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Seattle Artist Creates Sidewalk Messages That Only Appear When It Rains

Peregrine Church's "Rainworks" puts superhydrophobic coatings to whimsical use

By Rain Noe - March 26, 2015

in Visual Communication | Social Impact

Remember Green Street Media's no-spraypaint-necessary sidewalk advertising? To refresh your memory, the UK-based firm exploited the filthy nature of sidewalks by placing a stencil over them and blasting them with a pressure washer. With the stencil lifted, the area blasted clean spelled out their message.

Green Street Media

Seattle-based artist Peregrine Church does something similar, but using rain rather than a pressure washer. By coating the sidewalks in an invisible superhydrophobic coating applied through a stencil, he creates messages that are only visible when it rains out.

Peregrine Church

Here's how he does it, and it seems simple as pie:

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So at this point we've seen hydrophobic coatings used to defeat public urinators and help get glue out of bottles. Church's "Rainworks" project, as he's calling it, has a more humble purpose: "To make people smile on rainy days."

Peregrine Church

You can see more of them here.

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Charlie Smith

9 years ago

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Because playing hopscotch in the rain is a good idea. Designer.

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  9 years ago
  
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