The City's Urban Art Strategy promotes contemporary Urban Art that “enhances the built and natural environments and adds value to the urban character and the cultural identity (of the city)...through the use of a diverse range of art forms and design applications.” [Urban Art Strategy]

Travelling through Port Phillip you'll notice some surprising things: perhaps walls adorned by murals, a sculpture in parkland, inlayed details on a footpath or buildings with unusual materials that set them apart from the buildings around them.

These are examples of public art. Public art is not located in galleries or museums - buildings dedicated to art. It can be found on street corners, in community facilities, in public gardens and in all sorts of public places. We come across public artworks by accident in the course of our daily lives. They are designed and made with this distinct purpose - to enrich the places we live and the experiences we have. Public art often reflects aspects of the communities who share those places - their stories, their heritage, their colours, forms and moods.

Public art is created by artists for everyone. You can respond to public artworks however you see fit. They might make you think or laugh. They may remind you of things from your past or encourage you to dream. Or they may simply make you feel that a certain care has been taken with the urban environment in which you find them. There are many ways to enjoy our public artworks and urban art.

The Urban Art Strategy encourages private and public artworks which invest a public space with vitality. Through engagement with Urban Art, people have an opportunity to share experiences and strengthen their sense of belonging.

The strategy's vision for Urban Art is to: 

• Celebrate Port Phillip's distinctive cultural identities
• Respond to Port Phillip's urban character and rich cultural heritage
• Invigorate Port Phillip's built and natural environments
• Enhance the quality of Port Phillip's public open space and urban fabric
• Contribute to Port Phillip's local cultural heritage and contemporary artistic expression
• Improve and enhance the quality of life for residents, rate payers and visitors to Port Phillip
• Stimulate public debate about Urban Art practice and Port Phillip's role as a leader in cultural development

The Urban Art Strategy identifies three streams with regard to the funding and management of projects:

1. Council Funded Projects - Urban Art generated from a city's internal budgets, particularly those budgets relating to major capital works and developments
2. Community Projects - Community driven projects that derive from local people's identification of a site, an idea or an opportunity. Contributions include grants from various federal and state governments and/or private philanthropic trusts, gifts or donations
3. Private Development Projects - Contributions made by developers or private patrons, towards enhancing the public domain in and around their developments, usually as a condition of the planning permit approval

For more information download the Executive Summary of the policy framework.

Self-guided Neighbourhood Maps

To take a look at artworks in each of the City of Port Phillip's neighbourhoods download one of these Urban Art Guides and Maps.

• East St Kilda Urban Art Guide and Map
• Elwood Urban Art Guide and Map
• Middle Park/Albert Park Urban Art Guide and Map
• Port Melbourne Urban Art Guide and Map
• South Melbourne and St Kilda Road Urban Art Guide and Map
• St Kilda Urban Art Guide and Map

Developers play an important and valued role in providing urban art in the City. The Urban Art Strategy requires that larger development projects contribute a percentage of their project cost to urban art. This strategy has enhanced many fine developments within the city demonstrating creativity and innovation in a range of styles and formats. These development contributions play a significant role in enhancing the built environment of Port Phillip's neighbourhoods. 

We recognise that for many developers and building design teams integrating urban art into their developments presents a number of challenges.

One approach that can be considered is to engage an artist to work with the design team. Generally the sooner this happens the greater capacity exists for the development of a truly integrated artwork. To assist in identifying and contracting artists for this purpose the Urban Art Officer has developed a database onto which artists interested in such projects can nominate themselves. This has a high level of detail and can be made available to design teams to assist them in identifying artists who complement their project.

View previous examples of  Private developers urban art projects.

Launch of the Urban Art Artists Database

Artists (or their agents) wishing to register their interest in being considered for projects associated with the Urban Art Strategy are encouraged to add their details to our new Urban Art Artists Database using the online registration process. The database, maintained through regular e-mail updates, will provide a reference tool for council staff working on urban art projects. It will also be available on request to developers to assist them in identifying artists for private urban art projects (see 'Development Contributions' and 'Information for Developers' above). 

Register your interest at http://www.portphillip.vic.gov.au/apps/forms/capture.cgi?form=urbanart and become a part of the Port Phillip Urban Art Artists Database.

Margins, Memories and Markers (MMM) is a unique interactive project transforming memories and stories from the whole community into public artworks in each neighbourhood of the City of Port Phillip. Visit margins, memories and markers and margins, memories and markers stories.

You can also read a media release about the project: Official launch of margins, memories & markers

To learn more about urban artworks or programs in the City of Port Phillip, please contact the Urban Art Officer via eServices or phone ASSIST on (03) 9209 6777 or TTy (03) 9209 6713.

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