|
|
 |
Cities Celebrate Their Strengths Through Public Art
by Lee Modica
|
Cities are most appealing when vibrancy is mixed with stability – when the search for new possibilities is supported by a respect for current strengths. Like people, cities can possess charm, exude confidence and project security, and are most attractive when they are multifaceted.
Public art has become a popular and effective way to create such vibrancy and reveal a community’s special qualities. Artwork in a public space can highlight unique local history, be a symbol of new directions, or become an important element in transforming blighted areas.
Public art programs have blossomed over the past 30 years as more governmental authorities have recognized the value of placing art in their public spaces. Whether it is sculpture, murals, mosaics, fountains or functional structures, artwork has been taken out of the traditional realm of museums and galleries and moved onto the streets, plazas and parks of our communities.
Public art programs provide an exciting new look for physical spaces, creating citizen involvement and pride in the process. And as such energy grows, it infuses a city’s entire social and business climate, generating more homegrown enterprises, attracting outside interest and stimulating economic growth.
|
|
By its very nature, a public art program requires community involvement and support. At the same time, however, such a program must be rooted in the community, reflecting the way citizens wish to project themselves to visitors. The initial monetary investment required is enhanced by volunteer hours (adult and youth), in-kind organizational support, infrastructure improvements, public/private partnerships and enhanced community reputation.
The hands-on involvement of residents in the creation of a public art program – researching the possibilities, implementing the agreed-upon procedures and celebrating the final installation – creates a new and real sense of community. When citizens are a part of the process, the art is more likely to be embraced and celebrated by the community at large.
There are now more than 350 public art programs in the United States, and more are being added every year. In 2004, with broad, bipartisan legislative support, the State of Oklahoma passed a public art statute utilizing 1.5 percent of construction or renovation funding for state-owned buildings to acquire artwork. In California, Los Angeles County followed the example of the cities of Los Angeles, Pasadena and Santa Monica and approved a 2-percent ordinance for public art.
In Florida, every year cities decide to promote their own special qualities through public art. From older programs in Miami and Tampa to Jacksonville’s more recent effort, and in large to small cities throughout the state, public art is providing creative, innovative and challenging environments.
|
|
Fully realized public art programs follow different avenues of development. Some programs begin with a group of residents, cultural leaders and business people interested in funding the placement of a prominent artwork, perhaps in response to a special occasion or historic event. Potential funding sources for these individual public art projects are nonprofit groups, grass-roots citizen groups, neighborhood associations, urban renewal programs, developers, foundations and individuals.
The success and popularity of an initial project often leads to the official establishment of an ongoing public art program through local ordinance. Such ordinances are the option used by the vast majority of programs nationwide, because they provide a consistent and reliable funding source for a long-term commitment to community enhancement.
A more successful alternative to the “trial balloon” is to involve the entire city – elected officials, neighborhood groups and community leaders – in the development of a public art master plan. This comprehensive document defines the vision, long-term goals and administrative policies of a public art program. Completing a master plan, with the assistance of a public art professional, involves successfully building a consensus of community identity and direction – an activity that often uncovers needs and desires that will spur development in other areas.
A well-crafted master plan, written by a specialist and based on citizen input, can help guarantee a public art program’s success by establishing procedures for an open, fair and transparent selection process. Following such a process and including representatives from multiple stakeholder groups in the selection and placement of art can ensure city-wide acceptance, pride and a sense of ownership.
Whether through permanent acquisition of site-integrated art or temporary exhibits of changing artwork in interior or exterior public spaces – or a combination of both – a public art program can energize both city and citizenry. It has the ability to personify a city’s unique qualities, to highlight its past, to embody its future, to create a sense of fun and celebration, to establish areas of focus and safety, and to generally demonstrate the health and wealth of a community.
|
|
Resources
There are many resources available for a city that wants to add art to its public spaces. The Americans for the Arts Public Art Network – www.americansforthearts.org (look under “Field Services”) – a clearinghouse for public art, offers planning tools, resources and Web links. It also provides a comprehensive bibliography of reference books and articles, as well as useful monographs written by public art professionals: Great Cities, Building Creative Economies, Revitalizing a Downtown with Art, Public Art Funding, and Public Art Selection Process.
The Public Art Network also publishes the only directory of public art programs in the United States. Its new “2005/2006 Public Art Program Directory,” containing contact information and brief program details for more than 350 state, city and county programs, is an ideal resource for communities planning public art programs and projects. For more detailed information, request the Public Art Network’s recent statistical “Survey of Public Art Programs,” which provides data about funding sources, administrative models, ordinance structures, annual expenditures, etc.
Visual images of exciting and innovative public art projects from around the country can be found in the Public Art Network’s annual “Year in Review” sets of approximately 150 slides or digital images. Showing these projects to interested groups is a good way to stimulate awareness of the possibilities of community enhancement though public art.
|
|
Other excellent resources are the Web sites of various prominent and successful public art programs. Listed in the “PAN Directory,” these sites provide detailed guidance on the nuts-and-bolts of administration, sample ordinances, contracts, and more.
In 1998, Florida public art professionals were the first in the country to join together and create a statewide organization of administrative professionals and artists dedicated to supporting successful public art. The Florida Association of Public Art Administrators provides an information and outreach network for existing and new public art programs. See www.floridapublicart.org.
A list of Florida’s city and county public art programs can be found on the Department of State’s cultural Web site (www.florida-arts.org). Look under “Arts Resources” for the heading of “Public Art.”
Lee Modica is the administrator of Florida’s Art in State Buildings Program, a statewide percent-for-art program that acquires artwork for new state buildings through purchase or commission. In 2000, she was elected to the inaugural, 15-member Public Art Network Council as the only representative of a state public art program. In 2004, she was elected president of the Florida Association of Public Art Administrators.
Reprinted from Quality Cities March/April 2005
Back to Top
Back to Quality Cities Resource Library Listing
|
|
|
