This $1 sticker vending machine in Cambridge aims to give back to the community - The Boston Globe

Mar 25, 2025

In February 2022, Jennifer Bouché was scrolling Instagram when she stumbled across a post for a unique vending machine. Instead of soda or snacks, the machine dispensed stickers designed and provided by artists with the money from sales donated to a suicide prevention hot line. The Washington-based machine was created and maintained by Kate Sowder, an artist who goes by the name “Girl Spit.”

“She was looking for artists to donate stickers to her machine,” explained Bouché, a part-time student at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design. “I donated some of my stickers, reached out to her and said, ‘Hey, I love this idea. What do you think about me re-creating it on the East Coast?’”

After receiving a “yes,” Bouché set up her own sticker vending machine project in Cambridge in May 2022, naming it “Stick Together.”

Advertisement

The concept is a familiar one: quirky, coin-operated machines that distribute tiny works of art have been popping up across the United States, including New England, for years. Locally, Inciardi Prints’ machines vend mini food-themed prints for $1 at the Institute of Contemporary Arts and Beacon Hill Books & Cafe. Tiny prints are distributed via an Art-o-mat-run repurposed cigarette dispenser at a Whole Foods on Harrison Avenue, and a vending machine at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, operated by North Adams artist Nico Dery, features 23 pieces of art at a time, with prices ranging from $2 to $40.

In addition to offering stickers rather than prints, “Stick Together” aims to set itself apart by donating proceeds to local community charities. While Bouché purchased the machine herself, the stickers are donated by artists who submit their work for consideration. One sticker costs $1 and is dispensed inside a cardboard sleeve. The project has raised approximately $1,200 since its installation, as of the end of 2024.

Stickers range in size up to 3 inches by 4.5 inches, and the design can be anything, save for copyrighted material, obscenity, and hate speech. Bouché curates the options and says she accepts art of all types, though she keeps trends, the local consumer, and what she considers “cute” at the top of the queue. (Animals usually get the green light.)

Advertisement

The machine’s first home was in the now-closed Artist & Craftsman Supply location in Central Square but has since relocated in February 2023 to 1369 Coffee House, which picks the charities through its “Drink for a Cause” program.

“It’s a great way to... make art accessible and spread a little joy, too, because I know a lot of people really like the randomization factor,” said Bouché, referring to the machine’s random dispersal of stickers. Plus, if you aren’t a fan of the sticker that was dispensed, there is a “take a sticker, leave a sticker” bin on the top of the machine.

The machine features about a dozen creators at a time, including local artists Mass Love Distro, Courtney Elizabeth, and Bouché‘s own brand Cambrasine. Some 30 artists have participated in the machine’s two-year run, she said. Bouché replenishes the machine with new stickers every other month.

Recent donations have been made to the Cambridge Community Center, which addresses systemic racism and inequality, and domestic violence awareness and action nonprofit, Transition House.

“It’s really nice to be able to keep the money within the community,” said Bouché.

Arushi Jacob can be reached at [email protected].