GRAND OPENING - Pong (New York) |
Monday, 07 May 2007 |
Call it the relentless march of capitalism, or the material
manifestation of our fickle society, but the high street is in a
constant state of flux. Shops change hands at the drop of a hat, and
most of the time, it’s not for the better.
It is precisely this commercial whimsy that inspired Canadian brothers Ben and Hall Smyth to create GrandOpening,
a space that will constantly reopen every three months. Except, rather
than hand over the keys to new owners, the Smyth’s will completely
overhaul the 400-square foot space into something new.
Based in Norfolk Street, New York, GrandOpening is currently a
ping-pong parlor equipped with full-sized table and recording
facilities so you can watch your performances on YouTube. For $6 you
can get the table for twenty minutes, and for $50 you get the whole
room for an hour with access to the projector screen and bleachers.
But it won’t be around for long. Come July, it’ll be gone, replaced by
something equally quirky. Perhaps a cinema, driving range or even a
dominoes emporium, who knows. Even the Smyths are at a loss. All we
know is, in spite of the homogenization of the high street, there’s
still room for a spot of table tennis. Game on. By Matthew Hussey
|
Delicious
Technorati
Digg
Stumble