Montclair is recognized as an art-friendly community, but there is little to show for it in town. A few craft shows and an isolated sculpture in the park. What gives? At the same time, residents blister at the non-aesthetic monstrosities being planned and erected throughout the downtown area. No, we can’t return Montclair to the small-town charm it once had, but we can move forward in tandem with developers and install visually stimulating works of art in our public spaces. Towns which have invested in public art programs say they serve to increase rents, act as a magnet for tourism, educate and inspire their residents, and stimulate creativity in the workplace and in their schools.
Log onto Pinterest and search “Public Art.” Some pretty cool stuff, including those sampled above. How ‘bout a globe with an illuminated message in the center of the traffic circle at Valley and Church instead of that busted old fountain? Some Tetris blocks in the alley between Bellevue and the p...
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Montclair is recognized as an art-friendly community, but there is little to show for it in town. A few craft shows and an isolated sculpture in the park. What gives? At the same time, residents blister at the non-aesthetic monstrosities being planned and erected throughout the downtown area. No, we can’t return Montclair to the small-town charm it once had, but we can move forward in tandem with developers and install visually stimulating works of art in our public spaces. Towns which have invested in public art programs say they serve to increase rents, act as a magnet for tourism, educate and inspire their residents, and stimulate creativity in the workplace and in their schools.
Log onto Pinterest and search “Public Art.” Some pretty cool stuff, including those sampled above. How ‘bout a globe with an illuminated message in the center of the traffic circle at Valley and Church instead of that busted old fountain? Some Tetris blocks in the alley between Bellevue and the parking lot? A giant clothespin on the hill off Upper Mountain? Our own creations though. You get the point.
The best part: let’s get the developers to fund the project. According to the Project for Public Spaces, “developers are often requested or required by cities to provide parking, a certain number or amount of coverage by street trees, curbs and sidewalks, etc. Public Art could be added to this list[.]” In essence, developers would be required to give back to the community by funding a public art program that installs and maintains visual works throughout the town. Let’s give people a reason to walk down Bloomfield Ave again, and maybe help fill some of those vacant storefronts in the process. Who’s in?
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