Public art is the manifestation of creativity on many levels. It is typically acquired through a competitive commissioning process in which professional artists propose ideas for site specific works that are intellectually, physically and intuitively accessible. Almost any public improvement, be it a new building or community enhancement or landscape or streetscape renovation, offers ideal opportunities for commissioning and installing public art.

Successful public art is presented in an ever-widening variety of genres. The selected genre reveals to the viewer the context by which the artist was inspired and stimulates greater interaction between the work and its audience. Above all else, public art must be of the highest quality, accessible to the public, specific in character and evocative of context and meaning.

While the experience of Public Art is inclusive, individuals will form unique understandings that can alter over time and after repeated exposures. As this process of discovery takes place, viewers can come away feeling enlightened as well as astonished at the power of creativity and the artist's ingenuity. Ultimately, a successful public art work will be a portal to the past, a parallel to the present, and a door to the future and deliver an experience that will take viewers on an adventure by turning the ordinary into the extraordinary.

Public art can be defined as "original works of art in any medium for temporary or permanent placement in outdoor (or indoor) settings and accessible to the public for their enjoyment."*

Public art projects may well result in artists creating work with unusual materials and curious forms. The material become the metaphorical skin of an idea and gives tangible meaning and life to the work and propels a visual dialogue between the artist, the work and the audience. These works, when sited in urban environments reflect the creative process at its best and heighten public appreciation of …

• Key streetscapes (e.g., lighting, curbs, sidewalks, and pavement). Public art will energize daily life, particularly when it's prevalent in the urban environment
  
  
• Functional items (e.g., kiosks, street furniture, signage) that are common and interactive and are found in public spaces everywhere
  
  
• Floors, walls, windows, doors, and stairwells can be manipulated in artistic ways that communicate and tell stories, particularly in the form of literary works, digital media or film, and projected images
  
  
• Environmental, earth work and landscaping create art on perhaps the greatest canvas of all—Mother Nature
  

* A Master Plan for Public Art, the District of North Vancouver, the Arts & Culture Commission of North Vancouver