scholarly journals Urban Prophets: Creating Graffiti as a Means of Negotiating the Constructs of Urban Public Spaces

2016 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 32-42
Author(s):  
Alison Fraser
Keyword(s):  
Los Angeles ◽  
Public Art ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Capitalist System ◽  
The Public ◽  
Creative Cities ◽  
Art Forms ◽  
The Government

For this examination, graffiti and neo-graffiti have been compared to public art in order to reveal the ideological constructions of urban public spaces. How does graffiti interact with the construction of urban public spaces? How is graffiti similar to and different from public art? Which of these art forms better represents the public and city living? By comparing public art to (neo)graffiti in Toronto, Ontario and Los Angeles, California, the gendered, racialized, and class-based exclusions present in R. Florida's (2002) creative cities framework as theorized by authors such as N. Smith (1996), Sharon Zukin (1996), and G. Standing (2011) can be revealed. Urban public spaces are carefully shaped by those in control, the government and corporations, with the intention of creating spaces and citizens within those spaces that can be a functioning part of their neoliberal capitalist system. Graffiti and neo-graffiti act as a visual interruption to this system, which in turn can be thought of as physically represented by public art. In this way (neo)graffiti is created by a minority of citizens with the hopes of reclaiming their right to exist in urban public spaces despite layers of ideological exclusions.For this examination, graffiti and neo-graffiti have been compared to public art in order to reveal the ideological constructions of urban public spaces. How does graffiti interact with the construction of urban public spaces? How is graffiti similar to and different from public art? Which of these art forms better represents the public and city living? By comparing public art (neo)graffiti in Toronto, Ontario and Los Angeles California, the racialized and class-based exclusions present in R. Florida’s (2002) creative cities framework theorized by authors such as N. Smith (1996), Sharon Zukin (1996), and G. Standing (2011) can be revealed. Urban public spaces are carefully shaped by those in control (the government and corporations) with the intention of creating spaces and citizens within those spaces that can be a functioning part of their system. Graffiti and neo-graffiti act as a visual interruption to this system as represented by public art. In this way (neo)graffiti is created by a minority of citizens with the hopes of reclaiming their right to exist in urban public spaces despite the layers of exclusions.

Walking in the Periphery: Activist Art and Urban Resistance to Neoliberalism in Istanbul

2018 ◽  
Vol 52 (2) ◽  
pp. 310-333
Author(s):  
Ipek Türeli ◽  
Meltem Al
Keyword(s):  
Public Culture ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Ripple Effects ◽  
The Public ◽  
Activist Art ◽  
The Government ◽  
Ruling Party

In 2013, the Gezi Park protests created a wave of optimism in Istanbul – until it was brutally suppressed by the government. Although the ephemeral movement ended without having achieved its immediate goals, it continues to have ripple effects on the public culture of Istanbul. The ruling party, for example, has emulated the forms and formats of performance that emerged during the protests in order to mobilize its own support base. In a post-Gezi Istanbul, however, the occupation of public spaces in protest of the government has become nearly impossible, rendering alternative artistic and activist practices all the more important.

Big Government and Prosperity in the United States

2021 ◽  
pp. 84-87
Author(s):  
Samuel Cohn
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Federal Government ◽  
Institutional Support ◽  
The United States ◽  
Capitalist System ◽  
Business Decisions ◽  
The Public ◽  
Fundamental Point ◽  
Physical Infrastructure ◽  
The Government

This chapter focuses on big government and prosperity in the United States. A lot of Americans are fairly skeptical about the federal government. Some feel the public sector is full of bureaucrats who waste money, interfere with business decisions, and push personal agendas. Others are obsessed with party politics and despise everything from “the other party.” Both groups miss a fundamental point: big government is essential to the survival of a modern capitalist system. The government provides institutional support for the economy that capitalists cannot provide for themselves. Business will not provide defense, education, public health, physical infrastructure, and scientific research because these services are completely unprofitable.

Temporary Art Platform and the Reconfiguration of the Public Space in Beirut

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 231-242
Author(s):  
Carlos Garrido Castellano
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Public Art ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Art Activism ◽  
The Public ◽  
Civic Agency

Abstract The main objective of this article is to understand the ways in which Lebanese artists are dealing with issues of normativity and legibility while operating in public spaces. By looking at the work developed by Temporary Art Platform (TAP) during the last ten years, I argue that public art has been crucial in the production of alternative understandings of civic agency and the public space. Simultaneously, by looking at A Few Things You Need to Know When Creating an Art Project in a Public Space in Lebanon, a toolkit designed by TAP in 2014, I intend to problematize the lexicon and strategies that are usually associated with understanding art activism, both as forcefully contextual and provisional.

scholarly journals Composing aleatoric music through interaction

Per Musi ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 1-35
Author(s):  
Mauro Amazonas ◽  
Thais Castro ◽  
João Gustavo Kienen ◽  
Rosiane Freitas ◽  
Bruno Gadelha
Keyword(s):  
Mobile Devices ◽  
Public Art ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Significant Trend ◽  
Art Exhibition ◽  
Public Places ◽  
Pilot Studies ◽  
The Public ◽  
Composition Methods

Urban public art is an art exhibition held in public places, contextualized with their surroundings and its audience. Technology is a significant trend in public art due to its connection possibilities with human life, fostering different kinds of interaction. In this way, this work presents an installation proposal consisting of an environment for creating collaborative random music from interaction with mobile devices in public spaces. Everyone participating in the installation is a composer and interaction is a chance agent, although it follows John Cage's composition methods. In order to probe technology, we carried out two pilot studies, followed by a workshop for the installation itself. Those two pilot studies led us to a new version that was put into practice during the workshop. During the workshop, participants' interaction generated fourteen compositions, and the sounds resulting from the collaborative composition were made available to the public through a website.

scholarly journals The square, the monument and the re-configurative power of art in postmigrant public spaces

2021 ◽  
pp. 235-264
Author(s):  
Anne Ring Petersen
Keyword(s):  
Urban Space ◽  
Collective Identity ◽  
Public Art ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Public Park ◽  
The Public ◽  
National Imagination ◽  
National Heritage ◽  
Artistic Interventions

This chapter explores how art in public spaces shapes, and is shaped by, disagreements and conflicts resulting from the need to tackle »togetherness in difference« (Ien Ang), and how contemporary artistic practices play out in postmigrant public spaces, understood as plural domains of human encounter impacted by former and ongoing migration, and by new forms of nationalism. The chapter focuses on two art projects in Copenhagen, Denmark. The first one is The Red Square, a part of the public park Superkilen in the multicultural Nørrebro district. Designed by the artist group Superflex (in collaboration with architects from Bjarke Ingels Group and Topotek1), Superkilen opened in 2012. The second project is Jeannette Ehlers and La Vaughn Belle's collaboration on the sculpture I Am Queen Mary. Installed outside an old colonial Warehouse in Copenhagen harbour in 2018, it is the first monument in the country to commemorate Danish colonialism and complicity in the transatlantic slave trade. Borrowing a term from Chantal Mouffe, these projects could be characterized as »agonistic« interventions into public urban space. The chapter argues that they may provide us with some much-needed answers to the important question of the much debated yet crucial role of public art in democratic societies, particularly how works of art may form a possible loophole of escape from dominant discourses by openly contesting, or subtly circumventing, monocultural understandings of national heritage and identity, thereby helping us to imagine national and urban community otherwise, i.e. as postmigrant communities. The chapter examines what the re-configurative power of art might accomplish in postmigrant public spaces by considering the following questions: How can public art open up a social and national imagination pervaded by anxieties about (post)migration to other ways of thinking about diversity and collective identity? Furthermore, is it possible to identify a common pattern - i.e. a particular postmigrant strategy - that underpins and interconnects various types of artistic interventions into public spaces and debates, which, on the surface, present themselves as radically different kinds of projects?

ECO PUBLIC ART PLACEMAKING FRAMEWORK: A CASE STUDY OF LAMAN SENI SHAH ALAM, MALAYSIA

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
Author(s):  
Khalilah Zakariya ◽  
Syamim Azhari
Keyword(s):  
Public Art ◽  
Sense Of Belonging ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Local Authorities ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Past ◽  
Outdoor Spaces

The implementation of public art in the outdoor spaces has been acknowledged by various designers and researchers to enliven public spaces. The contributions of public art towards social well-being have also gained a growing attention among researchers for the past three decades. Within the recent years, efforts of placemaking have begun to be initiated by local authorities, as a way of reinforcing the sense of belonging among the public towards their public spaces. While the placemaking process is commonly adopted as a method to revive cities and communities, however, there has not yet been any documentation on the use of public art as part of the process, particularly in Malaysia. This study aims to establish the Eco Public Art Placemaking Framework to guide local authorities and built environment professionals adopt public participation in the public art process. This study has examined Laman Seni Shah Alam as a case study, which is a back lane revitalization project that has been transformed through eco public art. Through semi-structured interviews with the local authority, the organizer and the artists, this study has discovered that the framework is collaborative and multidisciplinary, and that there are four main phases in the framework. This study concludes that the framework has potential to be adopted by local authorities in Malaysia, and it can enable a more holistic process between the local government, consultants, artists and the public.

scholarly journals Contextual interpretation of COVID-19 pandemic among public space users in Ibadan Metropolis, Oyo State, Nigeria: An ethnographic review

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (11) ◽  
pp. e0259631
Author(s):  
Mofeyisara Oluwatoyin Omobowale ◽  
Eniola Adetola Bamgboye ◽  
Akinfemi Akinyode ◽  
Olugbenga Samuel Falase ◽  
Taiwo Olabode Ladipo ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Participant Observation ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Sexual Life ◽  
The Public ◽  
Political Propaganda ◽  
Key Informant ◽  
The Government ◽  
Wrath Of God ◽  
Depth Interviews

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected all dimensions of lives and has become a social problem as it continues to spread widely through the continuous interactions of people in public spaces where they earn a living. Curbing the spread of COVID-19 requires restrictions in these public spaces, however, the compliance to these measures depends largely on the understanding and interpretations of COVID 19 by users of these public spaces. This study examined the contextual interpretations of public space users about COVID-19 prevention in Ibadan Metropolis, Oyo State. The study was a rapid ethnographic survey in selected public spaces (markets and commercial motor parks) in Ibadan metropolis. Data were collected through participant observation, key informant interviews (3 females; 3 males) and in-depth interviews (30) with, traders, head porters, clients/buyers and commercial vehicle drivers in these public spaces. Interviews conducted were transcribed, sorted into themes using Atlas-ti 7.5.7 and subjected to interpretive-content analysis. Findings revealed that some respondents felt COVID-19 was brought into Nigeria by rich frequent global voyagers, others felt it was through “uncultured” sexual life or wrath of God. Some also doubted the existence of the disease and many of the respondents perceived COVID-19 as a disease reported by the government or a political propaganda to siphon funds. The users of the public spaces in Ibadan Metropolis have variegated perception about the existence and severity of this rapidly spreading virus and this has grave implications for COVID-19 control in the State. Thus, regular interaction with public space users are essential for control efforts.

scholarly journals ECO PUBLIC ART PLACEMAKING FRAMEWORK: A CASE STUDY OF LAMAN SENI SHAH ALAM, MALAYSIA

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Khalilah Zakariya ◽  
Syamim Azhari
Keyword(s):  
Public Art ◽  
Sense Of Belonging ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Local Authorities ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Past ◽  
Outdoor Spaces

The implementation of public art in the outdoor spaces has been acknowledged by various designers and researchers to enliven public spaces. The contributions of public art towards social well-being have also gained a growing attention among researchers for the past three decades. Within the recent years, efforts of placemaking have begun to be initiated by local authorities, as a way of reinforcing the sense of belonging among the public towards their public spaces. While the placemaking process is commonly adopted as a method to revive cities and communities, however, there has not yet been any documentation on the use of public art as part of the process, particularly in Malaysia. This study aims to establish the Eco Public Art Placemaking Framework to guide local authorities and built environment professionals adopt public participation in the public art process. This study has examined Laman Seni Shah Alam as a case study, which is a back lane revitalization project that has been transformed through eco public art. Through semi-structured interviews with the local authority, the organizer and the artists, this study has discovered that the framework is collaborative and multidisciplinary, and that there are four main phases in the framework. This study concludes that the framework has potential to be adopted by local authorities in Malaysia, and it can enable a more holistic process between the local government, consultants, artists and the public.

scholarly journals Political Representation In Urban Public Space In Jakarta Child-Friendly Public Space (Ruang Publik Terpadu Ramah Anak – RPTRA)

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 39-49
Author(s):  
Eka Permanasari ◽  
Sahid Mochtar ◽  
Rahma Purisari
Keyword(s):  
Public Space ◽  
Political Representation ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
The Political ◽  
Top Down ◽  
Urban Architecture ◽  
The Public ◽  
Space Design ◽  
The Government ◽  
Participative Design

The design of public space often embodies the power and political representation of a specific regime. As urban architecture symbolizes and establishes the identity of a regime, authorities often use a top-down approach to implement urban architectural programs. As a result, the spaces constructed often display power and identity, but lack consideration of public use. Public spaces are often exclusionary for public use. They merely stand for the representation of the authority. Accordingly, many public spaces built by the government are abandoned soon after their launch. Big ceremonies and public space displays only last a few days before these spaces are then closed to the public or appropriated for different uses. Most top-down approaches focus on the physical development, overlooking the users’ inclusion in decision making. This research analyses the political representation of public space design in RPTRA Bahari located in the South Jakarta. It analyses the political reason behind the development of RPTRA in Jakarta and the way participative design approach is employed during the design process to get public engagement in public space. Therefore, it investigates how the political representation is perceived in everyday life by analysing how the public space has been used three years since its launch. Through observation and interviews, this paper interrogates the political representation in urban forms and how public spaces become an arena where the government’s intentions and everyday uses meet. It concludes that a participative, bottom-up approach leads to more public use and engagement.

scholarly journals PONTE BEZERRA DA SILVA A ARTE PÚBLICA PROVOCANDO O SENSO COMUM / Bezerra da Silva’s bridge Public art provoking common sense

2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (40) ◽  
pp. 107-121
Author(s):  
Pilar Pinheiro Sanches
Keyword(s):  
Common Sense ◽  
Public Art ◽  
Public Spaces ◽  
The Political ◽  
Urban Context ◽  
Work Of Art ◽  
Creation Process ◽  
The Public ◽  
Neutral Ground

Em 2012, o Coletivo Transverso realizou uma intervenção em Brasília que consistiu em uma espécie de “rebatismo” de uma ponte chamada, até então, “Costa e Silva”, renomeando-a para “Bezerra da Silva”. Essa provocação, “renomear” uma ponte, teria qual significado dentro do contexto urbano? Entendendo como arte pública esse tipo de proposta artística que deposita na interação com o público sua própria condição de existência, faremos uma análise da obra “ponte Bezerra da Silva” e de seus desdobramentos nos espaços da cidade, a fim de refletir a respeito do alcance político que esse tipo de obra de arte dispõe. Partindo do entendimento de que toda obra de arte é política, uma vez que nunca é fundada em um terreno neutro, compreendemos que a arte está sempre trabalhando na reprodução ou na desarticulação de uma dada hegemonia.Palavras-chave: Arte pública; Coletivo Transverso; Espaços públicos; Ponte Bezerra da Silva. Abstract In 2012, Coletivo Transverso carried out an intervention in Brasília that consisted of a kind of “rebaptism” of a bridge called, until then, “Costa e Silva”, renaming it to “Bezerra da Silva”. Does this provocation, "renaming" a bridge, have any meaning in the urban context? Understanding as public art this type of artistic proposal that deposits in the interaction with the public its own condition of existence, since it participates in its creation process, we will analyze the work “ponte Bezerra da Silva” and its unfolding in the spaces of in order to reflect on the political scope that this type of work of art has. Starting from the understanding that every work of art is political, since it is never founded on a neutral ground, we understand that art is always working on the reproduction or disarticulation of a given hegemony.Keywords: Public Art; Coletivo Transverso; Public spaces; Bezerra da Silva's bridge.

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