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Panels on Lamar (S. of 5th)

For the 10 years that I've lived in Austin, I've always thought that those blue panels on Lamar, just south of 5th street were there for some practical purpose. I once heard they were put in to help with traffic accidents so I thought they were like reflectors or something. It turns out they are art.

And they have a new look.

Am I the only one a little surprised to find out that was an art installation?

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Re: Panels on Lamar (S. of 5th)

  • I am!  Well, I'm not terribly surprised, since it is SoLa, but I'm surprised that its not the artsy-ist art installation.  I thought it was a traffic thing, too.

    I've been here 10 years too! :) 

  • If it makes you feel better, I am an art historian and I was totally surprised when I found out that they were not traffic markers a few years ago. We might want to step it up with public art, LOL.
    Business Cat. image
  • I've known for a while that they were "art." I may not be the hippest person around, but fwiw, I thought they were totally ridiculous. However, I must admit I like their new look!
  • They're art?!  Indifferent

    imageAustinMimi:

    We might want to step it up with public art, LOL.

    Word.

  • I remember when they put them up and I heard that they were art and that the city had spent some God-awful amount of coin on them. I LOVE art and appreciate it in many different forms. Even when I see a piece that I don't "get" I try to appreciate it for what it is meant to be, the technique, what it evokes, etc. And I'm all about the government/community supporting the arts- give me the "great society" any day. However, I was appalled at how much taxpayer money was spent on those.

    ETA: The article says - $45,000. It honestly doesn't seem as bad as I remembered, but I could have heard exaggerated totals.

  • $45,000 on blue plastic panels that look like traffic signs ... seems like a lot to me! LOL

    And I agree ... even if I don't "get" the art, I try. I have family members that are very different from me, so I have a lot of experience in understanding different lifestyles and taste in art, etc ... Doesn't matter, I don't "get" and certainly don't like the blue panels.

    Like I said, the knitted look is kinda cool! Especially when you read the article about them, and how she's doing this all over the world. I was on South Lamar today and I'm bummed I didn't drive by that part to see them!

  • Wow. Totally thought it was a traffic sign of some sort. The knitted look is cool though!
  • You know what they reminded me of? Someone taking a very classic, traditional house and putting ultra-modern decorations inside. I'm not talking remodelling an old house to be modern ... a house with classic cabients, floors, walls, etc ... and putting blue plastic furniture.

    It just doesn't work.

  • To me, the expense is not the problem - it's that it is not very interesting art. It's so dull that most people pay no attention to it or think that it is nothing more than a utilitarian series of objects intended for public safety. There are amazingly thought-provoking precedents for this kind of minimalist work, but this is, to my eyes, reductivist and uninteresting. Minimalist objects don't generally work well as public art because they necessitate tighter control of the viewing experience.  
    Business Cat. image
  • I am an artist (with a MFA) and I had no clue that those panels were installations, until today when I saw them wrapped in knitting. They really need to add some signage to tell you these things when you walk around town.

    Personally, I wish that there were more public art pieces in the city! 

    ~Julie

  • Glad to know I wasn't alone. I don't always understand a lot of the more abstract art, but usually I can tell when it's trying to be art. The knitted things? Cool (especially because I'm a knitter). The vegetable stickers around town? I'm down with those. But yeah... no idea until today those blue panels actually were.
    image
  • DH had told me that it was art and I thought he was talking out of his a**.  Who knew.
  • Just to clarify my statement above, I love tthat we have city-sponsored, public art installations. I just think the first qualification for choosing pieces should be "will the public be able to tell that its art?"
  • Not to just echo everyone else, but those blue things are art?!?  I lived in Austin for 13 years and wondered every time I drove past them what, exactly, they were supposed to tell me as a driver.  Art never crossed my mind.

    I like the knitted look!  Maybe the city should permanently repurpose the panels as substrates for more obvious works of art.  An ever-changing roadside gallery. 

    Lilypie Fifth Birthday tickersLilypie Third Birthday tickers
  • Oooh, I drove by them yesterday and they look fabulous!  I ? that she did something to exemplify the "art" that already existed.
  • If you are driving down South Congress, check out the JO's sign on the buildings.  She recently wrapped those and they look awesome too.

    We were driving down Lamar when she was installing the "reflector covers" and they do look fabulous!

  • Okay, maybe this is a dumb question, but. . .

    How does the knitting not get all crappy out in the weather?  Is it somehow sealed?  Is the deterioration part of the show?

     

  • Your guess is as good as mine. She might be using acrylic yarn which holds up a little better than traditional fibers. She might have scotchguarded the hell out of it. Don't know.
    image
  •  

     

    imagebatsteph:

    Maybe the city should permanently repurpose the panels as substrates for more obvious works of art.  An ever-changing roadside gallery. 

    That's a great idea!

    imageGuavaGal:

    Okay, maybe this is a dumb question, but. . .

    How does the knitting not get all crappy out in the weather?  Is it somehow sealed?  Is the deterioration part of the show?

    And I wondered the same thing!

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