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You Make it Amazing: The Rhetoric of Art and Urban Regeneration in the Case of The Public

2013; Taylor & Francis; Volume: 32; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1080/23796529.2013.11674705

2379-6529

Kelly Norris Martin, Victoria J. Gallagher,

Public Spaces through Art

Arts councils and departments of culture tell policy makers that the arts are not only valuable in themselves, but for their contribution to the economy, urban regeneration and social inclusion. However, there is significant debate as to whether public art produced under social arts policy can deliver on expectations. This essay examines a recent, controversial urban regeneration project, West Bromwich’s The Public designed by Will Alsop, in order to assess its visual, symbolic, and material resources. The analysis reveals that, while the gallery functions, at least partially, to construct a shared public experience of West Midland and its culture, it is an experience encapsulated within and aesthetically made over by The Public such that The Public becomes a replacement scene, thereby undermining the community and at least some of its goals.