Thanks Meng for bringing Sophie Calle to this conversation. I love her work and for several times that i felt compelled to do something similar as a personal experience to see how following strangers go take me to new paths and explore the city in a different way. It's interesting how we create our own paths to go from point A to point B and how that paths are transformed so quickly into daily routines that are hard to break.
In 2004 Spectrapolis event in NY, Christina Ray and Lee Walton "performed" Following The Man of the Crowd, a 24 hour/walk in which both artists, linked by text messaging, drift separately through the city in an alternating pattern according to the movements of strangers, inspired by a Vito Acconci piece.
Sometimes I stay in the streets or squares looking to the people passing by. I really enjoyed to do that, imaging where they are going, what they are thinking, who they are. I create the same imaginary stories in the subway, trying to entertain myself when I’ not reading or thinking about assignments and in the subway is much easier to recognize people that you had seen before, the Familiar Strangers that Meng also pointed out and that reminded me of a project by Eric Paulos and Elizabeth Goodman. They developed a wireless device that you can use or wear that try to capture and extend the essence of the Familiar Stranger concept. Take a look of the project . What I enjoy so much in this application/device is the way the device can be used both ways: to visualize the network of Familiar Strangers and find places where you can feel more "familiar " or use it to avoid familiar people and go to places where you are "more" anonymous
I should try to follow people one of this days!