TL;DR
Get art and craft supplies delivered free with Prime
- Fast, free delivery on millions of items
- Prime Video, Amazon Music and more included
- Member-only deals all year
Artist Paul Ramírez Jonas presented Public Trust in Toronto last month, inviting strangers to make promises that appeared on a marquee and were recorded in take-home contracts. The project, first presented in Boston in 2016, brings personal commitments into conversation with public statements and political promises. Its organizers and the source report frame the Toronto presentation ahead of the city’s municipal election.
Artist Paul Ramírez Jonas brought Public Trust to Toronto last month, inviting people to sit with strangers, make promises and have them displayed on a large marquee. The participatory artwork, presented by The Bentway as Toronto’s municipal election approached, turns personal commitments into public statements and asks participants to consider the weight of their words.
Participants were asked to meet another person in a public space, make a promise and swear to keep it. Their words appeared on a marquee, and each participant received a one-of-a-kind contract commemorating the vow. One promise reported from the Toronto presentation was, “I promise to disagree better.” The source does not provide a total count for the Toronto event, describing the promises as among hundreds.
Public Trust was commissioned and first presented in Boston in 2016 by Now + There, an organization later renamed the Boston Public Art Triennial. It was the group’s first project. The Toronto presentation was organized by The Bentway, where Anna Gallagher-Ross directs programming, according to the source report.
In Boston, promises from residents were juxtaposed with daily headlines and commitments made by politicians, corporations, weather forecasters and others. The artwork places everyday vows beside statements made by public figures and institutions, drawing attention to how people participate in civic life and how they judge promises made by those in authority.
Personal Vows Meet Public Promises
The artwork gives participants a direct role in a public conversation about trust and accountability. A promise made between two strangers is not equivalent to an official political pledge, but setting personal commitments alongside authoritative statements can prompt reflection on who makes promises, who is expected to keep them and what happens when they are broken.
The timing adds a civic dimension: the Toronto presentation took place as a municipal election approached. The source report argues that the project felt especially relevant in that setting, though it does not document a particular campaign issue or measure the artwork’s effect on voters. Its significance lies in creating a public setting for people to make commitments and hear those of others, rather than in proving that the project changed political behavior.
Popular right now
Samsung 75-Inch M80H Series Mini LED 4K Smart TV (2026)
Breville Barista Express Espresso Machine, Black Sesame
Breville BES870BTR Barista Express Espresso Machine, Black Truffle
As an affiliate, we earn on qualifying purchases.
From Boston Commission to Toronto
Ramírez Jonas’s Public Trust began in Boston in 2016, months before Donald Trump was first elected president, according to the source report. That date is part of the project’s history; the report’s view that the work feels more urgent a decade later is an interpretation, not a finding measured by the artwork.
Now + There commissioned the work as its inaugural project. The source says the Boston presentation paired residents’ promises—often about family or self-improvement—with headlines and statements from public authorities and organizations. The Toronto event carried forward the basic participatory format, with The Bentway presenting the work ahead of the city election.
“I promise to disagree better.”
— A participant in the Toronto presentation, as reported by Hyperallergic
The Project’s Reach Remains Unknown
The source report does not state the exact dates or attendance for the Toronto presentation, how many promises were collected there, or whether the displayed commitments will remain available after the event. It also gives no evidence about whether participants’ promises were kept or whether the artwork affected election discussion, voter choices or public confidence.
The report presents the work as an invitation to reflect on trust and democratic participation. That interpretation should not be confused with evidence that the project can hold politicians or institutions accountable, or that it changes their conduct.
Toronto’s Election Sets the Near-Term Frame
The immediate civic milestone identified in the source is Toronto’s municipal election, which was approaching when the artwork was presented. The report does not give an election date or announce further presentations of Public Trust. Any continuation of the installation, publication of the promises or later assessment of its impact remains unreported.
Key Questions
What is Public Trust?
Public Trust is a participatory public artwork by Paul Ramírez Jonas. It invites people to make promises with strangers, display the words on a marquee and take home a contract commemorating the vow.
Where and when was the artwork presented?
The work was presented in Toronto last month by The Bentway. It was first commissioned and presented in Boston in 2016 by Now + There.
What was one promise made in Toronto?
The source report gives one example: “I promise to disagree better.”
Did the project change political behavior or the election?
The available report provides no evidence that Public Trust changed political behavior, voter choices or the election. It describes the artwork as a prompt for reflection on promises and participation.
Source: hyperallergic.com
