On Public Art

Where does art belong? Who does it belong to?

These questions have many different answers but when it comes to Public Art, the answer is already in its name: It must be in the public realm (visible, accessible), and it should be ‘of’ the public.

This gives Public Art a great deal of power and an immense responsibility. Public Art can:

• Speak to the values of the community and its culture(s)

• Honour history and legacy

• Reflect global relevance

• Engage the public

• Reflect the character and vision of a project and/or place

• Affect/redefine the spacial qualities of a place

• Add value to the property and/or area

• Create unique opportunities for artists

• Create meaningful connections between people and places

• Enrich the public realm

Below are some examples of Public Art in different cities and countries.

1. The Eagle; Alexander Calder. Seattle Sculpture Park, USA

2. Each One, Every One, Equal All; Nick Cave. New York City subway, NY, USA

3. Couleur Additive; Carlos Cruz Diez. Broad Museum, LA, USA

4. Personnages; Lyse Lemieux. Vancouver, Canada. Photo by Provoke Studios. 

5. Wolkenhirt; HansArp. 1953. Caracas, Venezuela

6. 19.604692°N 72.218596°W; Firelei Báez. High Line, Manhattan, NY, USA

7. Holographic Entities Reminding of the Universe; Masako Miki, Uber Campus, SF, USA

8. Vanity Working on a Weak Head Produces Every Sort of Mischief (Jane Austen) by Nick Hornby in the foreground and Venus; Fernando Botero in the background. Broadgate, London, UK

9. Continuum; Krista Kim (in collaboration with Jeff Schroeder); Fort York National Historic Site, Toronto, Canada. Photo courtesy of SUMO project.

10. Cathedral Square | Blanketing the City; Debra Sparrow (Musqueam), Chief Janice George (Squamish) and Angela George (Tsleil-Waututh). Vancouver, Canada. Photo courtesy of VMF.