How
can works of public art help to create
"places" and destination in
communities? What design elements are
required to make a public artwork successful?
What are the necessary ingredients for
a successful artist/community collaboration?
ART
IN PUBLIC PLACES
 Public
art should contribute to city life and people's
use and enjoyment of public places. Public art
is most effective when it is incorporated, as
a design strategy, into the planning of public
spaces from the outset and acts as a catalyst
for generating activity. PPS assists both public
and private sector groups - city agencies, community
groups and private developers - in defining
how public art will contribute to a project,
meet the public's needs, and fulfill its role
in making public spaces active and successful.
Determining the purpose the art is intended
to serve, such as lighting a public place
at night or providing a focal point for
arts-related economic activity, is also
a part of this process. Drawing upon a
city's human resources, PPS creates opportunities
for the development of arts-related activities
which reflect or involve a particular
community and express its unique identity.
For example, artists have been involved
in urban redevelopment projects where
they create public amenities for buildings
and streetscapes. Spaces may call for
temporary rather than permanent installations.
PPS has found that art which is temporary,
or which serves a functional purpose can
provide an exciting alternative to permanent
sculpture in a plaza or atrium. Moreover,
by exploring portable and temporary uses,
it is possible to expand public art programs
on an incremental basis and to test different
types of arts-related activities.
To
acquaint people with the variety of possibilities
for public art and to aid in selection,
PPS maintains a resource file which contains
more than 2,000
slides of the work of various artists
and artisans. Types of work include fountains,
lighting, murals, mosaics, tent structures,
banners, environmental, figurative and
abstract sculpture, play sculpture, seating,
and ornamental glass. The resource file
also includes information about both publicly
and privately-run public art programs.
Clients
benefit from PPS's understanding that
a consideration of both the public space
and the user's needs is essential to the
process of successfully choosing, commissioning
and siting public art.
For
additional information, please contact Cynthia
Abramson Nikitin, or click
here for Project Experience.
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