Public Art / Monument Policy

Legislative History: Enacted June 26, 2018 (By-law No. CPOL.-295-286); Amended July 25, 2023 (By-law No. CPOL.-295(a)-216); Amended June 3, 2025 (By-law No. CPOL.-295(b)-181)

Last Review Date: June 3, 2025

Service Area Lead: Manager of Culture Services

1. Policy Statement

1.1 The City of London supports the acquisition, installation, interpretation, display and maintenance of Public art/monuments on municipally owned or occupied public space that will strengthen the natural assets of the city, provide unique attractions, and act as a constant delight to residents and visitors to London. Public art/monuments celebrate and honour our culture, history, people, events, and locations while enhancing our economic vibrancy. Public art/monuments impact many aspects of community living. Public art/monuments enrich daily life through visual experiences and attracts people to art-enriched places.

1.2 Principles

Public art/monuments are significant to the City of London because they may:

• demonstrate excellence and a wide range of artistic expression;
• support humanity by encouraging human creativity and decision-making through various forms of original artworks;
• serve the city as a whole, are relevant to London and Londoners;
• foster opportunities for shared experiences;
• enrich public spaces and neighbourhoods for the appreciation of all;
• are accessible with daily living, work and play;
• are integrated conceptually and/or physically into the local context;
• commemorate events of local, national and provincial significance
• recognize outstanding achievements of Londoners or their community;
• promote London as a unique destination for visitor experience and engagement;
• be a part of major capital investment projects in London;
• yield proven economic benefits by supporting the local arts economy, including professional artists at all levels of their careers, as well as fabricators, installers, architects, engineers, and other technical experts;
• provide fair, open and transparent opportunities for local/provincial/national/international artists/creators/practitioners of traditional arts and knowledge keepers to participate in public art/monument projects;
• are presented in a manner that responds to their unique requirements for care, conservation and safety; and,
• are preserved for the appreciation enjoyment of future generations through the City of London ten-year Capital Lifecycle Renewal Program and the use of specialized consultant conservators and/or artist/creators.

1.3.      Purpose of Public Art / Monument Policy

The primary purpose of this Public Art/Monument Policy is to provide a mechanism through which the City of London acquires significant pieces of public art/monuments for municipally owned public space through their purchase, commission, or donation. The City may authorize public art/monuments that it does not own to be placed on municipally owned public space through an agreement between the City of London and the owner of the public art/monuments.

Public Art/Monument Commissions 

Professional artists/creators/practitioners of traditional art may be commissioned to create original artworks for municipally owned space that are owned and maintained by the City of London.

Public Art/Monument Donations

Public Art/Monument asset donations may be received by the City in compliance with the City of London Donations Policy. The City reserves the right in its sole discretion to accept or decline any donation. Donations exceeding $100,000 must be presented to City Council for approval. The City must be able to provide proper care, maintenance, insurance, and storage for the donation. 

The City will not accept a donation where an advantage will accrue to the donor or to any person not dealing at arm’s length to the donor as a result of the donation. Donations to the City must be free and clear of conditions and restrictions regarding the City’s use/disposal of the assets. 

Public Art/Monument Purchases

The City of London may purchase public art/monuments for the City’s permanent collection or may purchase public art/monuments for temporary display on municipally owned space.

2. Definitions

Municipally owned public space areas frequented by the general public that are owned or occupied by the City of London and publicly accessible spaces in civic partner locations.  Municipally owned public space includes, but is not limited to, parks, road allowances, tunnels, boulevards, streets, courtyards, squares and bridges, as well as building exteriors, foyers, concourses and significant interior public areas of municipal buildings.

Professional Artist/Creator a professional artist/creator is someone who has developed skills through training or practice, is recognized by artists working in the same artistic tradition, has a history of public presentation or publication, seeks payment for their work, and actively practices their art. 

For small-scale and community public art projects, the opportunities may be limited to individual artists, artist collectives, or ad-hoc art groups led by professional artists/creators who reside in London and the surrounding First Nations communities (Chippewa of the Thames First Nation, Oneida Nation of the Thames, Munsee Delaware First Nation). 

Creator and Practitioner of Traditional Art A creator/practitioner of traditional art is someone who has developed skills through training or practice taught from person to person, passed from one generation to the next, and influenced by culture, family, ethnicity, and era. Traditional arts represent a place or a group of people. They also express the thoughts and feelings of a point in history. 

For small-scale and community public art projects, the opportunities may be limited to creators/practitioners of traditional art who reside in London and the surrounding First Nations communities (Chippewa of the Thames First Nation, Oneida Nation of the Thames, Munsee Delaware First Nation).

Public Art/Monuments Public Art/Monuments of any media that are acquired in compliance with the City’s Public Art/Monument Policy on municipally-owned public space.

Public art is not a singular art “form”. Its size can vary, its shape can be abstract or realistic (or both), and it may be cast, carved, built, assembled, or painted. Public Art materials and methods can change to reflect contemporary culture. It can be site-specific or stand in contrast to its surroundings. Public Art may be functionally integrated into the design of the site, buildings, and landscapes in publicly accessible and visible areas of a site. These areas can include the walls, windows, floors, and ceilings; or other publicly accessible open space such as plazas, forecourts, courtyards, colonnades, or setbacks. When integrated, public art must retain an interpretative aspect, as determined by the commissioned artist, and not be a mere extension of the design of the architecture, landscape architecture, interior design, etc. of the new development.

Public art is distinguished by the unique association of how it is made, where it is, and what it means. Public art can express community values, enhance the environment, transform a landscape, heighten awareness, or question assumptions. Public art reflects how we see the world—the artist’s response to our time and place.

Monuments are physical structures intended to contribute positively to London’s urban space and often serve to honour achievements, celebrate cultural heritage, mark landmarks or historical sites. All monuments can be considered memorials due to their commemorative nature. Memorials can take various forms, including structures, ceremonies, or objects, and are often associated with loss and reflection.

a) sculpture;

b) murals;

c) memorials, monuments, historic objects or artifacts such as the Cenotaph, cannons etc.;

d) fountains or water features that contribute aesthetically to their surroundings (i.e. not spray pads);

e) digital artwork created for temporary and/or permanent presentation. Digital artwork may use digital technology as an essential part of the creation, process, and/or presentation;hard and soft landscaping components which are not a mere extension of the landscape architecture;

f) special engineering or architectural features of existing capital projects that contribute aesthetically to their surroundings;

g) functionally integrated artwork into the design of the site, buildings, and landscapes in publicly accessible and visible areas of a site;

h) urban infrastructure artwork that blends public space design including roadways, bridges, underpasses, transit stations, facades, light installations, functional sculptures such as benches, bike racks;

i) interactive spaces designed by artists such as musical staircases and other urban elements that invite public engagement;

j) community public art related to neighbourhood beautification; and,

k) travelling or non-permanent exhibitions sited or staged on municipally owned public space.

Copyright: means a type of intellectual property that legally protects the original works of authorship and ownership under the Copyright Act of Canada.

3. Applicability

3.1 This Policy is applicable to both permanent and temporary installations of public art/monuments projects. 

Permanent works include fixed works which, due to their weight and size, become an integral component of any municipally owned public space, in terms of structure, design context, or neighbourhood. 

Temporary works can include murals, street art, travelling art, and exhibitions created or purchased for a specific event or place for a specific occasion and timeframe. The City of London has the authority to determine the length of time each works will be displayed on municipally owned public space.

4.         The Policy

4.1 Administering Public Art/Monuments Program

The Public Art/Monuments Program will be managed by the City of London’s Culture Services Division. Culture Services may delegate responsibility for specific aspects of the program such as the selection process, implementation, maintenance and conservation/restoration to other City service areas. community professional organizations that have demonstrated expertise in public art and monuments.

4.2 Public Art/Monument Ownership Transfer

Ownership of selected/completed Public Art/Monuments in accordance with this policy will be transferred to the City of London upon final installation on municipality owned public space.

The City of London acknowledges the artist as full owner of copyright including moral rights (unless the copyright has passed into the public domain). The City will negotiate unrestricted copyright provisions with the artist granting the City license to exhibit and use images for non-commercial purposes through individual artist contracts. Copyright also extends to the use of images of an artwork for promotional or educational purposes.

4.3 Maintenance and Conservation/Restoration

Culture Services, in conjunction with other City Service areas, will provide responsible stewardship for the maintenance, conservation/restoration of public art/monuments on municipally owned public space, through the City of London ten-year Capital Lifecycle Restoration Program.  This will include providing maintenance plans for each asset and the use of specialized consultant conservators and/or artist/creators for conservation/restoration.

4.4.      De-Accessioning Public Art/Monuments

Culture Services, in conjunction with other City Service areas, will provide responsible stewardship for the maintenance, conservation/restoration of public art/monuments on municipally owned public space, through the City of London ten-year Capital Lifecycle Restoration Program.  This will include providing maintenance plans for each asset and the use of specialized consultant conservators and/or artist/creators for conservation/restoration.

4.4.      De-Accessioning Public Art/Monuments

Culture Services will consider candidates for the de-accessioning of permanent and temporary public art/monuments. The de-accessioned art/monuments may be moved, sold, returned to the artist or destroyed, with any monies received through the sale of art/monuments being placed in the Cultural Prosperity Reserve Fund.

4.5.      Placement of Non-City Owned Public Art/Monuments on Municipally Owned Public Space

The City may authorize public art/monuments that it does not own to be placed on municipally owned public space through a licensing agreement between the City of London and the owner of the public art/monuments.

4.6.      Placement of Outdoor Art/Monuments on Privately-Owned Space

Though not addressed specifically in this Policy, the City of London believes in encouraging the inclusion of outdoor art/monuments in privately-owned space across the city. It is recognized that these works have significant appeal and can contribute to the identity and character of our community. The City will encourage the private sector through donation mechanisms to contribute to the City of London Public Art/Monuments Program.