The reason for getting into this project was down to my own experiences, and those of my family.

In January 2007, I visited New York for the second time in my life, on the design school’s Christmas study trip. It had a profound effect on me. I already have a love of cities, my hometown Glasgow being my first love, but within New York, I saw some of the traits that I love about Glasgow, moved onto a completely epic scale. There was the same sense of community and city spirit, which had to do with everything from what the people wore, to how they spoke to you, to how they ate, etc. etc. It is a feeling I have found in all the major cities that I have enjoyed.

Consequently, I was extremely jealous of my uncle Frank. A former surveyor turned artist, he moved from London to the lower east side of Manhattan with my aunt Angie and his cats. Self employed in a job he loves, not only in my dream city, but in of the best areas within that city, I thought he must be over the moon.

Which is why I was surprised to discover that soon after my visit, he moved out to Brooklyn, and is now in the process of moving back to the UK. One of the reasons he mentioned to me was how hard it was to meet people in the city, particularly being self-employed.

I decided that in order to rescue my own mental image of the city, I had to explore this phenomenon in more depth. And Millions Of People Being Lonesome Together was born.