Publications

Playing up

By: Gillian Nicol

Gillian Nicol explores the nature of collaborative and creative processes involved in making artwork in the public realm.

Collaboration is at the heart of work that is generated within the public domain. Collaborative processes necessarily involve addressing differences of opinion, genuine consideration of multiple viewpoints and the challenging of assumptions on all sides. Such an environment creates the creative friction and critical tension necessary to drive real collaboration. Creative collaboration is not intended to be an easy process, neither are its results easy to realise – and working in the public realm and with other professionals brings added pressures to bear. The expectation of achieving art work that solves problems, involves communities, acknowledges its environment, looks good and is critically challenging; negotiating the agendas and involvement of multiple partner organisations; dealing with the seemingly bureaucratic and drawn-out machinations of ‘due process’ within the public sector, mean that the progress of public art projects is unavoidably slow and excitingly fraught with complexity. As forging strong, interactive relationships at the outset is crucial, in order to stand the test of time and weather problems encountered along the way, David Patten...

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