From a personal (not having a car) perspective, parking meters are a natural consequence of cars themselves. To other people (with cars), the presence of parking meters can be a provocation.

To the latter category belong people in Madrid who got upset with mayor Gallardón when he introduced parking meters in the city last year. Subsequently he became the target of a public protest in which strategically placed sticker-art was humorously employed.

• Stickers Contra Gallardon

Archis.org has launched a blog about the architectural consequences of war.

The blog, called Unbuilt, serves as a platform for dialogue and sharing ideas for reviving the city and land after (and often still in) conflict.

An entry that caught my eye is written by Edwin Gardner who reflects about the presence of bullet holes in the buildings of Beirut.

Gardner looks at bullet holes from a different perspective and proposes a concept where the holes are replaced by lights. The idea is to reverse the meaning and experience of bullet holes and to introduce unexpected poetic moments of beauty, ambivalently mixed with the physical testimonies of violence.

It's probably not very realistic that such concept will materialize in a city where people have basic needs to worry about (survival, water, electricity?) but the idea is very beautiful and a lot more captivating than many of today's dark memorials and similar symbolic representations.

Related: The Light/Linien. Peace sculpture by Elle Mie Ejdrup.

• Bullet Lights

Have you ever seen a single shoe in the gutter, a beanie on the road, or a glove on the tram, and thought about whom the object may have belonged to, and how it got lost?

If yes, then you will love the Discarded Object Poster Project.

Discarded Object Poster Project is an urban artwork by Beth Arnold devoted to lonely deserted objects that we tend to notice, only to forget about them soon after.

The artist recently invited people in Melbourne to submit photographs of discarded objects along with information about their location. The images will then be made into high-quality posters and posted around the city.

Walking tours to view posters will take place at the opening on Thursday December 12th.

• www.discardedobject.com

Kids are probably one of the most lucrative design-segments in Denmark at the moment and now, a new type of product has emerged that appeals to parents with money to spend.

Funnywalls is an online service where you can submit a drawing of own choice and have it transformed into real wallpaper for your home (actually, you don't need to have a kid to use the service).

Furthermore, if you are afraid of getting tired with your child's or your own drawing, you can order velcro-enabled wallpaper that allows you to dynamically change it without too much hassle.

Funnywalls is made of eco-friendly materials. Prices range from 55 - 85 euro pr m2. Information in Danish only.

• www.funnywalls.dk

In this part of the world, all we hear of Kabul is usually related to war, crime and misery.

However, they actually have an emerging art scene as well and much of it seems to be connected to The Center of Contemporary Art Afghanistan, which is occasionally frequented by international artists.

One of them Luis Berrios Negron - an MIT graduate - recently went there to carry out a workshop with local students.

Provoked by the brutal past of the Taliban regime as well as the absurd amount of advertisements which US driven democracy apparently has enriched present day Kabul with, Luis Berrios Negron decided to set up an architectural performance with his students.

Together they took over a huge abandoned billboard overlooking the city and covered it with a green cloth. In Afghanistan green is the color of rebirth and from everywhere in Kabul people could see the intervention.

• Read more about the performance

The streets of Hamburg is the venue of an upcoming international award exhibition called Stickersafari.

As the name suggests, Stickersafari is dedicated to sticker-art and in the spirit of the medium, it takes place outdoor in Marktstraße in Hamburg from October 7 - November 7.

More than 5000 stickers from all over the world, have been submitted to the exhibition, which is organised by NO GALLERY – a gallery without space, showing contemporary art in unusual places.

• www.stickersafari.net

During the summer, French political activists representing the conservative UMP party toured the beaches to attract new voters.

Besides handing out conventional marketing stuff such as leaflets, t-shirts etc., the activists also gave away condoms and flip flops.

While there seem to be no bright conceptual idea behind the condoms (safe politics?), the flip-flops were cleverly designed to leave the UMP initials imprinted in the sand.

• Images on Flickr

The 'users-as-designers' meme continues to spread.

The KBC bank in Belgium, now offers its customers the opportunity to personalize their own bank cards.

Via the KBC website, customers are invited to submit an image of own choice. After a few days they can pick up a new card at the bank that has the selected image imprinted (if it is approved of by KBC that is).

Related: Design Your Own Luggage Labels

• KBC Bank

Volkswagen UK has introduced a service, which allows owners of the new Beetle to personalize the exterior of their car with arty stickers.

Via a website, customers can configure their Beetle based on four types of artworks made by four different artists.

The decoration - which cost up to £200 - should last for 3 years but can also be removed anytime, using a hairdryer.

• Volkswagen UK

An australian marketing company has launched a direct marketing concept that utilizes pass-out stamps for advertising.

The company is working with venue owners and advertisers to stamp marketing messages on the hands of visitors as they enter bars and nightclubs.

Apparently, they do not ask for permission first as the advertising stamps simply replace the traditional pass-out stamps that are already in use at most nightclubs.

• Springwise