Public Art

Public Art in Chattanooga, TN

Public art is something I struggled with during the infill development project.  I have done some research to try and clarify, or resolve this personal design hurdle.  


The following information can be found at:
http://nnpaf.org/what_is_art.html


"Public art fits a much broader definition than art in a gallery or a museum. In simple terms, public art is any work of art or design that is created by an artist specifically to be sited in a public space. It can tower several stories high, or it can call attention to the pavement beneath your feet. It can be cast, carved, built, assembled or painted. Whatever its form, public art attracts attention. By its presence alone public art can heighten our awareness, question our assumptions, transform a landscape, or express community values, and for these reasons it can have the power, over time to transform a city’s image. Public art helps define an entire community’s identity and reveal the unique character of a specific neighborhood. It is a unifying force."

Public Art in Chattanooga, TN

"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 that can touch them and generations to come."


The following shows how one city, the City of Chattanooga, is trying to implement more public art into the design of public spaces.  This information can be found at, http://www.chattanooga.gov/PRAC/30_PublicArt.htm


In 2003 the City of Chattanooga, TN held public forums on the issue of public art.  "These forums resulted in an adoption of an exciting Public Art Plan, the establishment of a mayoral appointed Public Art Committee and a partnership between Allied Arts of Greater Chattanooga, the Hunter Museum of American Art, the RiverCity Company, and the City of Chattanooga to oversee and implement the plan."  

Public Art in Chattanooga, TN

The Public Art Committee has begun many new projects which include:

Bi-annual Sculpture Exhibit:  through an international juried competition, large-scale sculptures are selected for placement along First Street and the downtown area to create a rotating outdoor exhibition space.  Several works are purchased each year for inclusion in the city’s permanent public art collection.

Art on Main: a series of juried rotating outdoor sculpture exhibitions installed along the sidewalks of the newly refurbished streetscapes on Main Street in Chattanooga’s urban core. 

Art in the Neighborhoods:  With generous support from the Lyndhurst Foundation, this new initiative offers matching grant money to each of the city’s council districts to acquire public art for neighborhoods.