Public Art in the Urban Landscape


Public Art

Landscape Architecture encompasses much more than just the landscape. Landscape Architecture is a collaboration of the landscape and everything in it - buildings and structures, people, streets and walkways, open space, social spaces, and functional spaces.

   Landscape is an environment in which people act and to which they react(Greenbie, ix).
My thesis project explores the relationship of public art and the urban landscape through the following questions:

This page will explore these topics and more! Stay tuned for more info.



Photo Credit: City of Chicago,
Graphics and Reproduction Center(1)

What is Public Art?

Through my studies and travel experiences in the United States and Europe, I have defined public art as objects in our environment for public use and enjoyment that may display the following characters:

Public art can be found in the form of:
Art: A product that evokes the senses and stimulates emotions. The product may be something thought to be beautiful, interesting, controversial, emotionally moving, educational, or displaying historic or cultural meaning.

What gives art it’s vitality is simply and ineffably the capacity of individuals to interpret and transform the language to express new ideas or restate old ones in a compelling way (Stern, 9).

‘Art’ and ‘the public’ do not belong to different categories or stand for entirely different phenomena. Art is public by definition. Works of art are the result of actions aimed at the public. Metaphorically, the arena of art is a public space. People do not create art without a desire to communicate. All else is a private matter, a hobby, self-fulfillment. - Ludger Gerdes (Brand, 102).

Art in public places

In Public places, there are many forms of art that enhance the space and give it character. Sculpture of all kinds can be found in almost any city either representing a historic figure, or expressing a style, thought, or culture. Murals are found on the sides of buildings, sometimes advertising a product or event, or expressing something of cultural, historical, or visual importance. Fountains celebrate the reflections and coolness of water and add white noise, drowning out the sounds of traffic. One thing that is not often considered public art is the playstructure. Children see them as the most exciting element in the landscape.

Public art identifies the city, displaying persons and events in history by use of historic monuments. This form of art can educate the public about these historically important events. They cause people to think about the history, remember the events and people, and even to relive them(Lynch4, 51,52, 54).

Traditionally the purpose of public art was one of commemorating important personalities and/or events - literally, the narrating of history in the streets. It was believed that through exposure to art and the inculcation of national and local pride the masses would become more cultured and civic-minded (Piercey, 2).

Public art and monuments promote social gathering and interaction. The piece of art usually attracts people closer to the object, and often offers a place to sit, or meet, others. The art automatically becomes an identifiable point in the urban environment. It is in this sense that most works of public art are found in public plaza or parks where the site is more suited for such gathering. Many times, these sites, found in the heart of the city, include monuments that symbolize the history of the place, or fountains and sculpture that demonstrate a celebration of place. These objects are seen as attractions to visitors and local citizens alike.

Symbolism makes a good city as much as bricks and mortar, glass and steel, and shade trees. We are probably all instinctual ancestor worshipers, and we worship the idealization of the past, not its reality, which is mostly lost to us anyway (Greenbie, 122).

The urban environment can become personalized with art by demonstrating a particular style, activity, or culture. Art creates a sense of place, it reflects social theory about the place, and displays a style that is attributed to the space. Art is often used in public places to give it character, to make a space interesting, or to simply beautify it. People remember a place because of the artwork that exists in the space - the art acts as a symbol of the place. The Arch in St. Louis is a highly recognized symbol, just as the Statue of Liberty symbolizes New York. This recognition is a place making device.

Public art contributes to the process of place making (Sucher, 157).

The use of urban art

Change is inevitable. Growth and improvement usually accompany change, especially in the urban environment. The land in the urban environment changes from time to time as the needs and uses of the city and its inhabitants change, and the outlooks on what is desired for the city and its appearance vary. City revitalization has become an increasing priority for many cities across the United States. Revitalization has included many goals for the city including beautification, landscaping and street planting, urban parks, and art.

Art in the urban setting exists mainly for the sake of the community, joining utility and beauty, and often historic meaning. Public art gives the community an identity - character that can be representative of the city and its people. Sculpture, memorials, monuments, fountains and murals are placed in public places to display historic meaning, cultural significance, and city beautification. Public plazas offer the pedestrian a place to gather, relax, enjoy the sites, and play. These places often incorporate art, decoration, and landscape features to make the place beautiful and give it character. Art gives the urban area a sense of place.

Seattle, Volumetric Space Frame
by Doris Chase(2)

Photo References:
(1):http://cpl.lib.uic.edu/004chicago/timeline/calder.html
(2):http://www.wolfe.net/~fin/art/public.html

Sources:

Brand, Jan, ed.  Allocations:  Art for a Natural and Artificial Environment.  
    Zoetermeer:  Foundation World Horticultural Exhibition Floriade, 1992.
 
Cruikshank, Jeffery L. and Pam Korza.  Going Public: a Field Guide to Developments 
    in Art in Public Places.  Washington, D.C.:  Arts Extension Service, 1988.
 
Greenbie, Barrie B.  Spaces: Dimensions of the Human Landscape.  New Haven, 
    Connecticut: Yale University Press, 1981.
 
Jacobs, Jane.  The Death and Life of the Great American City.  New York, 
    New York:  Random House, 1961.
 
Lynch, Kevin.  Good City Form.  Cambridge, Massachusetts:  The M.I.T. Press, 1981.
 
Lynch, Kevin.  The Image of the City.  Cambridge, Massachusetts:  The M.I.T. 
    Press, 1960.
 
Lynch, Kevin.  Managing the Sense of a Region.  Cambridge, Massachusetts:  The 
    MIT Press,  1976.
 
Lynch, Kevin. What Time is This Place?  Cambridge, Massachusetts: The M.I.T. 
    Press, 1972.
 
Raven, Arlene.  Art in the Public Interest.  New York, New York:  Da Capo Press,
    1989.
 
Stern, Robert A.M.  Pride of Place: Building the American Dream.  Boston, 
    Massachusetts: The Houghton Mifflin Company, 1986.
 
Sucher, David.  City Comforts:  How to Build an Urban Village.  Seattle, 
    Washington:  City Comforts Press,  1995.

Internet Resources
        
http://www.chelt.ac.uk/cwis/pubs/landiss/vol12/page2.html 
Hall, Tim.  The Landscape of Urban Regeneration:  Public Art.  Landscape 
    Issues,  1997.
     
http://www.geog.ox.ac.uk/research/piercey.html
Piercey, Daniel.  The Place of Public Art in the Contemporary Landscape.  1997.

Any comments, information, questions? Contact me at: email
This page was last updated on 1 August 1998.
Go to my new site on Chicago's Public Art.

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