Barbara Tober and CODAworx host a luncheon at The Metropolitan Club of New York on a sunny Wednesday afternoon to celebrate the importance of Public art and discuss with artist and commissioners their new publication “The Economic Power of Public Art”.
On Wednesday, May 22, The Knockturnal attended a Luncheon in the Upper East Side at The Metropolitan Club to celebrate the launch of “The Economic Power of Public Art.”
This new catalog from CODAworx details data points illustrating the economic abundance created by public art programs. CODAworx is an agency that connects artists, commissioners and makers to sanction public art exhibitions and installations.
Founded by Toni Sikes, CODAworx has 13,381 records of public art projects that they helped put together successfully, making them a leader in the public art industry. This event was put on in collaboration with Barbra Tober, the president of the art investment firm Acronym Inc., and serves as Chairman Emerita on the board of trustees for the Museum of Arts and Design.
The event was a beautiful spring day in New York City when we walked down the red carpet of the Metropolitan Club’s entryway. The Knockturnal could not help but get engulfed in a mood of ease and decadence that was generously reflected by the building’s Art Deco architecture and ornate moldings, carpets, painted ceilings and grand halls. It was the perfect setting for artists, commissioners and makers to collaborate and celebrate this industry achievement, focusing on public art and prosperity.
We were greeted graciously by Barbara, given information about this growing industry by Toni, and heard from Andrew Salsbrum, who represented the BLINK art festival of Cincinnati, OH. At one point, Cincinnati was considered the United States’ most dangerous city to live in and was struggling financially; the BLINK festival was created to help promote tourism for the city and the growth of its local businesses. In the first year of the festival, 1.1 million people attended.
The second festival, 2022, created an audience double that size of 2.2 million people, which generated 126 million dollars in revenue for the city. Some of which the city has used to commission murals around the city from international and local artists, earning them the title of the best city for street art in the US in 2024.
Their new title and buzz in the art community have increased foot traffic in the city and continued to support a steady rise in tourism and growth for the city. Through its public art programs, Cincinnati was able to recreate its identity and cultivate a new culture for its city that is more dimensional and stable.