THOMAS STARR

Boston

The writer is a professor of graphic design at Northeastern University.

Regarding “public art,” one must first define “art.” And who are the arbiters? Your “beauty” may very well be my “disgusting,” your “deep expression” my “what?” With such a wide variety of tastes, the display of anyone’s version of “art” should be relegated to private spaces.

Keep public parks public. Erect memorials, statues and fountains. The belief among a restricted community that the public needs some form of “enlightenment” is an insufficient rationale. Please let me enjoy a park as a park and not a vehicle for promoting someone else’s version of “beauty.”

The New York Times