Members of the Laramie community have an opportunity to share their favorite public art with others by giving a five-minute presentation.
April 3, starting at 5:30 p.m., Laramie Public Art Coalition (LPAC) will host the third annual 5×5 Slide Show at O’Dwyers Public House. This event welcomes community members and UW students. The event aims to increase awareness of public art among the community.
“Public art is the art which is available to the public,” Coordinator of LPAC Meg Thompson-Stanton said. “So, it’s not in the gallery or museum necessarily but is accessible free of charge – sculptures, temporary public art, such as performing pieces, that are happening on the public stage. Also, there are parades. We count parades as public art. The main idea is that this art is free and accessible to all.”
The main mission of LPAC is to improve the visual appearance of Laramie and Albany County. They plan to do this through participation and engagement from all the citizens and visitors.
“LPAC does not select art but exists to facilitate those who want to engage in a public art project,” According to LPAC website. “LPAC is an independent, non-profit coalition that provides the greater Laramie community with a structure and inclusive process to create successful public art projects that reflect the community’s identities and values and contribute to Laramie and Albany County’s vitality.”
The annual “5×5 Slide Show” is an event meant for an exchange of ideas. Participants have five minutes to show five images of public art from anywhere in the world.
“We invite community members [to bring] five pieces of public art that they like from any place around the world,” Thompson-Stanton said. “And then the idea is just to have fun and get us to see a bunch of different pieces of public art.”
The event is aimed not only to entertain the members of the Laramie community but has an educational purpose as well.
“It’s for fun,” Thompson-Stanton said. “It’s for education. We want to have an enjoyable event.”
“I think it’s an opportunity for [the] Laramie community to be exposed to art,” Deirdre O’Dwyer, owner of O’Dwyers Public House, said. “It’s a forum to share information. So, for anybody interested, it’s easy exposure for them to come down and get informed or participate in such projects.”
Usually, 15 to 20 people attend the “5×5 Slide Show” and talk about public art.
“Most people usually like it and come back to attend the show next year,” Thompson-Stanton, said. “We have more people every year.”
This event helps LPAC to better understand the interests and needs of the community.
“It’s an informal presentation,” Thompson-Stanton said. “People can make a presentation, ask questions, discuss what they want, and we are getting an idea what people are interested in, in terms of public art in our community and then broaden their awareness about what is out there.”
