Call it the $100,000 question: “Should I Be Worried?”
It’s a neon sign affixed to a wooden structure that frames the condos along Vancouver’s False Creek.
Coverage of public art on Globalnews.ca:
The city paid about $100,000 to install the sign and it’s inspiring plenty of conversation from passersby.
“I just think it’s a good question,” said one. “Especially if you live in Vancouver or are trying to find a place to live in Vancouver.”
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The sign is the work of Justin Langlois, who spent 18 months as the City of Vancouver’s inaugural artist-in-residence.
He came up with the sign after he sat in sustainability meetings where staff asked that question.
“A question like this is maybe it begins with a yes or no but it kind of lands into, I think, a much bigger narrative about how we feel about being in the city,” Langlois told Global News.
As it frames the skyline, the sign brings attention to one worry that many Vancouverites share: that, if you’re under 30, you might never be able to afford a home in the city.
But that’s not the only issue that the sign encompasses if you ask the artist.
“This scene captures a lot of the tension points, as well as being really close to the water and connecting to sea level rise and those kinds of challenges that we’ll have to face over the coming decades,” Langlois said.