{"id":25948,"date":"2024-03-30T08:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-03-30T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/?p=25948"},"modified":"2024-03-30T08:00:00","modified_gmt":"2024-03-30T08:00:00","slug":"surge-in-public-art-cements-newcastles-reputation-as-a-cultural-destination","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/2024\/03\/30\/surge-in-public-art-cements-newcastles-reputation-as-a-cultural-destination\/","title":{"rendered":"Surge in public art cement&#8217;s Newcastle&#8217;s reputation as a cultural destination"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p id=\"isPasted\">Newcastle&#8217;s reputation as an arts and cultural destination continues to grow thanks to an array of significant public art projects bringing colour to the city\u2019s streets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>City of Newcastle\u2019s (CN)&nbsp;Public Art Reference Group (PARG)&nbsp;considered six public art proposals relating to major private developments in Newcastle West and Adamstown during the past 12 months.&nbsp;An example of work approved by PARG is the Awabakal-inspired artworks on a recently constructed prominent commercial building on Hunter Street.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/newcastle.nsw.gov.au\/getmedia\/4f39cc9c-1d51-401d-bcc1-fb0aa57f1264\/Councillor-and-PARG-Chair-Carol-Duncan-with-PARG-member-Nikolas-Orr-in-Civic-Lane-WEB.jpg\" alt=\"\"><em>Councillor and PARG Chair Carol Duncan with PARG member Nikolas Orr in front of Fintan Magee&#8217;s mural in Civic Lane, Newcastle.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The projects were included in PARG\u2019s 2023 Annual Report tabled at this week\u2019s Council meeting, which also highlighted a range of&nbsp;community art proposals, CN related works and festivals partially funded by CN\u2019s Special Business Rates program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The proposals included murals, statues, video art, temporary artworks, chalk art, sculptures and suspended artwork.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Councillor Carol Duncan, who Chairs the group, said the last 12 months had seen major growth for both Newcastle&#8217;s public art collection and Newcastle&#8217;s reputation as a city that embraces the arts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cNewcastle&#8217;s dynamic landscape has literally become a diverse and brightly coloured canvas for public art,\u201d Cr Duncan said.<br>&nbsp;<br>&nbsp;\u201cThe public art panel have continued to come together to consult on all aspects of Newcastle&#8217;s public art, from advising on the commissioning of new proposals associated with large developments in the city, to supporting community murals.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;The much-loved Paul McCartney mural by local artist Mitch Revs has been one such project that has brought colour and vibrancy to a prominent location in the city in 2023.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>PARG acts as an advisory committee to CN, providing guidance and advice to developers, artists, curators, CN staff and the community regarding public art in the private and public domain.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The group also worked with applicants and artists to ensure proposed artworks were inclusive, culturally appropriate and added value to the city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Its membership includes three Councillors and external community members specialising in art, design and heritage, as well as local Indigenous cultural representatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>PARG panel member Cr Peta Winney-Baartz said the calibre of public art in Newcastle is of the highest standard.<br>&nbsp;<br>\u201cNewcastle boasts a proud public art scene which is not surprising when you consider that this city is home to the highest concentration of artists in Australia,&#8221; Cr Winney-Baartz said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;Our public art consultation and approval process at City of Newcastle, reflected by the incredible art that adorns our city streets, has become the goal of many other local governments.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;Public art does not just beautify our city scapes; its positive effect on the entire community sparks connection and proves that art does not just belong inside a gallery.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Fellow PARG member, Cr John Mackenzie, said the panel has continued to raise the bar on public art in Newcastle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cOur role has always been to help businesses incorporate relevant artworks that are reflective of Newcastle\u2019s culture and heritage,&#8221; Cr Mackenzie said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;We also provide opportunities for local artists to work and connect with appropriate projects that ultimately leads to creative visual artworks that both residents and visitors enjoy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&#8220;The addition of local artists and creatives who joined the group in 2022 have added a wealth of expertise to our decision-making that has further enhanced our processes and outcomes for public art in Newcastle.&#8221;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Newcastle&#8217;s reputation as an arts and cultural destination continues to grow thanks to an array of significant public art projects bringing colour to the city\u2019s streets. City of Newcastle\u2019s (CN)&nbsp;Public Art Reference Group (PARG)&nbsp;considered six public art proposals relating to major private developments in Newcastle West and Adamstown during the past 12 months.&nbsp;An example of &hellip; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/2024\/03\/30\/surge-in-public-art-cements-newcastles-reputation-as-a-cultural-destination\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Surge in public art cement&#8217;s Newcastle&#8217;s reputation as a cultural destination&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-25948","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-newcastle"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25948","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25948"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25948\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25949,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25948\/revisions\/25949"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25948"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25948"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.16news.com.au\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25948"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}