The Vertical Bed

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No, this is not a picture of a man prepared to wait a very long time for the Marilyn Monroe air vent effect. This is a man in the depths of upright comfort that is the Vertical Bed. Sounds good already, doesn't it? Well, you haven't heard the half of it.

See, artist Jamie O'Shea's work was all about challenging the concept of the urban environment that is the New York City streets as part of Conflux 2008 and what he's done is turn the Big Apple from a centre of hustle and bustle to a place where he can get some good honest kip. Nice.

The Vertical bed isn't just about standing up a mattress and frame. No. Jamie's bolted a couple tripod legs to the grate at his feet, via his specially adapted shoes. The poles run up the backs of his thighs and into the harness at his waist. The back brace and neck pillow provide support for this torso but it's the small touches I like: double mirrored sunglasses with eye cushions, noise cancelling headphones and a brolly overhead just in case it rains.

Word has it Jamie managed to get 40 minutes shut-eye. Not sure if he had his hub-caps stolen.

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