Art in public space

Early modernism

Around 1900 a number of architects and designers around the world began developing new solutions to integrate traditional precedents (classicism or Gothic, for instance) with new technological possibilities. The work of Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright in Chicago, Victor Horta in Brussels, Antoni Gaudi in Barcelona, Otto Wagner and the Vienna Secession in Austria, and Charles Rennie Mackintosh in Glasgow, among many others, can be seen as a common struggle between old and new. The work of some of these were a part of what is broadly categorized as Art Nouveau ("New Art"). Note that the Russian word for Art Nouveau, "Модерн", and the Spanish word for Art Nouveau, "Modernismo" are cognates of the English word "Modern" though they carry different meanings. An early use of the term in print around this time, approaching its later meaning, was in the title of a book by Otto Wagner.^[3][4] The fallout of the First World War resulted in additional experimentation and ideas. Following out of the experiments in Art Nouveau and its related movements around the world, modernism in architecture and design grew out of stylistic threads originating throughout the world.

A public space is a social space that is generally open and accessible to people. Roads (including the pavement), public squares, parksand beaches are typically considered public space. Government buildings which are open to the public, such as public libraries are public space. Although not considered public space, privately owned buildings or property visible from sidewalks and public thoroughfares may affect the public visual landscape, for example, by outdoor advertising. Recently, the concept of Shared space has been advanced to enhance the experience of pedestrians in public space jointly used by automobiles and other vehicles.

Public space has also become something of a touchstone for critical theory in relation to philosophy, (urban) geography, visual art, cultural studies, social studies and urban design. The term 'public space' is also often misconstrued to mean other things such as 'gathering place', which is an element of the larger concept of social space.

One of the earliest examples of public spaces are commons. For example, no fees or paid tickets are required for entry. Non-government-owned malls are examples of 'private space' with the appearance of being 'public space'.

This sense of flux and change, informs how contemporary public art has evolved. Temporal art in public spaces has been a long established practice. But the presence of public art has become increasingly prevalent and important within our contemporary cities. Temporal public art is so important because of its ability to respond to, reflect, and explore the context which it inhabits. Patricia Phillips describes the "social desire for an art that is contemporary and timely, that responds to and reflects its temporal and circumstantial context."^[20] Public art is an arena for investigation, exploration and articulation of the dense and diverse public landscape. Public art asks its audience to re-imagine, re-experience, re-view and re-live. In the design field, a heavy focus has been turned onto the city as needing to discover new and inspired ways to re-use, re-establish and re-invent the city, in step with an invigorated interest in re-juvinating our cities for a sustainable future. Contemporary design has become obsessed with the need to save the modern city from an industrialised, commercialised, urban pit of a death bed.

What is Public Art?

Public Art fits a much broader definition than art in a museum. In simple terms, public art is art work in the public realm, regardless of whether it is situated on public or private property, or whether it is acquired through public or private funding. Public art can take the form of a sculpture, mural, paving pattern, lighting, seating, building facade, kiosk, gate, fountain, play equipment, engraving, carving, fresco, mobile, collage, mosaic, bas-relief, tapestry, photograph, drawing, or earthwork.Whatever its form, public art attracts attention. By its presence alone public art can heighten our awareness, question our assumptions, transform our landscape, or express community values, and for these reasons it can have the power, over time to transform the image of the Village. Public art helps define an entire community’s identity and reveal the unique character of a specific neighborhood.

Why Public Art? The impact of public art on a community is priceless and immeasurable and once experienced, it only appreciates. Public art has the power to energize our public spaces, arouse our thinking, and transform the places where we live, work, and play into more welcoming and beautiful environments that invite interaction. Public art can make strangers talk, children ask questions, and calm a hurried life. It enhances the quality of life by encouraging a heightened sense of place and by introducing people to works of art.

The Many Benefits of Public Art Beyond its enriching personal benefits, public art is a true symbol of the Village of Palmetto Bay’s maturity. It increases a community’s assets and expresses a community’s positive sense of identity and values. It helps green space’s thrive, enhances roadsides, pedestrian corridors, and community gateways; it demonstrates unquestionable civic and corporate pride in citizenship and affirms an educational environment. A village with public art is a village that thinks and feels.

Дата добавления: 2015-05-23