Dec. 22 (UPI) — Pedestrians in Christchurch, New Zealand, were left scratching their heads by a series of seemingly-official signs with messages including: “This area is slightly haunted, but manageable.”
The signs, posted in various locations around the city, initially appear to be official postings from the local city council, but a closer examination reveals the words “Christchurch City Confusion” at the bottom instead of “Christchurch City Council.”
One of the signs simply reads: “Don’t.”
Another, posted outside an abandoned building, says: “This area is slightly haunted, but manageable.”
One sign that caused concern among pedestrians warns: “Walking speed limit 2.83 km/h [1.75 mph].”
The signs were created by artist Cameron Hunt as part of the Little Street Art Festival.
“The idea was to make signs that look official, but with completely absurd messages, therefore creating moments of confusion, followed by little bursts of joy,” Hunt told the Guardian.
Hunt said the point of the art is to make people notice and consider their surroundings.
“I like watching people’s reactions, they either laugh straight away, or there’s a bit of confusion,” he told Stuff.co.nz. “The official look is really like part of the setup, because if it didn’t look legit, people would just ignore it instantly. But when you have something that looks official and then says something completely ridiculous or absurd, that’s when you get that punch of confusion with joy.”