Art can be defined in various ways but to some, it cannot be defined altogether given its abstractness. Nevertheless, the general understanding of art is that it comprises products or activities done with aesthetic or communicative intents. Accordingly, it is purposefully meant to express emotions, ideas, or particular world views 1 . Art is the result of conscientious creation of something meaningful and attractive using one’s skills and imagination. Artifacts may be performed, visual, or auditory. For purposes of this discussion, only visual forms of art will be considered. The perceived value and definition of artworks vary contextually with culture and history. Historically, art usually appeared in two distinct spaces or spheres – the public space and the private space. It is thus important to appreciate the difference between these two spheres. Public spaces are social spaces that are generally accessible and open to people with no restrictions. Such spaces include parks, city squares, and streets among others. Contrarily, private spaces are places with restricted access and are only open to persons permitted by custom, law or invitation 2 .
Works of art in public spaces have typically been memorial, decorative, or intended for propaganda. Private spaces, on the other hand, were considered the enclaves of pure art and comprised galleries or elite museums. The topological schism of the art associated with these two spaces is compounded by the parallel dualism of the artistic practices associated with them. This is because, for a long time, public art and private art were established by appropriating them to space and the audience to which they would be presented. As such, they were not considered equal in terms of value. Moreover, different functions have been ascribed to them. Private space art required apposite competence from knowledgeable and educated revelers. On the contrary, public art was meant for the consumption of the masses, regardless of their backgrounds. Public space art was characteristically associated with the area in which it appeared and was linked to various societal issues or events. Private spaces such as galleries and museums were considered less polarized and were closely associated with aesthetic sacrum rather than everyday life.
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In the present day, however, these two spheres of art are not separated to a great extent. There is more exchange, free flow, and integration of the different qualities that initially typified the individual forms of art. Today, the borders distinguishing private space and public space art have been slackened. New York City (NYC) is greatly endowed with artworks. The city boasts of several art galleries, museums, and frequent exhibitions. Public art is also very prominent in the city and even has a fund dedicated specifically for such purposes. The Public Art Fund (1997) 3 appealed to many contemporary artists who substantially revolutionized the definition of public space in NYC. Looking at the city, it can be inferred that people interact differently with public art and private art. Moreover, various messages are portrayed by these two forms of art. The experiences obtained from attending exhibitions or visiting art galleries significantly differ from those obtained from appreciating art in public places.
An advantage of art in public spaces is that it brings the creative world to the people who would otherwise not have an opportunity to engage or participate in the work. The fact that it takes art into the public realm makes it a democratic process as everyone gets to interact with the art and have an opinion about it. 4 The interactions of people with public art result in the creation of contemplations with profound meaning about societal issues. This is because public art typically has a relationship with the location in which it is sited. Art in public spaces also creates a sense of place when people revisit the sites and can result in significant activity around the art. 5 For instance, people may resort to tactile interaction with the art by touching it or taking photographs with the artwork in the background. Most public artworks are inherently interactive and activate the senses of the public to think about the artwork. 6 Accordingly, the interaction of people with public art contributes significantly to the establishment of a public realm on a human scale.
Public art in NYC has diverse meanings. In most cases, it is site- and audience-specific and relates to the context in which it is sited. Such artworks can be temporary or permanent. One of the most notable effects of public art is the influence it has on the general public who feel the power to exercise over their city spaces and surroundings. Art not only confers meaning to the city's civic spaces but also speaks to the nature of society. Many members of the public acknowledge the fact that art in public spaces humanizes the built environment and contributes to the uniqueness of NYC. The art affords an intersection between ideas and disciplines and adds to the economic, social, and cultural value of the city. In NYC and many other cities, artworks in public spaces play a critical role in communicating people's culture and history. A typical example of such an artwork is the Statue of Liberty. It is the symbol of freedom and not only stirs the desire for liberty among residents of NYC but people all over the world. 7 Most importantly, it symbolizes the US itself indicating the importance of NYC in America’s political history.
Fig. 1. The Statue of Liberty : The Meaning and Use of a National Symbol,” NEH-Edsitement, 2019, https://edsitement.neh.gov/lesson-plans/statue-liberty-meaning-and-use-national-symbol.
The contributions of art in public spaces are immense. Communities often engage public art as tools for growth and economic stability. A significant percentage of Americans opine that public art improves the identity and image of their community. Specifically, these works directly influence how people perceive and connect with a place. For instance, in NYC, public arts provide the aesthetics that support the city's identity and make residents feel valued and appreciated. Studies have shown that aesthetics is among the main reasons that inspire the attachment of residents to a community. Public art also enhances cultural understanding and social cohesion through the provision of visual mechanisms by which social connectivity is reinforced. Over seventy percent of Americans believe that public art gives them a clearer perception of other cultures. This is particularly of importance to cities with people from diverse cultural backgrounds like NYC. For instance, the Gay Liberation Monument by George Segal, located in Manhattan, NYC asserts the city’s liberalism and stance on discrimination based on sexuality.
Fig. 2. George Segal, ‘ Gay Liberation’ Monument . 1980. Available from https://www.vulture.com/2018/11/is-nycs-gay-liberation-monument-too-white.html.
More contemporary forms of art such as graffiti are also found in public spaces in NYC. Street art in the city is squarely placed at the center of a global explosive movement of urban art. NYC streets have many murals by both local and international talents. Graffiti in the city is mainly associated with the hip hop culture. Artists are typically marginalized kids who felt invisible in tagging. 8 At the outset, most of them felt overlooked by the mainstream culture in America and felt left out of economic opportunities. Graffiti on subway cars and walls of derelict buildings thus became an avenue through which they could compel the otherwise complacent public to notice them. The general association of graffiti with property crime and vandalism resulted in efforts to control the art. Currently, there are efforts to commission legal murals. 9 Graffiti is a testament to the diversity of the city and gives identity to the residents of NYC boroughs such as the Bronx. The interaction of the public with graffiti broadens their perspectives on issues faced particularly by the minority populations in NYC. For instance, the ‘Know Your Rights’ mural in Harlem highlights the plight of African Americans and thus creates awareness on the same to the public.
Fig. 3. Harlem Know Your Rights Mural . 2013. Available from http://peoplesjustice.org/news-and-announcements/harlem-know-your-rights-mural.
NYC is known to be the art capital of the US. Galleries and museums in NYC are thus among the city’s greatest allurements. Destinations such as the Whitney Museum of American Art, American Museum of Natural History, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art contain many exemplary collections and organize outstanding exhibitions. The museums and galleries in NYC contain a proper blend of celebrated classics and contemporary works. Unlike in public spaces, people interact differently with art in private spaces. Private spaces such as museums and galleries as exhibition places are unquestionably critical determinants for the presentation of artworks and also have a bearing on people’s perceptions of art. 10 Ideal museum or gallery spaces create environments for art that are devoid of any factors that could influence one’s perceptions of the artwork being exhibited. Art in private spaces is specifically separated from any other thing that could potentially influence the objective evaluation of the artwork. People's interaction with art in private spaces is thus personal. The ambiance in such spaces often elicits profound thoughts from people who attempt to unravel the meanings of the various artworks.
During the observation of art in private spaces, visitors to a gallery or museum are often silent and static with their experiences primarily being ocular centric. 11 Commonly they shift between active glancing, and passive gazing with protracted silence as they queue in front of the most famed exhibits. In private spaces, the appreciation of art and the interaction of individuals with the artworks are typically hinged on the overt rules and guidelines of the particular institution, the narratives provided by the stewards, and access to interpretive sources. Importantly, the demeanor of visitors is also influenced by the conduct of visitors who are more informed and refined in matters of art. Visiting private art spaces also has a characteristic duality. In addition to being a leisure activity, it also has a cultural component to it usually shared by family, friends, and significant contemporaries. Despite the spatial restriction of space in private spaces, visitors may reconstruct the dimensions by interacting socially with the context of the art and with each other. 12 The institutionally prescribed approaches to art spectatorship and the stories being told may be redesigned by visitors to fit into their social contexts.
The experiences of people who visit private spaces with art often include many moments of collaborative observation that prompt concerted responses and appreciation of the art. Visiting museums and galleries in a group may influence individual choices regarding the exhibits to be experienced and those to be avoided. Belonging to a group often dictates the interpretations and viewing standpoints of the displayed artworks. Moreover, people typically infuse life into pieces of art through the discourses they engage in and their interpretations. Encountering artworks could potentially elicit compulsions among people to further share their memories end experiences. Effectively, the piece of art is transformed into a social symbol and contraption of socially joined experiences. 13 In the course of these experiences, people personify their responses to the artworks and the interactions in progress. In this sense, they facilitate the establishment of meaning while sharing it publicly with the people around at the time.
While the messages from the interpretation of art in private space are likely to be individual, engaging with such pieces is not entirely solitary. Artworks are a representation of the areas in society where people can converge and share experiences notwithstanding their radically different views of the world. In art, incongruity is embraced and accepted as a key component of effective message delivery. Just like art in public spaces which establishes a public realm, art in private spaces creates a community with can potentially become a source of inspiration to individuals working to overcome various negative aspects that currently mar the progress of communities. Art in private places may also encourage individuals to appreciate creativity, uncertainty, and intuition, and to constantly look for new ideas. Through art, artists tend to use unorthodox approaches to contemporary issues. Art in private places can thus communicate themes such as love and violence and could be an artist's imaginative expression of certain events in history. An example of such an artwork once displayed in NYC is Pablo Picasso’s Guernica , a mural portraying the bombing of Guernica town during the period that just preceded the outset of the Second World War. 14
Overall, the definition of art is varied and it can be exhibited in both private and public spaces. Some of the public spaces in which art can be sited include streets, parks, and city squares where access to the artwork is unrestricted. Private spaces, on the other hand, include galleries and museums. Previously, the forms of art in these two spheres were characteristically distinct. However, these disparities are very rare in contemporary art. In NYC, the American capital of art, many public spaces have art. Additionally, the city houses several museums and galleries. Some of the artworks in public spaces in NYC include statues and murals which communicate certain messages relating to the culture, history, and nature of the city's residents. As discussed, public art is generally interactive and is associated with democracy due to its accessibility by all. Art in private spaces also communicates salient messages that are subject to various interpretations. These pieces encourage social interactions among individuals and are a symbol of various themes that are relatable to daily life. Despite the slight differences in how people interact with art in public and private spaces, the impact of art on social interactions and on shaping the opinions of people in a society such as NYC is unquestionable.
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