Arts Intranet

Public art directly influences how people see and connect with a place, providing access to aesthetics that support its identity and making residents feel appreciated and valued. Considering what positive impact public art can have on communities, in this year’s Public Art Network (PAN) Year in Review blog salon we asked our authors to consider: How did their project enhance the community? In what ways was the community engaged, either during the development of the artworks or after? What positive impact did the project have on the community?

This week, we will hear from several artists and administrators whose selected projects for the 2019 PAN Year in Review engaged or impacted the community for whom the project was created. To name a few, we’ll learn how artist Julia Vogl’s data-driven artwork engaged the people of Boston in themes relating to Passover; and then hear Julie Garreau’s personal and powerful perspective of the RedCan graffiti project’s impact on the Lakota Youth; plus, Kim Abeles highlights how a unique community of women are helping bring awareness to wildfire management in California.

The PAN Year in Review is the only national program that specifically recognizes public art projects and is an excellent advocacy and educational tool for public art administrators, artists, and allied professionals. The 50 projects selected this year, out of 361 applications, represent the most compelling public art work for the year from across the United States and beyond. Each year, two or more public art professionals serve as jurors to review hundreds of project applications and select up to 50 projects that highlight the most compelling public artworks. See more projects selected for the 2019 PAN Year in Review and watch the jurors’ presentation on this year’s selected projects on our YouTube Channel.