Established in 1872 in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

, the Association for Public Art (formerly Fairmount Park Art Association) is the United States' first private, nonprofit public art organization dedicated to integrating

public art Public art is art in any media whose form, function and meaning are created for the general public through a public process. It is a specific art genre with its own professional and critical discourse. Public art is visually and physically acce ...

and

urban planning Urban planning, also known as town planning, city planning, regional planning, or rural planning, is a technical and political process that is focused on the development and design of land use and the built environment, including air, water, ...

. The Association for Public Art (aPA) commissions, preserves, promotes and interprets public art in Philadelphia, and it is largely due to the work of the aPA that Philadelphia has one of the largest public art collections in the country. The aPA has acquired and commissioned works by many famous sculptors (including

Augustus Saint-Gaudens Augustus Saint-Gaudens (; March 1, 1848 – August 3, 1907) was an American sculptor of the Beaux-Arts generation who embodied the ideals of the American Renaissance. From a French-Irish family, Saint-Gaudens was raised in New York City, he tra ...

Alexander Stirling Calder Alexander Stirling Calder (January 11, 1870 – January 7, 1945) was an American sculptor and teacher. He was the son of sculptor Alexander Milne Calder and the father of sculptor Alexander (Sandy) Calder. His best-known works are ''George Washi ...

Daniel Chester French Daniel Chester French (April 20, 1850 – October 7, 1931) was an American sculptor of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, best known for his 1874 sculpture '' The Minute Man'' in Concord, Massachusetts, and his 1920 monum ...

Frederic Remington Frederic Sackrider Remington (October 4, 1861 – December 26, 1909) was an American painter, illustrator, sculptor, and writer who specialized in the genre of Western American Art. His works are known for depicting the Western United Sta ...

, Paul Manship, and

Albert Laessle Albert Laessle (March 28, 1877 – September 4, 1954) was an American sculptor and educator. He taught at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts for more than twenty years and is best remembered as an animalier. He won the 1918 Widener Gold ...

); supported city planning projects; established an outdoor sculpture conservation program; and sponsored numerous publications, exhibitions, and educational programs. The aPA interprets and preserves more than 200 works of art throughout Philadelphia – working closely with the city's Public Art Office,

Fairmount Park Fairmount Park is the largest municipal park in Philadelphia and the historic name for a group of parks located throughout the city. Fairmount Park consists of two park sections named East Park and West Park, divided by the Schuylkill River, wit ...

, and other organizations and agencies responsible for placing and caring for outdoor sculpture in Philadelphia – and maintains an inventory of all of the city's public art.

History

Chartered by the

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, Ma ...

in 1872, the Fairmount Park Art Association (now the Association for Public Art) was founded by a group of concerned citizens in the late nineteenth century who wanted to beautify Philadelphia's urban landscape with public art to counter the city's encroaching industrialism. The Association initially focused on enhancing Fairmount Park with outdoor sculpture, but the organization's mission expanded in 1906 to include the rest of the city as a whole: to "promote and foster the beautiful in Philadelphia, in its architecture, improvements, and the city plan." Friends Charles H. Howell and Henry K. Fox conceived of the Fairmount Park Art Association, and the organization's first president was

Anthony J. Drexel Anthony Joseph Drexel Sr. (September 13, 1826 – June 30, 1893) was an American banker who played a major role in the rise of modern global finance after the American Civil War. As the dominant partner of Drexel & Co. of Philadelphia, he found ...

, founder of

Drexel University Drexel University is a private research university with its main campus in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Drexel's undergraduate school was founded in 1891 by Anthony J. Drexel, a financier and philanthropist. Founded as Drexel Institute of Art, ...

. The Association's first official venture was purchasing ''Hudson Bay Wolves Quarreling Over the Carcass of a Deer'' (1872) by Edward Kemeys, and its first major undertaking was commissioning

Alexander Milne Calder Alexander Milne Calder (August 23, 1846 – June 4, 1923) (MILL-nee) was a Scottish American sculptor best known for the architectural sculpture of Philadelphia City Hall. Both his son, Alexander Stirling Calder, and grandson, Alexander "San ...

for an equestrian statue of Major General George Meade in 1873.

Name change

In May 2012, the Fairmount Park Art Association changed its name to the Association for Public Art (aPA). The change was made to more clearly communicate the nature and scope of the organization's work, and to distinguish itself from other local and national public art agencies. The organization's first major project under its new name was ''Open Air'' (2012), a world-premiere interactive light installation for the Benjamin Franklin Parkway by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer.

Public Artworks (overview)

* ''Maja'' (1942, reinstalled 2021), Gerhard Marcks, purchased by the Association for Public Art *''Winter Fountains'' (2017), Jennifer Steinkamp, presented by the Parkway Council and commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''Cai Guo-Qiang: Fireflies'' (2017),

Cai Guo-Qiang Cai Guo-Qiang (; born 8 December 1957) is a Chinese artist who currently lives and works in New York City and New Jersey. Biography Cai Guo-Qiang was born in 1957 in Quanzhou, Fujian Province, China. His father, Cai Ruiqin, was a calligraphe ...

, commissioned by the Association for Public Art with Fung Collaboratives * ''Big Bling'' (2016; installed 2017),

Martin Puryear Martin L. Puryear (born May 23, 1941) is an American artist known for his devotion to traditional craft. Working in wood and bronze, among other media, his reductive technique and meditative approach challenge the physical and poetic boundaries ...

, presented by the Association for Public Art, commissioned by Madison Square Park Conservancy * ''AMOR'' (1998; installed 2015),

Robert Indiana Robert Indiana (born Robert Clark; September 13, 1928 – May 19, 2018) was an American artist associated with the pop art movement. His iconic image LOVE was first created in 1964 in the form of a card which he sent to several friends and acq ...

, presented by the Association for Public Art and the Philadelphia Museum of Art * ''Magic Carpet'' (2014), Candy Coated (formerly Candy Depew), commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''Symbiosis'' (2011; installed 2014), Roxy Paine, acquired through a grant from the Daniel W. Dietrich II Trust, Inc. * ''OPEN AIR'' (2012),

Rafael Lozano-Hemmer Rafael Lozano-Hemmer (born 1967 in Mexico City) is a Mexican-Canadian electronic artist who works with ideas from architecture, technological theater and performance. Lozano-Hemmer lives and works in Montreal and Madrid. Biography Rafael Lozan ...

, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''Rock Form (Porthcurno)'' (1964; installed 2012),

Barbara Hepworth Dame Jocelyn Barbara Hepworth (10 January 1903 – 20 May 1975) was an English artist and sculptor. Her work exemplifies Modernism and in particular modern sculpture. Along with artists such as Ben Nicholson and Naum Gabo, Hepworth was a lea ...

, gift of David N. Pincus to the Association for Public Art, commissioned by the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority * ''The Labor Monument: Philadelphia's Tribute to the American Worker'' (2010),

John Kindness John Kindness (born 1951) is an Irish artist working a range of media including sculpture and painting. His work often contrasts material, image and reference in an unusual and humorous way. Kindness was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland. He att ...

, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''Common Ground'' (2009), John Stone and

Lonnie Graham Lonnie Graham is a fine art photographer, professor, installation artist, and cultural activist investigating the methods by which the arts can be used to achieve tangible meaning in peoples lives. He is Professor of Visual Art at Pennsylvania St ...

in collaboration with Lorene Cary for Project HOME, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''

Iroquois The Iroquois ( or ), officially the Haudenosaunee ( meaning "people of the longhouse"), are an Iroquoian Peoples, Iroquoian-speaking Confederation#Indigenous confederations in North America, confederacy of First Nations in Canada, First Natio ...

'' (1983–1999; installed 2007), Mark di Suvero, acquired by the Association for Public Art, gift of David N. Pincus * ''Manayunk Stoops: Heart and Home'' (2006), Diane Pieri, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''Embodying Thoreau: Dwelling, Sitting, Watching'' (2003), Ed Levine, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''I have a story to tell you…''(2003),

Pepón Osorio Pepón Osorio is a Puerto Rican artist. He uses different objects as well as video in his pieces to portray political and social issues in the Latino community. He was born in 1955 in Santurce, Puerto Rico and studied at the Interamerican Universi ...

, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''Pavilion in the Trees'' (1993),

, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''Sleeping Woman'' (1991), Tom Chimes and Stephen Berg, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''Fingerspan'' (1987), Jody Pinto, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * '' Bolt of Lightning...A Memorial to Benjamin Franklin'' (conceived 1933; installed 1984), Isamu Noguchi, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''Louis Kahn Lecture Room'' (1982), Siah Armajani, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''El Gran Teatro de la Luna'' (1982), Rafael Ferrer, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''Atmosphere and Environment XII'' (1970),

Louise Nevelson Louise Nevelson (September 23, 1899 – April 17, 1988) was an American sculptor known for her monumental, monochromatic, wooden wall pieces and outdoor sculptures. Born in the Poltava Governorate of the Russian Empire (present-day Kyiv Oblast ...

, purchased by the Association for Public Art * ''The Wedges'' (1970), Robert Morris, acquired by the Association for Public Art, gift of Mr. and Mrs. H. Gates Lloyd * ''Tiger at Bay'' (1965), Albino Manca, purchased by the Association for Public Art * ''Three Way Piece Number 1: Points'' (1964),

Henry Moore Henry Spencer Moore (30 July 1898 – 31 August 1986) was an English artist. He is best known for his semi-abstract art, abstract monumental bronze sculptures which are located around the world as public works of art. As well as sculpture, Mo ...

, purchased by the Association for Public Art * ''Cow Elephant and Calf'' (1962),

Heinz Warneke Heinz Warneke (June 30, 1895 – 1983) was an American sculptor best remembered as an animalier; his role in the direct carving movement "assured him a place in the annals of 20th-century American sculpture". In 1935 Heinz received the Widener Go ...

, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''Bear and Cub'' (1957), Joseph J. Greenberg Jr., commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''The Spirit of Enterprise'' (1950–1960),

Jacques Lipchitz Jacques Lipchitz (26 May 1973) was a Cubist sculptor. Lipchitz retained highly figurative and legible components in his work leading up to 1915–16, after which naturalist and descriptive elements were muted, dominated by a synthetic style of ...

, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * '' Aero Memorial'' (1948), Paul Manship, commissioned by the Association for Public Art and Aero Club of Pennsylvania * The Ellen Phillips Samuel Memorial (1933-1961), various artists, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''The Mounted Amazon Attacked by a Panther'' (1839, cast 1929), August Kiss, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''Shakespeare Memorial'' (1926),

, commissioned by the Association for Public Art, City of Philadelphia, and the Shakespeare Memorial Committee * ''

Thorfinn Karlsefni Thorfinn Karlsefni Thórdarson was an Icelandic explorer. Around the year 1010, he followed Leif Eriksson's route to Vinland in a short-lived attempt to establish a permanent settlement there with his wife Gudrid Thorbjarnardóttir and their fol ...

'' (1918),

Einar Jónsson Einar Jónsson (11 May 1874 – 18 October 1954) was an Icelandic sculptor, born in ''Galtafell'', a farm in southern Iceland. Biography At a young age Einar proved himself to be an unusual child with an artistic bent. At that time there was li ...

, commissioned by the Association for Public Art and J. Bunford Samuel * ''Billy'' (1914),

, gift of Eli Kirke Price II to the Association for Public Art * ''Duck Girl'' (1911), Paul Manship, purchased by the Association for Public Art * ''Cowboy'' (1908),

, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * '' The Medicine Man'' (1899),

Cyrus E. Dallin Cyrus Edwin Dallin (November 22, 1861 – November 14, 1944) was an American sculptor best known for his depictions of Native Americans. He created more than 260 works, including the ''Equestrian Statue of Paul Revere'' in Boston, Massa ...

, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * '' General Ulysses S. Grant'' (1897),

and Edward C. Potter, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * '' James A. Garfield Monument'' (1895),

, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''The Lion Fighter'' (1858, cast 1892), Albert Wolff, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * '' Lion Crushing a Serpent'' 1832, cast 1891), Antoine-Louis Barye, purchased by the Association for Public Art * '' Dickens and Little Nell'' (1890), Frank Edwin Elwell, purchased by the Association for Public Art * ''

Stone Age in America ''Stone Age in America'' is an 1887 bronze statue by John J. Boyle located in Philadelphia, in Fairmount Park on Kelly Drive near Boathouse Row. It was displayed at the American Art Association, and in 1888 was exhibited in Philadelphia where ...

'' (1887) by John J. Boyle, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * '' Major General George Gordon Meade'' (1887),

, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''The Dying Lioness'' (1873), Wilhelm Franz Alexander Friedrich Wolff, commissioned by the Association for Public Art * ''Night'' (1872), Edward Stauch, purchased by the Association for Public Art * ''Hudson Bay Wolves Quarreling Over the Carcass of a Deer'' (1872), Edward Kemeys, purchased by the Association for Public Art

Publications

* ''New Land Marks: public art, community, and the meaning of place'', 2001 * ''Public Art in Philadelphia'', 1992 * ''Form and Function: Proposals for Public Art for Philadelphia'', 1982 * ''Sculpture of a City: Philadelphia's Treasures in Bronze and Stone'', 1974

Awards and recognition

* Wyck-Strickland Award for aPA Executive Director Penny Balkin Bach, 2019 *Public Art Network Award, Americans for the Arts, 2015 * Best of Philly ® 2014 – New Public Artwork for Roxy Paine's ''Symbiosis'', 2014 * Inaugural Tyler Tribute Award for aPA Executive Director Penny Balkin Bach, 2013 * PAD award for achievement in the field of public art for aPA Executive Director Penny Balkin Bach, 2013 * AASLH Award of Merit,

American Association for State and Local History The American Association for State and Local History (AASLH) is a non-profit association for state and local history, with a primary focus on history professionals, history volunteers, museums, historical societies, and other history-related organi ...

, 2011 * PNC Arts Alive Award for Arts Innovation in Honor of Peggy Amsterdam, Arts and Business Council of Greater Philadelphia, 2011 * Named one of "10 great sculpture gardens across the USA,"

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgini ...

, 2011 * aPA public art projects ''I have a story to tell you...'' and ''Embodying Thoreau: dwelling, sitting, watching'' named among "the country's best," ''Year in Review'', Americans for the Arts, 2004 * EDRA/''Places'' Award for Place Planning, Environmental Design Research Association (EDRA) and the publication ''Places, A Forum of Environmental Design'', 2002 * Henry J. Magaziner EFAIA Award, the AIA Philadelphia Historic Preservation Committee, 2002 * Award for Outstanding Commitment to the Preservation and Care of Collections, The American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works and

Heritage Preservation Heritage Preservation (active 1973-2014) was an American non-profit organization. Its mission was to preserve the nation's heritage for future generations through innovative leadership, education, and programs. As of June 30, 2015 the organization ...

, 2000 * First-place SOS! Achievement Award, Save Outdoor Sculpture! (SOS!), 1999 * The Herbert Adams Memorial Medal for outstanding service to American sculpture, National Sculpture Society, 1979 * Centennial Award of Honor from The Philadelphia Chapter of

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach to s ...

, 1969

References

External links

Association for Public Art

Museum Without Walls: AUDIO
{{Authority control Arts organizations based in Pennsylvania Organizations based in Philadelphia Public art in the United States Outdoor sculptures in Philadelphia 1872 establishments in Pennsylvania Non-profit organizations based in Pennsylvania Arts organizations established in 1872