Successful public art often says more about its community than the actual content.
Selection committees are entrusted to find something that stands on its own yet somehow works together with the rest of the city, like the “Hammering Man” outside the Seattle Art Museum or “Cloud Gate” in Chicago. The installation must correspond well with the current soul of the community, yet somehow advance or progress what that community means (downtown’s own “Her Secret is Patience”). Most importantly, it must add value to the city.
Now more than two months old, the $415,000 “Shadow Play” installation on the Third/Fourth Street island along Roosevelt Street is coming into its own as a unique addition to the district. The new planters on Roosevelt Street west of Third Street have caused considerably more controversy, but money spent is money spent (about $39,000 total), and we should greet them with open arms (in ways I’ll show later on).
One of the most important things these two installations will need to do in the foreseeable future is develop a strong relationship with their audience. Being that these are inanimate objects, however, we need to play a strong role in helping develop that interaction.
For there to be interaction, a structure needs to pique interest. This can be through installations that are odd, humorous, colorful, beautiful, and technologically or artistically marvelous. Sometimes these traits are not visible at first, as with these two recent additions to Roosevelt Row. But as relatively blank canvases, they have the potential to become so.
Related story: Timeline: Downtown public art through the years
Photography
Photography is one form of developed interaction.
Think of “Her Secret Is Patience,” a defining feature of downtown. Janet Echelman’s $2.5 million sculpture was basically built for social media, with both downtown residents and visitors taking snaps of it nearly every day. (Arguably, it looks better at night, its colored netting bringing hues reminiscent of our sunset sky.) The “Dance” sculptures, installed in 1997 and located around the Herberger Theater Center, are just as photogenic.
A more colorful and less expensive structure that fits the bill is the Peritoneum next to MonOrchid along Roosevelt Street. Created by ASU alumni and originally located in the ASU Tempe campus, it’s a magnet for wedding, prom and engagement photography. The pictures spread, the site’s relevancy grows.
This is something that “Shadow Play” in particular does quite well, I think. The different angles of the structure give photographers plenty to work with, especially during the sunset. If you have a particular sense of humor, there is certain fun to be had with those planters, too.
Purpose
Another form of interaction is to see whether these installations actually serve a purpose. It’s what these two new additions have in advantage to many other installations around downtown. The benches on “Shadow Play” work well with the “trees”, which provide not only shade but solar-powered lighting.
As ill-placed as some people may think they are, the planters will one day grow trees meant to provide shade through that awfully exposed stretch of street. They may obstruct pedestrian traffic on our busy, busy sidewalks, but one can imagine a fruitful final product if the contents inside the pots are well cared for.
Hands-On Interaction
This is something Phoenix could benefit from expanding. Roosevelt Row CDC’s Cindy Dach had a wonderfully disappointed response for the new pots in the Phoenix New Times: “Remove them or decorate them. Now that they’re on the ground, the community is going to have to work with the streets department to solve the problem.”
Decorating these pots is actually a great idea. Take a look at the decorated pots along Grand Avenue for inspiration. It can bring about all sorts of artist projects, hopefully keeping out taggers as a by-product. It could also help fix one of the real missing components in both of these installations: color. (If this goes with the trends of relatively bland-looking apartment complexes, it may be time to have some constructive doubts.)
Yet intended interaction is sometimes stifled by overlooked factors. Take our climate. I can’t see why anyone would like to sit on the benches of “Shadow Play” during a majority of the year. Even looking at metallic structures during our summer brings up images of eggs frying on a car hood. Also, the reason the trees were not directly rooted was because there are both underground and overhead utilities where they’re located, city spokesperson Monica Hernandez told 12 News. Hence, the disputed 5-feet-tall planters.
Growing pains are inevitable for any sort of public work. As we grow accustomed to what we have, we can look for ways to make it our own. This is not to disown any criticism of the installations; the wonders of critique is that it can help make future installations more engaging and creative. But there is a proper way to bring about concerns, and the people who claim to be interested in the creative culture of our city can and should look for the right outlets to express that interest. Offer your comments to the city Office of Arts & Culture, or talk to other arts organizations and galleries to see how we can engage with what we have.
As for the city’s responsibilities: Champion ways for the public to engage with these installations. Work with local artists or start a community campaign to decorate the planters. And maybe don’t close off a public structure during the biggest public RoRo event, the First Fridays art walk (happened at August’s, was fixed for September’s). This is what we have: Whether you like it or hate it, we can either discard it or make it our own. Interaction is a two-way street; Once it’s in motion, the rest sort of does itself.
What do you think makes public art installations successful? What are ways to improve interaction within these new additions to Roosevelt Row? What are some of your favorite art installations around downtown? Let us know in the comments, or send me an email.
Contact the columnist at motarola@asu.edu
