Berd on a Wire

Tad Lauritzen Wright's "Blue Parkways" installation along the Parkways and the river has been turning quite a few heads and garnering a lot of press in Memphis.

I recently learned about another public art project that spanned several cities in California that incorporated "berds" on wires.



California artist Browne (a.k.a. 4eightyone) has been credited for making the berds. Unlike Lauritzen Wright, who worked with the Urban Arts Commission on his installation, Browne did the berds on his own as a form of street art.

There were around 200 of these plywood berds with padlock counterweights hanging around Los Angeles on utility wires. The artist also placed berds in Santa Barbara, San Francisco, and New York.

Despite numerous interviews, the artist has declined to tell the meaning behind the berds, leaving many to conjure their own meanings.