Public art Public Sculptures

Public art Public Sculptures

By sudhir deshpande

Introduction

Till 15th century, sculptors and artists were under the influence and control of religious power and churches, but there after blind trust in religions and churches were abolished due to scientific inventions. Royal families supported artists and sculptors and they got personal importance and scope for creations. For example Michelangelo’s sculptures like David, Moses, Pieta, day, night, etc. Sculptors got freedom for creations. They were commissioned by royal families to create sculptures to decorate their gardens, tombs, and premises under their control. Many times sculpture or memorials were created to celebrate their victory in war.

In recent times, during 19th century, the world changed due to latest scientific and technical inventions like trains, telegraphs, aircrafts, radio, television etc. Art became important for royal and wealthy families and became a part of luxurious lifestyles. But they were using the art and artists like sculptures for people. Art became public since then, apart from the art used for the churches and temples. People started enjoying art and the types of sculptures. Sculptors were free to use their ideas and experiences, which could fit into the requirements of the commissioners of the art.

Public Art / sculptures.

Public art as objects in our environment for public use and enjoyment that may display the following characters:

Historic
Aesthetic
Functional
Public art can be found in the form of:
Sculpture
Monuments
Murals
Fountains
Amenities such as seating, lights, signs

‘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..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, 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.

The art works exhibited, installed, in public places for public are called public arts. Though, the intention of installing sculpture, normally, is to decorate the area or premises, there can be many more reasons for the same. As a discipline for the traffic, town planners keep traffic circles or round- abouts, to direct and control vehicle traffic. In this traffic circles sculptures are installed. These sculptures are designed by sculptor for the specific site. This is known as site-specific sculpture.

Other place is garden. This can be public garden or private garden. For public garden, decoration of the premises is main intention, but in very rare case the sculpture is designed according to concept. This concept might be related to the subject of sponsor, or the city or the event. Most of the times this can be a monumental sculpture. For example, war memorial, accident memorial, revolutionary movement, freedom movement or to characterize any movement started by a leading personality etc. and when in private garden is to be decorated, the collection with some specific interest can be a reason or to say something or for some statement the sculpture can be installed.In its earliest form, Art in Public places was likely to be a sculptural tribute to the conquering hero in the form of a larger than life statue high upon its grand pedestal. Either placed in a civic plaza by the hero's own people, as a celebration of power and victory of their nation over others, or alternately placed in the victims midst by the victors as a reminder to those conquered of their vulnerability.Now in this modern times, bus station and train stations, airports, traffic junctions etc. are the main location for sculptures. Airport authorities act as the curator and arrange changing exhibitions also. Some particular area, through which passenger traffic is more, is considered for these types of changing exhibitions.

All these public places are used by city or country authorities to install sculptures to show and maintain cultural richness of the institutions. Manchester Airport runs a scheme displaying art works from local artists in their terminals.One can find on the San Francisco Airport which features a great deal of public art ranging from permanently installed paintings to museum style rotating exhibits and more community based shows. It does a great deal because the first impression of the city is that culture and the arts are extremely important. Sets the mood right off.”Art in Public Places was an early attempt by the National or International authority (and other private funders) in providing the public with the "best art" from mainly "best known" artists. This can be a little attempt to incorporate the work into the environment and it's function outside of aesthetic considerations. 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.Public Art is art that is accessible to any person in public places, e.g. park, city center, etc.

An example of Public Art is, the statue of Saint Teresa placed in Santa Maria, Rome, or Late Indira Gandhi Memorial in New Delhi, or Mahatma Gandhi statue (almost every where) in India or Kutub Minar in Delhi, Tajmahel in Agra, Elephanta and Elora caves in Maharashtra. Public Art has many different moods. The artist is required to provide "Public Art" for the public, but his piece of art comes from whatever mood he is in when he is producing his, art. It could mean different things to different people, but most of the time people will not be able to figure out what that piece of art really means. Public Art (sculptures) are usually owned by buildings or builders or organizations or corporate sectors, around where it is but are put there for the enjoyment of the public.

A public sculpture is a symbolic object in service to the community need. The sculptor and the community, which commissions the work, must collaborate on the creation on the symbol or sculpture and its message communicated by the work.Public art benefits the community, the public, by enhancing the experience, whether it is a walk in the park or an entryway into a city. Our minds are so overloaded with advertising / marketing that public art is a welcome change.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.Public art is not a style or a movement, but a compound social service based on the premise that public well-being is enhanced by good art, and that good art means work by advanced artists thrust into the public.Public art often faces more practical obstacles than just popular opinion. Public art usually starts when the city government, an architect or developer decides a building needs a sculpture, and then they choose an artist to create the piece. Public art means comparison-shopping and finding the design to best fit a particular spot. Most importantly, public art must comply with safety regulations. Each city has particular considerations: acid rain and different salts can degrade a sculpture over time, perhaps causing it to weaken and break and fall or leave an unsafe edge.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 .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.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. Eiffel Tower is the identity of Paris, France and the sculpture ‘Powerful’ (‘Shaktiman’ in Marathi) at Nashik. The name of the area which was Eklahara’ is known as ‘Shaktiman Nagar’. This recognition is a place-making device.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.Sometimes public art can stir up controversy in public. In India there are many examples of this problems. And main reasons are the statues installed at the center places, public parks. Though the intentions of creating and installing statues is to respect the ideal social, political or religious personalities, anti-social elements in the society takes undue advantage of the system. These statues, although they are supposed to be inspiration to society, are not well maintained. Not even cleaned regularly. And so-called antisocial elements use them to create havoc and uneasiness in the society so that these evil elements make their own benefit.

In other countries also, there are example like this. Chicago always has been a center for public art, from its vast collection of 1930's WPA murals to the well-publicized 1999 project that brought herds of fiberglass cows to city streets. Michael Lash, Chicago's Director of Public Art, says public art sparks controversy, debate and citizen complaint, but it's also a source of civic pride and identity.This sculpture Picasso donated to Chicago in 1967. At the time, Mayor Daley wanted the world's "most famous artist" to do a sculpture near City Hall, so he sent business leaders and civic leaders to woo Picasso. Picasso never cashed the check he received, making it a gift to the people of Chicago.The "Chicago Picasso" resembles a giant baboon and is one of the most simultaneously loved and hated sculptures in the public eye. "People had not a clue what the sculpture was about and they still don't, because Picasso wouldn't give any clues about its meaning. People would speculate on the inspiration: “was it supposed to be an Afghan hound, the head of a baboon or his mistress Jaclyn?" Lash says.But this situation never remains for long time. Like the Eiffel tower or the St. Louis arch or the Statue of Liberty, at first people are appalled by it but they gradually come to love it and would kill anyone who tried to take it away. They might not really understand the art, but after a while they do understand that these pieces are part of the symbolism of a city. With public art, there is "no entry fee or guard telling you how to behave. That's the best and also the most potentially dangerous thing about public art.