outsider and watch people in situations similar to those in London. My focus will be in observing people’s routines in the public space.