Yes, It Is Public Art

Our quest to create a public work in Samara began on Monday with Robert and I giving lectures on public art to young designers, architects and landscape architectes. When asked if anyone knew what public art was, about five of the 100+ participants cautiously raised their hands – but they were eager to learn. As always, I illustrated the difference between, “art in public places” and Public Art. I made it clear that equestrian sculptures, which populate both the Russian and American cityscapes and sculptures by well-known artists in front of buildings and plazas, are great examples art in public places. And site-specific street art and commissioned works is what we are referring to when we say public art. Robert presented a more personal perspective by showing some of his public projects. Crowd favorites included Ji Lee’ bubble project, “I Use it to Download Porn” and Robert’s “Roosevelt Island Shuttle”. Enthused by the presentations, seventy designers and architects wanted to participate in creating a public project in Samara, but we knew that number would plummet.