Chicago Public Art Group
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Bricolage technique in Growing (2008) on underpass wall, T. Van Duinen and T. Osborn, lead artists, Chicago Public Art Group
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| Founded | 1971 |
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| Founder | William Walker and John Pitman Weber |
| Type | Independent public art organization |
| Location |
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| Services | Design, organization, education |
| Method | Produce public art |
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Key people
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Jon Pounds, Executive Director |
| Mission | Unite artists and communities |
| Website | cpag |
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Formerly called
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Chicago Mural Group |
Chicago Public Art Group (originally, Chicago Mural Group) is a non profit cultural organization in Chicago that organizes and promotes creation of community public art. The Group was founded in 1971 and has been involved in the creation of hundreds of artworks in and around the city. Today its "core artists" provide artistic leadership. The Group supports the production of public murals, mosaics, sculptures and space designs in collaboration with community participants. CPAG also educates artists and the public about the history and possibilities of collaborative public art. Several of its recent works have been large bricolage mosaics in city underpasses.
Founded in 1971, the Chicago Public Art Group began as a cooperative of artists to enhance Chicago communities through the creation of public murals. Concerned with societal relationships to art, the group wanted to establish communication and working creative partnerships between artists and city residents. Muralists William Walker and John Pitman Weber were among the co-founders of what was then called the Chicago Muralists Group. From the beginning, a focus of the cooperative was turning some of the most neglected of urban spaces into artistic canvasses. It was influenced by the past work of individual artists working in the city. The Group created, Fabric of our Lives, by Miriam Socoloff and Cynthia Weiss in 1980, lays claim to the earliest community based mosaic in the United States, according to executive director Jon Pounds.
There are hundreds of significant artworks associated with the Group in various public places, mostly within the City of Chicago. These include murals, mosaics, sculptures, and space or landscape designs. Most projects have included community organizations, residents, or schools in the creation of these art pieces. Some public artworks may cost as much as $100,000 and more to create. These include large mosaics placed on the walls of highway underpasses, or murals on buildings or train viaducts. The artworks are often community, local history, or environment themed.
The large glass mosaic "Aqua Interlude & Reflection" (2011), in a pedestrian underpass, was created with the help of a youth project and explores light and water. The large tile and glass mosaic "Indian Land Dancing" (2009) in a highway underpass, was created with the help of the American Indian Center and illustrates local Native American history and modern experience. Another large underpass mural and mosaic, "Growing" (2008) is based around the theme of local community and growth.
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