PROJECT

public sculpture with text 'Art In The Public Square'

FEATURE ARTICLE

CALGARY URBAN DEVELOPMENT

Art In The Public Square

 

– ABOUT THE PROJECT

Calgary is undergoing an urban transformation with its massive East Village redevelopment project, converting an underutilised area in the city’s east end and remaking it into a vibrant community built for the 21st century. At the heart of this multi-year project is public art. After being commissioned by a Calgary Urban Development publication to consider the role of art in contributing to the vitality of public spaces, it was inspiring to learn how forward-thinking and community-focused the East Village project is aiming to be.  With key pieces of public art used to animate the creative spirit of the community. Good on Calgary to commit to the enriching value of public art.  

painting of man writing with text Pull Quote

 “Leave it to the 1960s to pop that point of view. Public art found new forms and tricks and started playing a regenerative role in civic spaces. The soul inherent in a piece of original art – in something privately- crafted not mass-produced or politically-motivated –was given value. Public art came to be appreciated for what it can do rather than for simply what it is. The vital space around the art – all that open civic land – came to matter as much as the vitality in the art.” 

 

Barry Dumka 

EXCERPT

CALGARY URBAN DEVELOPMENT

Art In The Public Square

The creative energy of a city is fueled by the inspired efforts of all its citizens but public art can help spark the imagination of a place. Don’t set off any alarm bells but East Village is about to be set on fire.

Public art will serve as communal hearths for East Village, as memorable gathering places where a mix of people can come together and share ideas and inspiration. As Yves Trépanier of Calgary’s TrépanierBaer Gallery notes, “For creative cities, public art is the new town square”. And for East Village, the art in that square will definitely think outside the box. Public art is an opportunity for Calgary to reimagine it’s identity and say something different about itself. In East Village, Cowtown is about to go contemporary. As Clare Nolan of CMLC says, “Expect the unexpected.”


Public art today is a catch-all term for a wide variety of creative practices. From ephemeral sculptures to digital media to kinetic art, a greater diversity of art objects is willing to get out of the gallery and into the open air. A Victorian view of public art was often cast as so many bronzed examples of monuments, memorials and civic statuary. Basically dead men on pedestals.

Whether they were up there for valour or vanity was often beside the point. The aim was veneration, not conversation. 


— (end of excerpt)


© Barry Dumka/BCREATIVE CONSULTING

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