Public input is needed to instigate conversations around the future of public art in Okotoks, according to the Town’s culture and heritage manager. The Town is inviting up to 22 people to embark on a guided bus tour of the community’s public art before heading to the Rotary Performing Arts Centre for lunch. This will be followed by a viewing of statues, murals and other displays in other communities and sharing thoughts on the town’s future in the Public Art Conversation Sept. 15 from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. While the Town established public art guidelines in 2005 that resulted in sculptures in front of the Okotoks Art Gallery and Laurie Boyd Bridge, Allan Boss, culture and heritage manager, says it’s time for an update. The Town has since added new pieces to Okotoks’ public art collection including the Salute to Our Veterans Wall on Veterans Way and a public piano at the Olde Towne Okotoks Plaza, but Boss said the Town needs a concrete plan. “There isn’t any really strong guidelines in place to tell us how to take care of that and if Okotoks wants to create more public art for the community,” he said. Boss said the first step to creating a better plan is to gather public input. “We want to take people around Okotoks, introduce them to some of the public art - some they may know and some they might have no idea existed — talk about some of the art and artists and then look at what some other communities do,” he said. Participants will view videos featuring public art in other communities before brainstorming what the future of public art could mean for Okotoks. “We want to make people aware, get them thinking and talking about it and get our community to help us decide or guide the Town in where do we want to go, what do we want to do with our public art in the future,” he said. “We’re going to do some brainstorming to think and talk about what public art looks like for Okotoks in the future.” Boss hopes to approach the Town in 2019 with a plan based on the feedback from this weekend’s conversation. Anyone interested in being part of the Public Art Conversation can fill out a survey at surveymonkey.com/r/HDKMF3S and register for this free conversation session at showpass.com/public-art-conversation [yop_poll id="12"]
