This week, Brooklyn's Young Projects installed their "Match-Maker" heart sculpture in Times Square. The cluster of red and pink periscopes are bookended with zodiac signs, so visitors can match themselves to other astrologically-compatible mates.
"In an era of digital communication, our design takes a decidedly analog approach to viscerally connect strangers and reaffirm compatibility between old partners," said principal Bryan Young on the project website.
For six years, the Times Square Alliance has held a design competition to install a love-themed installation in Father Duffy Square, near the now-iconic red steps. The projects have ranged in complexity and interactivity, as well as positivity (one literally melted—psychoanalyze that for a minute).
The first installation, a metal laser-cut heart with Valentines-colored lighting, was designed by Gage / Clemenceau Architects in 2009.
The 2010 installation, by New York-based Moorhead & Moorhead, was a heart-shaped sculpture made from blocks of ice that slowly melted. (Watch a video.)
Brooklyn-based Freecell draped red fabric over aluminum frames to form "Light Hearted" in 2011. When volunteers lifted the structure, it changed shape. (This one has a video too.)
In 2012, Danish firm Bjarke Ingels Group created a transparent cube surrounding a red glowing heart. Visitors could push a button to make the heart "beat," and more people made it race.
Last year's Situ Studio installation came just months after Sandy hit New York. The Brooklyn firm designed a heart-shaped wood platform with planks from local damaged boardwalks.
This year's heart will be on display through March 10.
