For many, what irks them most about Citi Bike is its branding aspect. Indeed, some are calling it as much a brilliant advertising campaign as a novel transportation system. In tiny Petrosino Square, where artists and residents are battling a bike-share station placed in their park, Soho artist William Skillman is taking the idea to its logical extreme. He’s been putting up four or five signs per day branding everything in the square, “Citi Tree,” “Citi Weeds,” “Citi Fence.” However, the signs are stolen every day, so every day he puts up new ones. Asked what exactly he means by the “Citi Eye” sign on the bike-share kiosk, he responded, “ ‘Citi Eye’ refers to the giant Darth Vader-looking tower… Is it not for surveillance?” It seems even artist Minerva Durham, below right, who vehemently opposes the bike-share station, can’t escape being “Citi-fied.”
