A small stretch of Canal Street is at war — and it's pretty.
Companies in buildings across the street from each other are filling their windows with Post-it notes in elaborate designs in what's become something of a colorful battle of one-upsmanship, as first reported by New York 1.
Marge & Maggie stopped by #postitwar #canalnotes pic.twitter.com/6ZFhCwLtHS
— kBostley (@kBostley) May 13, 2016
The deluge of paper window-art started on May 9, when two ad agencies, Havas Worldwide and Horizon Media — which sit across from each other on Canal Street — began exchanging some playful messages via the sticky squares. Some examples: PROM?; MARRY ME?; references to Beyonce's "Lemonade" album, such as "Becky With The Good Hair" and then the cheekier message, "SEND NUDE."
"It was a nice return to the world of analog communications — becoming a fun and organic way for us to communicate with our neighbors and further fuel our agency culture of collaboration," a Havas spokeswoman said in an email to DNAinfo New York. "But given we're in the creative business, this was not enough."
Pretty soon, there was some heavy Post-it art escalation, with all sorts of characters — including Maggie and Marge Simpson, Spider-Man and the Snapchat logo ghost.
Havas is winning #canalnotes pic.twitter.com/aHhu03kpPM
— Greg (@motylenski) May 13, 2016
Dozens of windows in the 200 Hudson St. and 75 Varick St. buildings are now filled with the designs.
Post-it even sent along some ammunition last week when it got word of the fight.
@slou20 @Postit @havasnyc @harrisonandstar think that flyer would be GR8 for my Ss doing #pixelart can we find it online somewhere?
— Tricia Louis (@talouis) May 16, 2016
But its not the first time Post-its have sparked a creative showdown across building lines. Over the past few years, some companies have engaged in a few little skirmishes.
And France may have been the first in the Post-it note wars back in 2011.
As for the TriBeCa battle, it remains to be seen when the battle will end. Maybe a truce will be called when all the windows are covered — or, you know, when people need to get back to work.
