Art in Public Places
Dublin Arts Council’s Dublin Art in Public Places program’s goal is to enhance the quality of life for Dublin’s residents and to strengthen the city as a destination for visitors. The collection includes both large and small visual artworks acquired through a variety of models in which Dublin Arts Council is actively engaged; including major gifting, committee-directed projects, calls for entries and jurying, on-loan programs with
an acquisition component, interactive projects, contributions to the City’s interior collection and projects which define a community initiative.
The collection is currently valued at $3.8 million. The Dublin Art in Public Places program was begun in 1988 and has grown to more than 60 large and small-scale permanent, temporary and interactive public art projects today. Dublin Arts Council maintains that public art should inspire an emotional response, provoke questions and invite interaction, while encouraging ingenuity and creative discovery by artists. The collection of public artworks distinguishes our community and creates a sense of place while contributing to Dublin’s aesthetic legacy. Dublin Arts Council, in collaboration with City of Dublin adopted its first Public Art Master Plan in 2021. A copy can be downloaded here.
PERMANENT COLLECTION
TEMPORARY COLLECTION
Land Acknowledgment:
Dublin Arts Council acknowledges that it was founded upon exclusions and erasures of many Indigenous peoples, including those on whose land its institution is located. Its programming takes place on the unceded land of the Hopewell, Adena, Miami, Delaware, Shawnee, and Wyandot peoples. Dublin Arts Council asks community members to join the organization in acknowledging and honoring these Native communities, their Elders both past and present and all future generations. This acknowledgement demonstrates a commitment to beginning the process of working to dismantle the ongoing legacies of settler colonialism.
FAQs
What is Dublin Arts Council’s (DAC) role in the public art process?
DAC serves as facilitator in commissioning large-scale public artworks as part of DAC’s Dublin Art in Public Places program. One of DAC’s primary goals is to advocate for and support the artist(s) in the process.
How does the site selection process work?
In collaboration with the City of Dublin, criteria are established for the site and the project’s overall impact. Selection criteria for the site include visibility, educational opportunity, historical significance, city-owned property, discovery, sense of place, and the aesthetic cohesiveness of the Dublin Art in Public Places collection.
Does the Dublin community have a voice in the site selection?
DAC and the City of Dublin contact the public via numerous outlets to solicit feedback regarding the site. After visits, evaluation of recommended sites and community feedback, the proposed site is presented to City Council for approval.
Does the Dublin community have a voice in the site selection?
DAC and the City of Dublin contact the public via numerous outlets to solicit feedback regarding the site. After visits, evaluation of recommended sites and community feedback, the proposed site is presented to City Council for approval.
How do you find artists to create the public artwork(s)?
DAC produces a “National Call for Artists,” distributed through various media outlets, artist registries and artist lists. Proposals include artist qualifications, examples of the artists’ work and a letter of interest in the project.
What do you do when your receive the RFQ and letter of interest from aritsts?
Once all of the Artists’ proposals are received and DAC staff eliminates those applications that do not meet the criteria (documenting those eliminated), DAC chooses and assembles a selection committee of voting and non-voting members who represent a variety of viewpoints, experience and expertise. Artists’ proposals are shared with the selection committee and DAC facilitates discussion to reach a manageable number of three to five artist finalists.
Once the finalists are determined, what do you do next?
DAC, in cooperation with the City, welcomes the artist finalists, providing a comprehensive visit to the site and the community. The finalists each then return to their studio to create a site-specific proposal.
What do the artists do after they create a proposal?
After a set period for the artists to create a vision for a project, finalists return to Dublin to present their site-specific proposal to the selection committee and the community. During the presentation, questions are fielded and community feedback is solicited.
Who decides the winner of the commission?
The Selection Committee convenes to discuss finalists, considering community feedback as part of the selection process. An Artist and an alternate are selected. DAC staff checks artist references and speaks to arts administrators with whom the artist has worked. The artist chosen for the commission is presented to City Council.
Why is the artwork commissioned after the site is selected?
The artwork is created to respond to a specific site. Through interpretation of the artwork, the site should take on a deeper meaning and the artwork should take on deeper meaning with an understanding of the site. When further activated by the artwork, the site will create a sense of place.
Why don’t you make public art projects available only to Ohio artists?
Great cities attract great talent from throughout the world. This is especially true of creative economies at the heart of our increasingly global reach. That’s why leading corporations, professional sports teams, and ballets, symphonies and theater companies hire the best brains, athletes and artists they can. Keeping Dublin’s cultural doors open to the entire nation and the world brings Dublin the best return on its cultural investment. It also helps to assure that other cities will continue to welcome and hire Ohio artists, enabling our artists to build careers nation- and worldwide.
Who pays for Dublin’s public art?
Dublin’s permanent public artwork is funded with hotel/motel tax dollars, which are collected from visitor and corporate employee travel. For every overnight stay in one of Dublin’s hotels, a 6 percent tax is collected and invested back into the community through designated projects and events that enhance Dublin visitor and resident experiences. The Dublin Art in Public Places program is one of those designated projects.
How long does the overall process take?
From site selection to installation, the process takes at least two years.