Cushing D., Pennings M.
Keywords
City Planning
,
Recreational Facilities
,
Town
,
Urban Regeneration
Abstract
Public art is an artistic expression created in streets, squares and other public spaces, including parks. Using the two popular public parks in the New York City, Central Park and the High Line, this paper explores the affordances offered by public art in these two urban environments, with a focus on physical, intellectual and emotional connections between the visitor, the artwork and the landscape setting. Using affordance theory as a framework, it considers the design of the landscape as a behaviour setting that affords viewing, acknowledgement and reflection of the artwork within the contemporary cultural context. Using preliminary qualitative observations of six artworks within the two parks, this research suggests that public art has the potential to afford such diverse opportunities for public park visitors. In order for these affordances to be actualised, the design of the park and the artwork’s intentions should be coordinated to ensure that the experiences of the visitor align with the claimed benefits of public art.
Main finding
This paper investigate whether or not public art in park provides affordances that are beyond the functional and aesthetical aspects of a place, and second, investigates whether the design of each setting afford proper viewing, acknowledgment and reflection of the artwork within a contemporary cultural context to form a behaviour setting. The results show that public art has the potential to afford diverse opportunities for public park visitors, including physical, emotional and intellectual affordances. However, this seems to rely on integrated components of a behaviour setting. - the design of the part and the intentions of the artwork must be well coordinated to ensure that the experiences align with the benefits of public art.
Description of method used in the article
Observation of the physical spaces within Central Park and the High Line, Within each park, three artworks were chosen that exemplified the role of art within the cultural context.
Verdict
Of practical use