Understanding Public Art
Public art as we know it has its origins in the imperial monuments that celebrated victories by emperors, kings, queens and pharaohs. The Babylonian ziggurats and even Egyptian pyramids could be considered public art because these works require a public audience and are visible to a wide spectrum of observers. In this manner, a public artwork is any that exists in an open environment, unlike art in a museum or gallery.
Installation art refers to any work of art that is made with a specific regard to the physical surroundings of a space. For that reason, a public art installation includes any temporary or permanent project that is placed in a visible and public space.
Types of Public Art Installation
Choose the type of public art you are interested in creating. At its most basic, public art installation includes any art project placed in a public setting. Other types of public art include interactive works that require audience participation; site-specific works that involve the physical setting or geography of a place as a primary concern; and land art that uses elements of the natural world like dirt and rocks and often has environmental concerns.
Finding a Public Art Organization to Fund Your Project
If you are interested in creating a public art installation for a building, check to see if your city has a "percent for art program" and then contact local developers about new construction projects.
A handful of cities in the United States follow a "percent for art program," and many cities have non-profit organizations devoted to funding projects for art in the public. Larger public art organizations include Public Art Fund and Creative Time in New York City. Both of these organizations commission artists to create work in the public sphere, but smaller ones exist that have "open calls" for public art proposals that the organization will then fund. The best reason for finding an organization to fund your public art installation is that the cost of materials and the amount of planning involved is often more than one individual can handle.
Making Your Own Public Art Installation
Making your own public art installation is just like making an installation in your own home, studio or in an art gallery. If you decide to move forward with your project without the assistance of a public art organization, first find a public site that interests you. Perhaps you know of a building that has an interesting history and you want to make a public art installation about that building and its inhabitants.
One such example of an interactive public art installation is the "Museum of the School of Social Work," made by artist Harrell Fletcher for the University of Minnesota. The university's School of Social Work was used as the subject of the public artwork made by Fletcher. He looked into the school's archives and found photographs of historical importance to the people who worked there, and then these were framed and hung along the halls of the School of Social Work's building. In addition to this "mini-museum" for the academic department and students, Fletcher's public artwork consists of two areas for rotating exhibits, and a library. The artworks are changed out on occasion by the academic department, allowing them to continually be in charge of the "Museum of the School of Social Work" exhibition.