At every corner, an installation.
Public art is more than just folly in Sydney – it is policy. Elaborate light fittings can be found strung up, high above secluded alleyways; locally crafted murals and illustrations can be discovered, decorating long lines of hoarding; statement pieces of interlocking aluminium can be admired, suspended over railway escalators.
These small coincidences of culture colour in the everyday city experience of Sydney. They are funded by a specially allocated part of the City of Sydney’s public-works budget, with an official aim of making art and culture more inclusive, more accessible, and more available.
But beyond such a lofty ambition, the installations also have a smaller, but mightier, impact: they make places pleasant.
Even to the untrained, uninterested eye, alleyways are more colourfully lit; building sites more visually interesting; and commuter routes more naturally welcoming. Because, while not everybody is a hard and fast art ‘fan’, all stand to gain from public spaces that look – and feel – more engaging.
