Columbus Art Commission hears update on GCAC's Art in Public Places program

Columbus Art Commission members heard an update April 16 on a proposed Art in Public Places (AIPP) program that Greater Columbus Arts Council (GCAC) staff say will be formed as a program embedded in a GCAC-led nonprofit to commission and support public art across the City of Columbus and Franklin County.

GCAC staff described the program's planned responsibilities, recommended governance and an implementation timeline that aims to finalize a public-art strategy in May and to hire an AIPP director this year so projects can begin in 2026. Maria Ramirez, public art manager at the Greater Columbus Arts Council, said the AIPP program would act as a commissioning body for both the City of Columbus and Franklin County while working on advocacy, planning and education.

Commissioners were shown a four-part strategy document that GCAC staff said includes an implementation guide with best practices, a public-art toolkit for residents and developers, and a set of recommended selection and engagement practices intended to align review by the Columbus Art Commission (CAC) with AIPP project review teams. Ramirez said GCAC will fund the initial AIPP director position and that the program will be overseen by an AIPP committee that starts with nine members and may grow to 11.

"The Art in Public Places program is going to be formed out of the Greater Columbus Arts Council. It will be actually a program embedded into this nonprofit," Ramirez said, describing AIPP's commissioning, education and advocacy roles. Ramirez and other presenters said the AIPP committee will include representatives appointed by the City of Columbus and Franklin County and that community members will serve on project review teams; some community seats will receive stipends to support equitable participation.

Presenters said the recommended initial committee makeup is: two city-appointed members, two Franklin County-appointed members, one GCAC Board of Trustees member and the remaining seats appointed by GCAC through an application process guided by a competency matrix. The presenters said the Columbus Art Commission would keep final approval authority for projects located on city-owned or city-leased property and that the City would retain maintenance responsibility for its collection.

Commissioners asked about the details and the public role. Presenters said they expect to return to the commission at its May meeting with printed copies of the draft strategy for additional review and discussion. A motion was brought forward during the meeting to continue the public-art plan update; commissioners voted in favor (vote tally not specified in the transcript).

The memo and presentation materials shown to the commission, the presenters said, are organized in four parts: a statement of purpose and audience; steps for building the AIPP program; alignments with city priorities and existing initiatives; and a public-art toolkit intended for community members, artists and developers. Presenters emphasized centering Central Ohio artists in selection and building public access to the process.

Procedural note: the commission discussed the project as an informational update and voted to continue receiving updates; the presentation materials noted the AIPP implementation guide and a 2024 "state of public art" research document that informed GCAC's recommendations.

What's next: presenters said they will provide a draft strategy in May and begin the committee appointment and hiring steps so the AIPP program can begin commissioning work in 2026.