Just how 'public' is Public Art? How much influence do you have over what lands up where you live? What do everyday people really like? The Big Art Project asks all the big questions about Public Art.
The term "public art" is something of a misnomer. Because, let's face it, the public have usually had little say about the statue that appeared in the town square, the sculpture in the park, or even the angel on the hillside.
Most public art is parachuted into a place without any consultation with the people who have to live with it
Gormley's Angel of the North did end up a cherished national icon, but a lot of public art is a focus for resentment
would it make any difference if the public really did choose public art? If they were involved not just in voting on preconceived ideas, but in choosing the artist, shaping the idea and seeing it realised?
That's the idea behind the Big Art Project.
Dream looks down onto the M62 from the former colliery site at St.Helens
