Corner

Downtown, at the corner where the fire was last year, an evokative photo exhibit, Dialogue, has been installed on the temporary walls surrounding the burn site as part of the 2008 Reykjavik Arts Festival. Here men velcro up the nearly thousand images of rural Icelandic children, photographed by artists Anna Leoniak and Fiann Paul.

All those eyes seemingly watching our daily hustle and bustle somehow put things into perspective. I slow as I pass the children by, trying to imagine their names, or their favorite games, wanting to wipe the jam off the corner of a young girl's mouth or straighten that little one's hat. I thought this exhibit wouldn't last long exposed like it is to the (party/reckless) elements of Reykjavik, but it's still tag-free after a week, and intact, a sign that innocence still holds sway.