Public Art

The Madison Public Art Program encourages artists to explore ideas, foster dialog, and celebrate life. The Commission integrates public art throughout the city, and stewards existing works. We grow the Madison Public Art Program through:

Art in Public Places (AIPP)
BLINK temporary art projects.
Municipal Art Fund
Percent for Art Ordinance

The Commission focuses on fair geographic distribution, diversity of artists, and art forms.

Explore Madison's Public Art Collection

Art in Public Places (AIPP)

Art in Public Places funds permanent public art projects designed to last 10+ years and that cost $15,000 or more. The Commission funds projects with artistic merit that will make a long-term impact.

Learn more about AIPP by exploring Grants & Opportunities and see project updates below.

Austen Brantley Residency & Public Sculpture

We partnered with Madison College to work with Detroit-based sculptor Austen Brantley. In June, 2023 he visited Madison and began work on a design for a public art project for Darbo-Worthington. The artist will install the finished work in Spring, 2025.

Austen Brantley is a self-taught figurative sculptor. His work interweaves themes of heritage, identity, and realistic portrayals of Black lives. Learn more about Austen Brantley.

The 2017 Darbo-Worthington-Starkweather Neighborhood Plan was the inspiration for this project. The plan asked the City to create a public art/gateway to build neighborhood pride. Darbo-Worthington is a rich and diverse community on Madison's near east side.

BLINK Temporary Public Art Commissions

BLINK supports temporary public art in Madison. The Commission invites artists to propose works in unsuspecting places in the community. Artists should propose ideas that are modest in cost, yet unique, bold and ambitious. We commission projects for up to $1,500. Projects must be accessible to the public.

Learn more about BLINK by exploring Grants & Opportunities.

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Percent for Arts Program

Common Council approved the Percent for Art ordinance in October of 2017. This created a tool to increase public investment in art. Through the Percent for Art Program 1% of City funds committed to a project budgeted at $5,000,000+ is used for public art. We started the first eligible project in 2020, and are currently working on the following:

Atwood Avenue Reconstruction: 2024
Designs by Daniella Echeveria on the multi use path encourage users to slow down and care for others. The sidewalks have poems from Angela Trudell Vasquez (2020-24 Poet Laureate) and Madeleine Bohn (2022-23 Youth Poet Laureate) . Utility boxes feature works from Paleoelectronics and Rachel Durfee.

Village on Park Parking Structure: 2025
This colorful design by Michael Ford features images of local community leaders. His design includes a façade wrap and a stairwell pattern.

Madison Public Market: 2025
The Madison Arts Commission approved several proposals for public art. Many of the projects are in early stage of development. You can find recent proposals in legistar.

Metro Transit Maintenance Facility: 2026
In 2022 the Commission recommended artist Jenie Gao and her proposal THE TIME IS OURS. Learn more about her proposal in this Artist Presentation. In 2025 the siding is being replaced, including where the project is proposed. We expect the artist will install the work in 2026.

State Street Campus Garage: 2026
We created an ad-hoc committee to provide input on the public art for this facility. They met for the first time in early December, 2024. We expect tp publish a call and for the committee to propose recommendations in 2025. The work will be installed after the building is complete din 2026.

Utility Box Program

The Utility Box Program promotes local artists and gives them a platform in the public realm. In 2016 the Commission and the Downtown Coordinating Committee completed a pilot to wrap four boxes. Thanks to positive public reaction, we continued the program. Currently, there are more than 100 wrapped boxes throughout the city. Neighborhood demand for this program currently exceeds available resources. The Friends of the Madison Arts Commission operates a fundraiser to grow the program.

Explore the Utility Box Collection or learn more about the program.

The boxes chosen for this program are either 42 or 62 square feet. 42 sqft boxes are around 36” W x18” D x 48” H. 62 sqft boxes are around 44” W x 26” D x 54” H. See front and back diagrams for additional details.

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