Art in public space: who is it for, who is it from?

Contemporary Art Days 2026 features six thematic discussion groups. This discussion topic focuses on public art. Art in public space occupies a contested terrain: shifting between applied art, monuments, design, use function, urban development, place-making, and social infrastructure.

In Sweden, public art has long been supported through municipal, regional, and national investment, often linked to the development of public buildings and environments. At the same time, a growing number of independent art organisations, artist-run initiatives, and commissioning bodies are developing self-initiated public art projects that operate alongside or outside formal commissioning structures. This creates new opportunities for experimentation, collaboration, and public engagement, while also raising questions about responsibility, maintenance, ownership, and long-term commitment.

This theme picks up on the changing face and function of public art, and its potentialities: does public art offer new models of collaboration across partners, demand different considerations of public and audience, and raise questions about sustainability, commitment, and the role of art in urban and civic life?

How has the role and position of public art changed in recent years, across public commissions, urban development projects, healthcare environments, and self-initiated artistic practices?

• Who is responsible for public art — who commissions it, funds it, maintains it, and decides what and which narratives become part of the public realm?
• What forms of collaboration are emerging between artists, cultural organisations, municipalities, developers, and local communities, and what possibilities or tensions do they create?
• In what ways can art support, challenge, or expand ideas of public and political space? What other models of ‘public art’ might be possible?

The discussion begins at Lötenkyrkan on 14 October and continues at Rikssalen on 15 October, where participants will further develop the ideas and conversations initiated on the first day.