Since moving to Boston to become the Chief of Arts and Culture , I ’ ve been giving a lot of thought to the role of public art . Asking hard questions about why we do what we do and how we do it will ultimately result in a clarity of purpose and a strong rationale for growing municipal support for public art . With the development of Boston ’ s first cultural plan , Boston Creates , we have the opportunity to discuss as a city what kind of public art we hope to produce and to put into place new tools to make it a reality . It ’ s a very exciting time to be exploring and testing new ideas and innovations in public art that can be widely impactful for the City of Boston . percent for art ordinances , and there are similar state level programs in 26 of 50 US states . Since 1963 , the federal government has a similarly structured “ Art in Architecture ” program . At all levels of government there is now recognition that art is an essential and required element to public works . In Boston , where there is no percent for art legislation , incorporating art into public works and public spaces is primarily ad hoc and opportunistic . A typical approach might involve the desire to commemorate an important person or event : funds are raised , an artist engaged , a statue or sculpture is erected in a public place .
Support for Public Art The concept of public art is an ancient one : cities going back hundreds , if not thousands of years , have included monuments , memorials , sculptures and art works in public spaces that were supported by the government . Government percent for art * programs create a formal and legal mandate that a percentage of the budget for a public building or public works be spent on artwork for that site . This practice is fairly widespread in the US . In 2003 , Americans for the Arts counted over 350 municipalities with
Familiar Roles for Public Art Most traditional public art ( and many percent for art ) projects focus on the decorative , the didactic , or the symbolic . At one end of the spectrum a piece of existing work of art is purchased and placed in the lobby or plaza of a public building . Often the architect of the building is charged with selecting the artist or artwork . A site-specific approach involves the commissioning of an artist to create a work that is designed for and responds to the conditions of the building or site , often with