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20 Creative Public Works of Art

Alysha Findley
Alysha Findley
Alysha is a photographer and designer living in Seattle who loves dark chocolate, tea, and all things furry. In her spare time you'll find her with paint in her hair renovating her 1919 Craftsman and sharing the process on her blog Old House New Tricks.
updated Jul 24, 2020
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Public installations and sculptures are an incredible way to bring art to the masses. Some of these works are permanent and were officially commissioned by their cities while others are more guerilla-style urban pieces that are intended to be ephemeral and make only brief appearances.

(Image credit: Apartment Therapy)

I love work that makes a statement, makes me think, inspires me or sometimes just simply makes me smile. These particular works are more about the ‘art of today’ and less about the traditional contemporary sculpture we are used to seeing (but that could be a whole other list). And although this list can easily be eight times as long, here are a select few pieces (some a bit edgier than others) that have left an impression on my mind. Feel free to add your own favorites to the list down below.

Top Row
1. “The Big Yellow Rabbit” by Florentijin Hofman in Örebro, Sweden. 2011
2. Pablo Curutchet’s “Box” in Cordoba, Spain. 2006
3. Monica Bonvicini’s two-way mirrored toilet in London entitled “Don’t Miss A Sec”. 2003-2004
4. “Radioactive Control” in Hamburg was created by the Spanish collective Luzinterruptus. 2011
5. Mark Jenkins. Various locations

Second Row
1. Gundam Robot. Tokyo. 2009
2. Phantom Statues in Rhyolite, a ghost town near Death Valley, CA.
3. Bruce Monro’s “Eden Project” field of light in Cronwall, England. 2008-2009
4. “Kaws” ‘Companion Figure’ outside The Standard in New York City until October 2011
5. “Rabbit” by Gelitin in Italy. 2005

Third Row
1. Ligorano/Reese’s “Main Street Meltdown” in Foley Square New York City. 2008
2. Joshua Allen Harris’ “Inflatable Bag Subway Art”. 2008
3. “Hot With A Chance Of Late Storm” by The Glue Society in Adelaide, Australia. 2006
4. “Pixel Pour 2.0” located on Mercer Street of New York City. Unknown Artist. 2008
5. Urs Fischer’s “Untitled (Lamp/Bear) on Park Avenue in New York City until October 2011.

Bottom Row
1. Lulu Guinness “Be A Pin-Up”” in London. 2011
2. Issac Cordal’s miniature sculpture “Electoral Campaign” in a puddle in Berlin. 2011
3. Tom Fruin’s “Kolonihavehus” in Copenhagen. 2010
4. “The Gates” by Christo in New York City. 2005
5. Sonia Bravia’s “Play-Doh Bunnies” all around New York City. 2007

Images: As linked above.

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