Public Art

Staffordshire's Heritage & Arts Service established a public art strategy and a public art fund for the purpose of developing public art across the County.

We committed to working across the County with as many partners as possible. This includes developing partnerships with agencies and organisations both within and across the County boundaries for the benefit of the people of Staffordshire.

If you would like any more information about the public art strategy please contact Owen Hurcombe on 01785 278339, or by email at owen.hurcombe@staffordshire.gov.uk|||

What is public art?

In the past public art has been most recognisable in the form of statues commemorating heroes, kings or other leading people. Public art commissions have also been used as a means for the State to influence the electorate with regard to political opinions or morals.

Art has as many uses, and potentially meanings, as there are people to look at it. However we need to be able to justify the expense of its creation and its maintained existence.

Public art aims to enhance our physical environment and to raise our awareness and understanding of the environment in which we live and work. Public art provides opportunities for artists and communities to collaborate creatively in the celebration and enhancement of our environment and to share and develop skills and experiences.

Public art can and should be as much about the process of engaging with people as providing an end product of sculpture or landscaping.

Public art primarily employs the visual arts, but it can involve a range of other art forms. It establishes a dialogue, mediated by an artist, between a community and its environment. It includes any art, temporary or permanent, located in, or visible from, a publicly accessible space, which promotes and enhances a sense of identity for that community.

Details of our Public Art Projects can be seen by exploring the menu on the left hand side.