The Role of Public Art in Elizabethton

Sprucing up and revitalizing a city can be a very difficult task. There are many different aspects to a community that can have a real negative or positive impact on it. One aspect that can have a positive impact is public art.

Public art is a common placemaking tool. Because no two pieces of art are the same, public art helps identify, ground, and make a community unique. Anyone in the Tri-Cities knows they are in Bristol when they pass the giant guitar sitting at the corner of State Street and Volunteer Parkway. That one piece of public art alone gives Bristol something grounded, identifiable, and unique. The Veterans Monument in Elizabethton, while not a piece of public art, performs a similar function.

Many studies have also shown that quality of life is impacted by public art. People desire to live in an area that is unique and different. Businesses and industries like to see that a community is unique, diverse, and has culture. Public art is an ideal way to communicate this to these audiences.

Tourism can also be impacted by public art. How many times when we are in different cities and see a mural, statue, or maybe just an odd configuration of shapes made out of metal do we point, make a comment to our spouse, or move in closer to take a look? Additionally, it creates a memorable experience in that city or town and triggers the comment, “Remember when we saw that cool mural in Elizabethton?” perhaps even leading to visiting again.

Currently, the city does not have a public arts program, but we have put in place administrative policies to ensure that certain types of public art are not confused with certain regulations. As we all remember, murals in Johnson City are all but prohibited. Here, we have created specific policies on murals so they are not confused with sign regulations.

Public art can play an important role in recreating and revitalizing our downtown. The Downtown Business Association is currently working on improvements to make downtown a unique area of the city. Some of the bikes around downtown are a unique start. What are your thoughts? Should more public art be included as a component of our downtown and our community or do we have enough? Let’s talk about it!