What Is Public Art For? – David Lewis Schaefer

What Is Public Art For? – David Lewis Schaefer

The placement of a new, 12-foot-high bronze statue in Times Square, New York City’s most famous tourist and entertainment district, by the Times Square Alliance, a nonprofit organization financed by local businesses, raises the question of just what public art is for. (The statue, made by London-based sculptor Thomas J. Price, will stand in place until June 17, as part of a system of rotating displays of contemporary art.) What is remarkable abo…