CurioCity.

In summer 2020, while MOXI was closed, museum staff invited members of the community to design, engineer + build all the components needed to create a model of a city dubbed CurioCity. The twist? It had to be made primarily out of cardboard!

In addition to encouraging creative reuse of cardboard, this project also introduced participants to the concepts of city planning. Design constraints and requirements were provided to the public via MOXI’s website and social media channels, and short videos provided helpful tips + tricks for working with cardboard. Participants were encouraged to make structures and features to meet a variety of needs for the citizens of CurioCity, including residential buildings, recreational activities/locations, service providers, and utilities.

The creations that were displayed at MOXI were primarily created throughout June + July 2020 and collected by museum staff at a series of curbside drop-off events to ensure compliance with pandemic-related health and safety protocols. MOXI staff curated them into the complete community pictured here.