By bringing artwork outside the traditional context of museums and galleries, city officials provide access to emerging and established artists that many city-dwellers might not have otherwise. Dismantling the barriers between daily living and contemporary art does not make the art less special, but rather transforms the surrounding urban landscape into something more magnificent.

NEW YORK | 2001, Liz Larner
Twelve feet high, deep and wide, and painted in green and purple iridescent urethane, 2001 is a shape-shifter; its contours and colors change with the viewer’s angle as well as the overall light conditions, so that it seems to be both at rest and undergoing metamorphosis.

TAMPA | LUMINOUS AFFIRMATIONS, Stephen Knapp
The piece, made from laminated safety glass and halogen lighting, was commissioned by Lights On Tampa.

PHOENIX | A GUARANTY OF SANITY, Louise Bourgeois
The monumental work of public art rises 90 feet from its base in the Phoenix Convention Center’s grand atrium.

MILWAUKEE | THE CALLING, Mark di Suvero
The sculpture sits on the bluff at the eastern end of East Wisconsin Avenue like a rising sun.

DENVER | BLUE BEAR, Lawrence Argent
This 10,000-pound, 40-foot-high blue bear can be seen peering into the lobby of the newly expanded Colorado Convention Center. It is just one of many art projects included in the $320 million expansion of the Colorado Convention Center.

LOUISVILLE | HOMETOWN HEROES SERIES
Part of the The Greater Louisville Pride Foundation ‘s initiative to honor prominent Louisvillians.

KANSAS CITY | SKY STATIONS, R.M. Fischer
The Kansas City Convention Centers’ Sky Stations are four aluminum sculptures atop 230-foot pylons. Designed under Kansas City’s One-Percent-For-Art program, the lighted sculptures measure 40-by-30 feet in size and can be seen from up to a two-mile radius.

INDIANAPOLIS | SUZANNE WALKING, Julian Opie
The piece, composed of LEDs, paint, aluminium, steel and glass, is part of an 11-piece exhibit scattered around the city. ■