Any Questions?

Have a burning question? Well, if you happen to be in the Square this summer, and you happen to write said question on a notecard, and you happen to insert said notecard into the box attached to the Wheel Questions art installation on Brattle St. near Chipotle and Eastern Mountain Sports, then Johnny Monsarrat just might have an answer for you.  Actually, he will definitely have an answer for you.

Wheel Questions began in Monsarrat’s backyard rock garden in July 2008, after he was inspired by The Love Guru—a Mike Myers film that received a whopping 14% approval rating on rottentomatoes.com (clearly quality)—and felt the idea was “too cool not to do it.”  Now, it’s a fully-fledged, touring, interactive art project: Passerby contribute questions via notecards and Monsarrat answers them on the back, displaying the cards on a black cylinder for the world to read.  The mastermind behind the project estimates he’s received 2,000 queries at this point, and was quick to note that this bests postsecret.com. More questions after the jump.

Flyby’s burning question for the man with the answers was: What makes him qualified to be the man with the answers? While the Wheel Question website calls him a life coach, Monsarrat explained that he has “all the qualifications of Dr. Phil: none.”  This left FlyBy confused—because being a life coach actually requires certification.  But, ultimately, Monsarrat does have a reason for insisting that he alone answer questions submitted to the Wheel: Otherwise, he said, people would probably destroy or vandalize the cards, adding, “Someone might make fun of others or tell them to turn to God,” which isn’t what he’s going for.

Whether or not Monsarrat is always right, he’s definitely always committed. To date, he’s put in about $1,600 and 1,000 hours of time, and hasn’t received any donations.  FlyBy wonders how buying notecards could cost so much money.  That’s art for you.

Monsarrat’s most memorable question? In the first week, he received a card that said “I’m afraid of life in its full essence.”  After that, he thought “Boy, this is going to work. People are going to get this.”

FlyBy’s favorite questions submitted on the Wheel? “Are you single?” “What will you be when you grow up” (written in 5th grader printing), and the ever-hostile “Who do you think you are?”

Photo Credit: Alan C. Chiu/The Crimson