Public Art Saint Paul: Art and community now
From poems stamped into the sidewalk, to an art-friendly playground, to eARTth lab for kids, how one non-profit in St. Paul is finding creative ways to make the world a more beautiful place, even in the midst of the Coronavirus.
By Makenzi Johnson and Lydia Gessner | Reporters
Each time Lisa Arnold and her husband take a walk around their St. Paul neighborhood, one that has about six poems stamped into the cement sidewalks, they stop to read each poem aloud, to admire this art. In the past, public art to Arnold was a large, bronze statue of an old white man being lionized for his accomplishments, but this has changed. Greek philosopher, Heraclitus once said, “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.” This phrase now defines public art for Arnold.
“Every street has some mud on it, but with the poems there, it makes me look at nature differently, I’m looking at weather differently, I’m looking at myself differently, that’s what art is for!” — Lisa Arnold, teaching artist and board member.
As she walks these sidewalks, some days there is a leaf covering a few of the words, or mud smeared in the crevices, but for Arnold that is simply the beauty of public art.
For a map of the sidewalk poetry locations around St. Paul click here.
“Every street has some mud on it, but with the poems there, it makes me look at nature differently, I’m looking at weather differently, I’m looking at myself differently,” Arnold said, “that’s what art is for!”
The force behind the over twelve-hundred poems stamped on sidewalks is a private, non-profit organization that, while not directly connected to, works in collaboration with the city of St. Paul to create a better city and one people are proud to call home. For over 30 years, they have been placing artists in roles that will improve and create city spaces and deepen civic engagement, ultimately creating 21st century neighborhoods filled with art.
“We really believe that artists can be valuable partners in making a great city… one where people in every neighborhood feel engaged with their city,” Executive Director, Colleen Sheehy, said.
The concept of public art is something that is being embraced more and more by artists, making it more accessible for people of all demographics to see and interact with it.
“Instead of making people come to the art, art is brought to the people,” Arnold, who is now a board member, said.
Public Art Saint Paul realized this year in particular how important it was for their mission and goal of bringing art into communities needed to be stronger than ever. The team of Public Art Saint Paul board members and artists worked together to think outside of the box to discover and execute new ways for art to be experienced, even in the midst of a pandemic. They had to make changes to some of the programs they hosted over the summer, for example, hosting them via Zoom calls and sending home art activity kits for children in Frogtown neighborhoods, and meals, too, with the help of other organizations, but they made it work. Sheehy said they still got to see the kids and how they’d grown, as they have over the years, but this year from a distance.
The city of St. Paul and Public Art Saint Paul were planning on rebuilding a playground for children located in Western Sculpture Park and thought it wouldn’t be possible, but then realized that it was a doable outdoor project. Over the summer, they worked on adding new play elements and creative, fun and imaginative sculptures of cartoon characters to the playground. Once the park was finished, families from around the neighborhood came to have a small-scale ribbon cutting ceremony to officially open up the park. Sheehy asked one of the teen boys who had been a part of their various programs for many years to give a small speech about what the park meant to him. The teen, Angel, didn’t have much to say, but expressed his gratitude in just a few words.
“All I can say is that it makes me really happy,” Angel said.
The playground is just one example as to what art can mean to a community. Public Art Saint Paul’s goal has always been to emphasize this power and the fact that what they do is provide public art in public spaces, and this year helped them realize just how important it is.
“It’s so great to be going outside for a walk in your neighborhood and come across a sculpture, these little details that kind of lift you up in your day,” Sheehy said.
Sheehy recognized how, though this year has not been easy, Public Art Saint Paul has still utilized their talents and mission for good.
“… I feel like one of the focuses of Public Art St. Paul is community now. I think if you focus on community now, you can’t but help that being a plan for community later. If you bring people together now and there’s connections, and ideas, and a way to make things happen, that’s how you make a path for the future … It gives me hope,” Arnold said.
