Can I touch this?

Building knowledge economies seems synonymous with re-imaging urban fabrics. Cities producing vibrant public realms are believed to have better success in distinguishing themselves within a highly competitive market. Many governments are heavily investing in cultural enhancements burgeoning distinctive cosmopolitan centers of which public art is emerging as a significant stakeholder. Brisbane’s goal to grow a knowledge-based economy similarly addresses public art. To stimulate engagement with public art Brisbane City Council has delivered an online public art catalogue and assembled three public art trails, with a fourth newly augmented. While many pieces along these trails are obviously public others question the term ‘public’ through an obscured milieu where a ‘look but don’t touch’ policy is subtly implied. This study investigates the interactional relationship between publics and public art, and in doing so, explores the concept of accessibility. This paper recommends that installations of sculpture within an emerging city should be considered in terms of economic output measured through the degree in which the public engages.