Public Art and the Slow Creep of Gentrification

Shortlisted for the Independent Podcast Awards 2023. This episode considers the importance of public art for marking the memory of marginalised communities in urban areas that are always subject to development and change. I discuss the Met's new rooftop sculpture by the American artist Lauren Halsey, whose work celebrates her home community in South Central LA, an area that is fast becoming gentrified. Plus New York-based artist Abigail DeVille, who reclaims the hidden histories of marginalised people in Harlem. And I consider the meaning and value of the 2021 public sculpture on the Hudson River in New York by David Hammons, which recognises the rich queer history of the area before its development.

The Gallery Companion is hosted by writer and historian Dr Victoria Powell. It's a thought-provoking dive into the interesting questions and messy stuff about our lives that art explores and represents.

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