Public Art!

Recently, I questioned the choice of a golden hollow tree sculpture by Doug Coupland for a space at the corner of Cambie and Marine on Facebook which I first viewed from the plaza within the Marine Gateway development. While I subsequently read about it on the internet and can appreciate the provocation it puts forth, and realize it may look better from other angles from which you can see the balance of the installation, overall I found the piece 'unfortunate' in this setting.
When I said so on Facebook, I discovered I was not alone in disliking the piece, although many others, especially art critics, thought it was wonderful, and strongly questioned my judgement about art.

This is not the only recent installation I don't like. I really am troubled by the recent salt piles next to the Olympic Village. Already the work is attracting graffiti, dead leaves, and other garbage. What were they thinking?

My colleague Norm Shearing, who also does not share my taste in art, asked me on Facebook whether there is any public art I do like. And so, on this rainy Sunday morning, I am happy to take a few minutes to post images of work I have come across in my travels, which I consider good public art. I welcome any comments.

I discovered this sculpture of Andy Warhol in Brataslava.

This is one of the installations that greeted me when I arrived at the train station in Chandigarh, India.

I miss this piece that once adorned the Vancouver waterfront seawall. I gather it's now in Calgary. Pity.

While some might question whether this pavement pattern is public art, I think it is. It is in front of a Versace store on the Gold Coast of Australia.

I love the buildings that light up at night in Hong Kong. While I'm glad I don't live across from this building with its constantly changing  patterns, I did enjoy watching its transformation

In Ljubljana Slovenia and other European cities, one often comes across bronze sculptures depicting the city at different points in history. I'd love to see something like this in Vancouver.

I enjoyed seeing the artistic additions to his bridge in Melbourne Australia

Terrific!

These Sao Paolo murals (above and below) reinforce this city as a creative city.

This Seattle intersection never stops delighting me. This is a form of public art I think is well worth spending money on~

While not public art in the traditional sense, I really enjoyed the painting of this Singapore building

I have seen coloured umbrellas used in many installations. I saw something like this in Morocco. Not sure where this is from.

Landscaping offers an opportunity to create delightful public art.

Very clever!

I came across this mural in downtown Winnipeg. While many don't like murals, I thought this was a great addition to the city.

One of my all-time favourite pieces. I have seen similar work in Russia.

Finally, this is the first public art installation at UniverCity, the new community at SFU where I worked for 7 years. This piece was the result of a competition, and created by a group of students with help from the SFU Community Trust. It includes the entomology of trees, in concrete, amongst the trees.