Gardens in the Downtown

Welcome to the fourth installment of my research project!

To kick off the third week of the trimester, I had the opportunity to view the official unveiling of a mural on Roosevelt Row in downtown Phoenix.

Titled "The Garden", this mural was made in conjunction with an organization known as the "I Have a Name" Project under the watch of founder and photographer Jon Linton as well as artists Brian Boner and Wayne Rainey. The unveiling of the piece was accompanied by a candlelight vigil for those who had passed away while homeless. 

This concurrence of events in particular brings to attention the singular intent of the work, which as I stated before is one of the hallmarks of public art. When a work of art can be exposed to a wide audience, it seems to be the best platform for igniting awareness among a large volume of people. To this end, Linton states 

"A west wall of the building will carry a message in humanity and compassion while the north facing wall shall list names of those lost to the street. The overall scope of this work intends to create a dialogue beyond the boundaries of this city and help motivate action that might end the human suffering that is homelessness." (Becker, 2015)

And the intent of Linton's message may be no better situated than at Roosevelt Row, an area populated by vivid and thought-provoking murals that are attraction in and of themselves. But the area itself begs the question of the environment around a specific piece of art. Similar to the dilemma of a tree falling in a forest with no people, if a piece of public art is created where it will not be seen, can it be considered public art? I am inclined to say no, as one of the key elements of public art is that of spreading a message, or at the very least an impression, from creator to audience. This belief can easily be applied to art across all media, but because the relationship between public art and the public is so intimate--and in some ways commonplace--it seems especially true. The role of people consuming public art is critical in a way that should be obvious because of the word "public" in the name, but maybe isn't considered as much when one is physically confronted with a piece. And though at the surface "The Garden" isn't by definition interactive, it was the vigil, the people who showed up to support and see the work, that transformed the piece from the representation of a message to a piece of public art. 

Just something to chew on. Thanks for reading and I'll see you in next week's installment! 

Source: 

 Becker, Katrina. "The Art of Awareness." Downtown Phoenix Journal. Downtown Phoenix Journal, 19 Jan. 2015. Web. 27 Feb. 2016. <http://downtownphoenixjournal.com/2015/01/19/art-awareness/>. 

Crazy Old Asian Men and Angsty Public Artists

As mentioned in my last blog post, this week I had the opportunity to help with an artist-focused class for homeschooled children. The artist that this class focused on was Katsushika Hokusai. For those of you less versed in Japanese artists, Hokusai is most well known for the print, "The Great Wave off Kanagawa": 

Hokusai revolutionized the art form of wood block printing that was so prevalent at the time of his career as an artist. Instead of using kabuki actors and courtesans as traditional subject matter, he depicted landscapes and ocean scenes in his distinctive style that eventually affected the course of art in both Japanese and western art.

Small history lesson aside, it was rather fortuitous that this particular artist was chosen for the class, both because his most well-known piece is within the ocean theme of the gallery and that much of his art can be considered public.

Unlike many of his contemporaries and the pervading "starving artist" trope, Hokusai gained much notoriety and fame during his career, rather than only after. This is due mostly to the fact that he was a genius at self-promotion. For example, he created a 600 foot portrait of a Buddhist monk named Daruma during a festival in Tokyo. His instruments? Buckets of paint and broomsticks.

Of course, some may deem this feat more of a spectacle than an example of respectable public art. However, this brings up an important question: what is public art?

From prior research, the most readily available answer is that public art is some form of visual art in a public (or otherwise easily accessible) location that serves a purpose. Now, the specific intent of the art is where the definition of public becomes sticky. Murals or large sculptures can easily be identified as works of public art, but what about advertisements, propaganda, or vandalism? Is Hokusai's giant portrait public art if the intent is motivated by selfish reasons? Can profit and government play roles in public art?

All signs point to yes. This is especially true after the Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal, which introduced government-commissioned art into public spaces. However, more recently, an onslaught of independent artists have done public pieces to create statements about the reality which we live in rather than create a piece for a company. This is essentially transforming the concept of public art, and is a testament to its fluidity and ambiguity as an art form.

To conclude, the following are examples of modern artists with public pieces:

Maya Lin's Vietnam Memorial

A piece by Jenny Holzer, with quite a literal message

A Covered Reichstag by Christo

As my research continues, I hope to explore the relationship between commercialism or politics with public art, as well as the egalitarianism of public art for both the creator and the audience.

Thank you for reading this week, and I plan to interview a local muralist for next week's entry! 

Bonus Hokusai class photos: 

My own print using styrofoam and a wooden stylus

A student's print

Part of a slideshow on Hokusai--the children were not as engaged at this point

A print by one of the I.D.E.A. Museum staff, a professional printmaker

A woodblock carving by aforementioned printmaker

Another of his carvings

Keep Friends Close, Anemones Closer

This week marks the beginning of my internship at the I.D.E.A. Museum in Mesa, Arizona! For reference, this is what I get to walk into everyday:

The Hub of the museum

Now technically, it can be argued that this museum, and most museums in general--especially private ones--are not within the domain of public art, since there is usually a price of admission involved. However, an important stipulation of public art is that it remains accessible to the public. In my experience so far at the I.D.E.A. Museum, I certainly believe this to be true of it. Therefore, I will treat the art displayed at the museum as within the domain of public art for the sake of my project. 

Now that the technicality has been dealt with, I would like to add a brief introduction about this museum. The I.D.E.A. museum mainly caters to children around the ages of 1 to about 10 (from my limited observations). However, due to this age range, there is also an abundance of adult chaperones. This wide age gap of patrons leads to a rather unique hybrid of entertainment and education. For example, there is a station called "Oodles of Doodles" which allows children to draw to their hearts' desire on a wall but also plays a TED talk on the prejudice against and necessity of doodling in the creative process. As a person that is neither a young child nor a parent of a child, this juxtaposition proves fascinating: the ability to learn and create in a simultaneously straightforward and contextual way is not something I encounter often. 

However, this is not to say that the children themselves are not learning and doing also. In fact, this first week of my Senior Research Project coincided with the arrival of a new gallery in the museum, themed around the ocean. It is aptly named "Underwater FantaSEA". The following are some highlights of the exhibit: 

Found object fish sculptures

Coral-esque sculpture made from plastic bottles 

A hanging jellyfish garden

Arizona geology samples

Nestled between all of these gorgeous visuals are more marine-inspired art (some of which I can't photograph) and countless activities that teach children about ocean life, conservation, and the relationship between Arizona and the ocean, far away though it may seem. For example, did you know that Arizona used to be covered by oceans? Crazy, I know.

Admittedly, I haven't done much in the way of researching opinions on public art. However, I believe that I have spent my first week improving upon nearly equally valuable skills. Aside from learning for the first time how to laminate as well as interacting with younger children, I have had the chance to help prepare activities for coming events. Here are some example projects I helped make for an event celebrating the opening of "Underwater FantaSEA": 

Demented envelope sharks

Didn't make this one, but I couldn't resist including the tribute

Fish crackers on graham crackers

Whether or not you agree with me that the ability to construct decorative graham crackers is valuable, there is no doubt that it's cute.

Looking forward into the next week, I hope to begin exploring the public art in Phoenix, so get excited for my trudging through unseasonably hot February weather. Also stay tuned for the art history class I will help teach next week on Hokusai! 

Thanks for reading.