Recently, the City of West Chicago’s Cultural Arts Commission requested community feedback in a multi-step survey process as it works through the many components of the creation of a Public Art Master Plan. The first question posed related to the importance of public art in a community and asked respondents to react to a series of related statements.
The following charts will provide the results of Question #1. Below the charts are additional comments made by respondents:
The following additional comments were made by respondents in a box that was provided on the survey:
- It makes a mundane area something nice to look at instead being plain. It gives a person a reason to be outside walking around.
- Adds beauty to the community.
- As long as the Art is creative then it is very positive to have in a community. I only have an issue with ugly gaudy art
- Would love to see this happen for West Chicago
- These prompts are quite vague sometimes to the extent of seeming pointless – public art can promote freedom of expression and diversity, but not always. And will the public art in West Chicago do this? Public art is not decoration, a beautifier, or a space filler – all art, including public art, is an expression and/or statement about the world we live in and if that expression and/or statement is salient it will engage the community in dialogue. Not all good engagement is positive engagement, art is challenging sometimes.
- Public Art helps blend a community who is from diverse background to encourage critical thinking.
- Art can help fill the void, make an unattractive or otherwise underutilized space feel more welcome to expand its use. Art can set the mood for positivity to flourish.
- It can reflect the share culture of the community and add a sense of vibrancy to an area that may otherwise not seem so.
- Public art is very important for communities in modern times. It allows a story to be viewed and can often allow a spark of interest which otherwise would not have been lit.
- I love the opportunity to see individuals in my community share their talents. It definitely inspires me to create!
- It encourages people to slow down and look at the world around them instead of zooming from A to B while thinking about or staring at their smartphones.
The Commission wishes to thank everyone who took the time to take the survey. The information gathered will be reflected in the developing Plan and a new survey question will be released shortly for further public input.
