Colonial Irrigation: Myths of Emptiness

This paper examines the role of public art in urban redevelopment, focusing on the reconstruction of Coventry (UK) in the post-war years. Overseen by the city's Chief Architect, Donald Gibson, this redevelopment has often been described as resulting in a placeless and artless urban landscape indistinguishable from other redeveloped city centres in post-war Britain. To the contrary, here it is suggested that public art was an important feature of Coventry's new urban landscape, with the attempt to create a new civic identity manifest in a series of highly symbolic and distinctive public artworks. Analysing both the official symbolism of these artworks and their reception in the public sphere, it is concluded that, although just one aspect of the urban landscape, the production and consumption of public art encapsulated the tensions that existed between different visions of the city.