5.4.2.b Places That Support Art and Cultural Activities Discussion

1. Making Art Visible
2. Arts Districts

Public art and cultural events cannot exist without a place for people to gather and experience them. These spaces can come in the shape of formal concert halls or more intimate outdoor amphitheaters built into city parks or commercial centers. Art can be applied throughout the city on our streets and sidewalks, in public parks, and in civic buildings. It can be as little as a distinctive street sign or a truly original neighborhood monument.

Making Art Visible

Many cities have adopted policies to make art more visible in the design of public and private buildings and infrastructure improvements. Emphasis is also placed on using art to create a sense of neighborhood identity and to provide a connection to local history and culture rather than as an architectural decoration. Art projects serve to document, celebrate, and define communities whose stories may once have been overlooked.

Public art strengthens a community’s identity. Transit stations, streets, sidewalks, and parks all benefit from the addition of art. Art can also be used to tie together landscaping, lighting, paving, and signage and create gateways for neighborhoods and communities.

Arts Districts

Arts Districts are generally located in mixed-use areas that have a high concentration of arts and cultural facilities. Often creative work is enhanced with the energy and excitement that is generated when there is more than one activity occurring an area, it is natural that arts districts would form in these mixed-use, diverse clusters. Theater, music, and visual arts audiences also grow when the opportunity for exposure to various cultures and cultural events is present.

Promoting the formation of such creativity clusters by creating Arts Districts not only provides value to art patrons, it also

spurs creative collaboration among arts organizations and artists. It can result in inventive artistic products as well as cost savings through shared facilities.

Arts Districts also have an economic development value. Retail shops, restaurants, and hotels find a market for their goods and services in Arts Districts. Many cities have already planned or implemented such districts, positioning the arts at the center of their urban areas. Surprise has a sufficiently large population and tourist base so such an effort may be feasible.