{"id":23870,"date":"2016-09-16T09:24:04","date_gmt":"2016-09-16T16:24:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/?p=23870"},"modified":"2016-09-16T09:58:39","modified_gmt":"2016-09-16T16:58:39","slug":"friday-fun-london-tube-station-revamped-to-purr-mote-paws-itive-cat-titudes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.politicsplus.org\/blog\/2016\/09\/16\/friday-fun-london-tube-station-revamped-to-purr-mote-paws-itive-cat-titudes\/","title":{"rendered":"Friday Fun \u2013 London Tube Station Revamped to Purr-mote Paws-itive Cat-titudes"},"content":{"rendered":"

Earlier this year a group called Glimpse<\/em><\/strong> dedicated to using the power of creativity to transform public spaces into oases designed to make people feel good, began a Kickstarter <\/strong><\/em>quest to fund their goal of replacing all the menacing, mercenary ads in a London tube (what we call a “subway”) station with claw<\/em>-some pictures of pooties.<\/p>\n

\"cats_london-subway_adland_01\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Well, it didn’t look promising for quite some time.  Even though they had joined forces with Battersea<\/strong><\/em>, the UK Animal Rescue Center who offered up their shelter cats as models for the project, they were barely over halfway to their goal of raising £23,000 (about $30,500) with only a few days left. <\/p>\n

But fur<\/em>-tunately they came up with the claw<\/em>-some idea of forming Citizens Advertising Takeover Service (CATS)<\/em><\/strong> wherein each person pledged a minimum of £100 (about $132).  All totaled, more than 680 backers ended up pledging £23,131 (about $30,845) to transform a London tube station into a shrine with images of the Internet's favorite creature.  (Hell, let’s be honest here – cats are one of the main reasons the Internet was created.)<\/em><\/p>\n

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One of the 68 posters lining the walls features cats sent in by members of the public.  In fact, one of the pledgers even flew in from Virginia to view their beloved critter in the poster.<\/p>\n

\"The

The Citizens Advertising Takeover Service replaced 68 adverts in Clapham Common tube station with pictures of cats. Organisers say they hope the pictures will help people think differently about the world around them. Credit: CatsnotAds.org<\/p><\/div>\n

So on Monday morning commuters who usually start the work week feline<\/em> depressed took an extra few mew<\/em>-ments to enjoy all 68 pootie portraits lining the walls and escalators at the Clapham Common Tube Station<\/em><\/strong> that left them with paws<\/em>-itive cat<\/em>-titudes!<\/p>\n

So paw<\/em>-lease, have your tickets ready to pass through the Clapham Common tube’s gates and enjoy their mew<\/em>-nificent creativity:<\/p>\n

\"cats_london-subway_instagram_05\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"cats_london-subway_adland_02\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"The

The Citizens Advertising Takeover Service replaced 68 adverts in Clapham Common tube station with pictures of cats. Organisers say they hope the pictures will help people think differently about the world around them. Credit: CatsnotAds.org<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

\"cats_london-subway_instagram_00\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\"The

The Citizens Advertising Takeover Service replaced 68 adverts in Clapham Common tube station with pictures of cats. Organisers say they hope the pictures will help people think differently about the world around them. Credit: CatsnotAds.org<\/p><\/div>\n

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On the serious side, Glimpse <\/strong><\/em>founder and #CatsNotAds <\/strong><\/em>leader James Turner<\/strong> said:<\/p>\n

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"We tried to imagine a world where public spaces made you feel good. We hope people will enjoy being in the station and maybe think a bit differently about the world around them.  Instead of asking you to buy something, we're asking you to think about what's really valuable in your life. It might not be cats, but it's probably something you can't find in the shops."<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

And Battersea's <\/strong><\/em>head of catteries, Lindsey Quinlan<\/strong> added:<\/p>\n

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"We're thrilled that Battersea cats are among the stars of these posters.  We care for over 3,000 rescue cats a year, so hopefully this campaign will encourage lots more people to visit our centers and consider rehoming our fantastic felines."<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

In the meantime, the #CatsNotAds team is not resting on their laurels.  They’ve already begun planning their next "takeover" project.  Entries can be submitted at CatsNotAds.org<\/strong><\/a>.  Take a guess what the current frontrunner is?<\/p>\n

\"The

The Citizens Advertising Takeover Service replaced 68 adverts in Clapham Common tube station with pictures of cats. Organisers say they hope the pictures will help people think differently about the world around them. Credit: CatsnotAds.org<\/p><\/div>\n

The Tweet has a short, 34-second video tour of the station:<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/hannah_gelbart\/status\/775273912800247808\/video\/1<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

BONUS<\/u><\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Here’s map of the London Tube system – see if you can find the Clapham Common Tube Station:<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\"cats_london-subway_tube-map\"<\/a><\/p>\n

RESOURCES<\/u><\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

http:\/\/weglimpse.co\/catsnotads\/<\/p>\n

All the Ads in This London Subway Station Have Been Replaced by Pictures of Cats<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n