CROSSROADS
Public Installation, in collaboration with Wei Wu,
on view: 02/16/2026 - 05/08/2026
Boston City Hall
Boston, MA, United States
“How do you move through the city?” Crossroads is a participatory installation that transforms the Mezzanine Gallery into a space of seasonal and symbolic transition. Positioned at the city’s civic heart, the gallery offers a rare vantage point—one that looks outward toward Boston’s bustle while anchoring the weight of its public architecture. Amid challenges and transitions, the artists see this space as a symbolic crossroads—where past, present, and future converge. Through a subtle gradient of color, shifting from beige to green, a quiet shift in tone mirrors the progression from winter to spring, symbolizing the collective journey of Bostonians as they move from dormancy toward renewal.
At the center of this installation is a poetic gesture: movement. Movement can be fast or slow, daily or occasional, intentional or ordinary.
Captured through community submissions, this installation will come to life with the projection of “Portraits of Movement", a video that celebrates everyday Bostonians and the spirit of the city—resilient, forward-moving, and united. At all other times, the installation remains still: a quiet space of potential energy, a canvas awaiting activation. The work draws on Boston’s legacy of endurance—both literal and symbolic. From Kathrine Switzer’s historic run in the 1967 Boston Marathon to the city’s defiant response after the 2013 bombing, Boston has long embodied courage, solidarity, and civic strength.
Crossroads offers a space where art, community, and public identity meet—a quiet call to keep moving forward, together. In this way, this installation becomes a meditation on the Zeitgeist—the civic spirit of Boston defined by participation, resilience, and shared momentum. By weaving together personal motion and collective symbolism within this monumental space, the artists aim to create a quietly powerful intervention that honors the city’s spirit and welcomes the arrival of spring.
This exhibition is organized by Galleries and Exhibitions Manager, Mariana Rey in dialogue with the artists.
