Reno Public Art Master Plan Update
Reno recently updated its twenty-year-old public art master and program guidelines to align them with its current practices and changed funding circumstances. The plan ,helped focus the program on a variety of projects that spoke to the City’s highest ambitions while also delivering public art in a finer-grained ways to communities through the city.
Date | 2025
Client | City of Reno Arts and Culture
Collaborators | Amina Cooper/ Amewa Fine Arts
Reno’s slogan is “Big Arts, Little City,” for good reason. The city’s remoteness has led to a spirit that is independent, resilient and somewhat rambunctious. As the closest city to the annual Burning Man festival and home to the state’s contemporary art museum, it has its share of arts resources.
The public art plan not only delivers updated policies and procedures, but also frames public art as an endeavor that can be connected directly to the City’s sense of itself and its place in the remarkable landscape where it’s located.
The plan offers four key paths for Reno’s public art program:
Think big: Launch a signature project or initiative with a strong curatorial focus that will capture the imagination of the entire city.
Work collaboratively: Develop focused, creative, and project management strategies for collaborating with key City partners that align with agency goals, priorities
Build a more robust public art ecosystem: Encourage production of public artby independent artists, non-profits, andthe private sector, and support the broad network of artists and organizations thatwant to grow their capacity to createpublic art.
Update and streamline governance processes accordingly: Eliminate unnecessary steps in decision-making processes, and update the public art ordinance and guidelines in order to provide flexibility to move towards these broader goals.
