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Daily tous les jours, the 'provocative' Montréal-based art and design studio founded by Mouna Andraos and Melissa Mongiat, is pleased to announce the publication of their first book, Strangers Need Strange Moments Together: Designing Interaction for Public Spaces. Part manifesto, part monograph, part research archive, the book offers a look back at some of the practice's most transformative urban projects, lending insight into Daily tous les jours' thinking, process, community outreach efforts and more. Through this retrospective of 15 years of their interventions, Strangers Need Strange Moments Together makes the case for citizens to play a more active and participatory role in shaping their cities at a critical juncture in history.
Written by Andraos and Mongiat, the book was released on May 22, 2025, by the Dutch publisher Set Margins through select retailers. Inside, readers will discover the designers' beliefs on what it means to create meaningful work in a world in crisis, with an optimistic point of view. The site-specific works detailed in this volume—from the practice's internationally exhibited Musical Swings series to the Bloc Jam music sequencer to Musical Shadows, a trailblazing project in Mesa, Arizona—deftly weave together technology, urban design and performance to build bridges between strangers. As the public navigates political polarisation, social anxieties and a loneliness epidemic, the connection between strangers through play, communication and cooperation is more important than ever.
"There is so much technology trying to connect us these days, yet overwhelmingly it is doing the exact opposite. Someone on the other side of the street might as well be on the other side of the world," mentions Mongiat in the project's press release. "We believe that we need algorithms, environments and experiences to connect us in the flesh. We see an opportunity where all come together to create new kinds of moments, ones that surprise humans in their ability to feel a sense of connection to each other," she adds.
Throughout the text, Andraos and Mongiat share their observations about human behaviour and urban space with reports and insights from peers and experts in adjacent fields. Strangers Need Strange Moments Together is a book-length argument for going beyond impersonal, data-driven urban planning methodologies in favour of a design approach that centres joy, surprise and human connection.
"It may feel strange to smile, dance, or make music with a stranger these days," Andraos and Mongiat write in the book's manifesto. "But connecting with others through joy, bringing bodies, minds and spirits together in laughter, is a proposition we need for the survival of what's left of our humanity. Enchanted moments as resistance. Whether you call it art or infrastructure, strangers need strange moments together."
Filled with full-colour archival imagery across its 238 pages, the graphically engaging volume was designed by Studio Feed, a Montréal-based creative agency founded by Anouk Pennel and Raphaël Daudelin. No Media Co., the editorial and research studio founded by award-winning journalists Chris Frey and Patrick Pittman, provided storytelling support for the project.
In celebration of the release, Daily tous les jours hosted a series of launch events in Los Angeles, Montréal, Copenhagen and New York City. Andraos and Mongiat will also host a podcast to further dialogue with leading thinkers in design and urbanism, with each episode focused on themes from the book’s chapters. The first 25-minute episode was released in June 2025.
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