Signs of Life: Public Art in DC

"Sometimes overlooked, often misread, public art is a sign of life."

Patricia C. Phillips, Art Historian

Walking the streets of DC involves a lot of distractions--careening cars, disoriented pigeons, and a jumble of public art that is often passed without a second thought. Such art is often taken for granted with its various iterations including graffiti, sculpture, murals, memorials, and even stickers. You may hate it. You may love it. But it's there. And you looked at it.

Public art often has a message, either woven into the fabric of the art itself or explicitly written out for the viewer. Because of its incredibly public nature, art that lives outside of an institution often comes under fire for its messaging. As time passes, certain forms of public art can become emblematic of outdated viewpoints and harmful history.

Often, public art doesn't come with a description. Certain memorials or murals exist independently, without a clear explanation of their presence in a certain area. While many of the murals and public works in DC are related to the surrounding neighborhood or community, some of the older statues stand silent and mysterious. While they may give clues to their origin through an inscription, a plaque, or a name, it often takes a tour or a quick google search to figure out their history.

Mysterious or not, public art has been a part of city living for thousands (and thousands) of years. Incredibly old graffiti has been found in ancient Greece and in various parts of Africa. This ancient graffiti is similar to what is seen sketched on walls today--names of lovers, commemorative inscriptions, memorials to fallen friends, and various notes identifying an individual's territory.

Sculptures and memorials have also had a long run in urban areas, with some of the earliest sculptures in the world dating back to 32,000 BCE. This desire for public engagement with art, both formally and informally, reflects political, social, and aesthetic agendas. These agendas can range from a war memorial designed to arouse sympathy and admiration for the armed forces, to a sticker with a single sentence printed on it to raise individual self-esteem, "you look gorgeous today." Either way, public art invites reflection and offers an opportunity to learn more about a certain subject (such as loss, community, or yourself).

Engaging with the art around you is a great way to experience Washington, DC. Since its founding in 1790, DC has accumulated various forms of public art: a collection that reflects both the historical experiences of those in the past and the efforts of modern individuals to promote equality, representation, and joy through artistic expression.

For digital tours on abstract sculpture or commemorative monuments and memorials, visit DC Historic Sites.

To access DC's Art Bank and see art from local artists, visit the DC Commission on the Arts & Humanities webpage.

To take a tour of DC's Street Art, sign up for our Public Art Tour this July, hosted by DCPL and the DC Commission for the Arts & Humanities.

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