In the previous post, I took a quick look at Cass Sunstein’s #republic— particularly, at the mechanisms of online polarization. I’m also empathetic to Sunstein’s hopes for a dedicated online Commons. Here, I wanted to write some observations on the quality of designed spaces for shared experience— looking especially at the application of public art. Sunstein calls for a public domain, designated to popular deliberation— a kind of incubator of social progress. I wonder how we might compare a sidewalk and a park in this capacity— or better yet, an old public house to a digital forum? In what way does art function in this space to provoke or curate shared experience? To approach these questions, I’d like to tell a story about an artist, David Powers.