Slow Art on the Streets

I loved this interview with Adam Niklewicz, by Two Coats of Paint writer Joe Bun Keo, about Niklewicz’ latest mural on an out-of-the-way wall in Hartford, Connecticut.

I particularly liked the exchange between Joe Bun Keo and Nicklewicz regarding the relatively obscure location of the mural.

Keo notes that without billboard lights “[y]ou’d have to be a little more observant than usual…to notice [Niklewicz’s mural].” And Niklewicz responds that he doesn’t think it’s a problem – that, in fact, “public art is not an advertising campaign.”

Agreed. Public art, or art of any kind, is not advertising. And, unlike advertising, it’s worth spending the time to really see it – rather than quickly look and move on.

I hope some Slow Art Day readers get a chance to go look at some of this new public art in Connecticut. The state has spent $1 million to commission murals in multiple cities.

– Naomi Kuo, Slow Art Day intern; edited by Phil Terry