The Errant Æsthete

In a small church somewhere in the southern Pyryneés stands a wall covered in fragments of marble and ceramic tile. Declaring gratitude for any of a number of invisible reasons — personal, spiritual — the simple repetition of a single word forms a beguiling tapestry of human anonymity. Who were these people who chose to crystallize their appreciation this way, through words representing any number of thoughts and events and deeds now long gone? Here, “merci” becomes at once a gesture of appreciation and an architectural statement. The letterforms, some shiny and others starting to decompose, coalesce as a single form — a mesmerizing typographic benediction.

Here in America on this day of ritualized thanks, we are reminded that saying “Thank You” is a meaningful, yet all-too-often overlooked part of everyday life. And so we say Merci to all our readers whose contributions we recognize with sincere gratitude. We are nothing without you. [merci, designobserver]