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Comment By Margaret Garrington DailyTidings.com By Margaret Garrington Posted Aug. 19, 2015 at 6:45 PM Updated Sep 2, 2015 at 12:12 PM By Margaret Garrington Posted Aug. 19, 2015 at 6:45 PM Updated Sep 2, 2015 at 12:12 PM » RELATED CONTENT • Public art finalists chosen • Ashland plans $100,000 public art project • Making a grand entrance » Social News Editor's note: This is the first of three weekly columns about public art submitted by city of Ashland Public Arts Commission Chairman Margaret Garrington. The first column discusses the role of public art and what it means to the city. The second will cover the background of the Gateway Project, a plan to place a significant piece of public art on the island at the intersection of Siskiyou Boulevard and East Main Street. The final installment will discuss upcoming artist presentations of their proposals for the site. (Update, Sept. 2: The final concepts are online at www.ashland.or.us/gatewayartists . The second Public Art column is online at www.dailytidings.com .) Public art is a gallery without walls accessible to all. Public art is seen everywhere when traveling abroad, or to a big city in our own country. Art in the public realm heightens our sense of place; it draws us in and causes us to interact in a variety of ways. While public art in these other places is evocative, I often hear it is not something we need, or should have, here in Ashland. Public art has been around a long time and has stood the test of time. Over the centuries public art has shown the capacity to evolve from Lascaux’s cave paintings to monumental sculptures like Rome’s Trevi Fountain. More recently, forays into interactive LED light designs continues a long history of change and the perception of what constitutes public art. The creative properties of art in the public realm takes a mind-blowing range of differing forms. Public art includes temporary aesthetic interventions, like Christo and Jean Claude’s monumental wrapped pieces, or ephemeral art as in Andy Goldsworthy’s autumn leaf placements. Public art can be two-dimensional, such as murals, interactive; or performative, as in an impromptu flash mob. Whatever the form, public art has the ability to enhance the experience of a place. Public art sculpture is a permanent object in space. The term “creative place-making” is a descriptor that captures what public sculpture can do. Art develops a critical sense of place where one is able to gain their bearings while traversing a city. These sculptural forms start a visual dialogue between a city and the public. While playing a role in defining a city, public art also becomes a conversation piece and visual keepsake. Public art helps builds recognition for a city. The ability to generate interaction with or reflection about a place is part of the power of public art. Public art can be as important as architecture in a city, adding another layer to identity, cultural resonance and visual landscape. This is not to say public art is without controversy. An example is Chicago’s untitled Picasso cubist sculpture, installed in 1967. Living in the Chicago suburbs and in my teens at the time, my parents, as well as a very large contingent of Chicagoans, were appalled and offended by this modernist “horsehead.” However, after the initial controversy and some passage of time, a sense of acceptance crept in. Today, Chicagoans see the Picasso as part of the cultural fabric of the city and it has become a much-loved art piece. The Picasso sculpture served to engage residents of my conservative Midwestern hometown in a dialogue about the value of public art contemporary to its time. In the long run, the initial turmoil served to direct a new focus and future for this “architect’s city” as home for many contemporary public art pieces. The best public sculpture forms a relationship to the place and its people, and feels vibrant by enriching experience with a sense of surprise. One cannot help but be impressed, or at least amused by Chicago’s reflective Cloud Gate (commonly known as the Bean) by Anish Kapoor. This sculpture alone has heightened the perception of Chicago as an important cultural destination. While Ashland is a small city, it can also benefit from an ambitious public art program. Margaret Garrington is chairman of the city of Ashland Public Art Commission. By Margaret Garrington DailyTidings.com By Margaret Garrington Posted Aug. 19, 2015 at 6:45 PM Updated Sep 2, 2015 at 12:12 PM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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