Can we redefine the role for public art if its primary function is no longer to commemorate or venerate?

At a time when galleries are closed and access to physical artworks is limited it is perhaps not surprising that we should be turning our attention to Public Art. Central Saint Martins and the Art Academy of Latvia will be collaborating on a series of public talks that unpick the history and context of public art from the distinct perspectives of each institution. Each talk will have a speaker from the United Kingdom and Latvia and together with MA Fine Art students from both institutions will address the parallel and distinct tradition of Public Art in both countries. Each talk will explore a key theme in relation to the subject bringing together perspectives from opposite ends of the European Continent.

The talks programme which began on the 28th of January now has reached its final with the talk “Site: Discovering new space for Public Art”

For the last in the series of the Public Encounters talks we will consider the site occupied by public art. The plinth provides a safe space for publicly sited art, lifting it out of harm’s way and asserting its status. For the audience, however, the encounter can be remote and aloof, the sculptural object out of reach and unconnected. What new opportunities are afforded by stepping off the plinth and discovering new sites of encounter?

Key speakers: Līga Lindenbauma and Paul O’Kane

Students: Olga Meļehina (LMA), Katerina Geiduka (LMA), (CSM), Josefine Hübler (CSM), James Canty (CSM)

Please join us on 11 of March at 14:00 UK time 16:00 LV  time on the following link, click here.

ID: 894 4468 8667
Passcode: 301143

The public talk programme is a part of a collaborative project between Central Saint Martins and the Art Academy of Latvia.