The Free Pass Project – A Social Practice of Spontaneous Compassion and Conversation

Creatively enacting spontaneous compassion and conversation.

(PLEASE NOTE: this website is now an archive of a ten year public art project that engaged and made the day better for over 4,000 people. My full art and project site is www.rachelcyreneblackman.com.)"FREE PASS": two words that can communicate simple compassion. Who needs the grace of a free pass now and again? Almost everyone. Think about your day, and even the last few hours. Has there been a moment where you've given yourself a hard time or been in a frustration? Have you interacted with a loved one or stranger who is stressed, is doing the best they can, feels disengaged from … Read More...

Read Our Stories...

For my Mom…

“My mom was out of town all weekend. A few hours before I knew she was due home tonight, I snuck into her house and set up this little Mother’s Day display. Two Free Passes! Dear Mom, you are totally off the hook for some unintentional childhood trauma, like my irrational fear of centipedes. Love […]

Made my own project…

“I mentioned that I wanted to share them with my two sons and my niece, each of whom was joined by their significant others at our family Christmas and all of whom are setting in to new lives and new cities. I hoped the tokens would offer a fun way to do that.I created a […]

Kindness of Strangers

Last year, I found myself in tears on a grassy hill on the Carnegie Mellon campus, attempting to make it through the final morning of the Open Engagement conference. I believe it was you, Rachel, who approached me. You provided me with every sort of support and reflection I needed in that moment, as I […]

Free Pass blogger…

Keep Working on Love (Blogger from Maine: link) TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2014 Free Pass A ref friend of mine sent me this funny little poker chip in the mail the other day. “Free Pass” was stamped on its face. The enclosed note described how it was a part of an interactive art project, the idea […]