Strategy 3.2
Public art
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Create small-scale and large-scale public art that can help with wayfinding.
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Design public art that can serve as a social gathering area.
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Use large-scale public art to mark important junctions or nodes.
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Consider creating a series of public art installations that can help identify walking routes through the neighbourhood.
Support a diverse range of public art
3.2.1
Photo 1: Community members and school kids work together to paint murals along a neighbourhood bike path. Photo: Happy Cities
Photo 2: Large-scale public art can reflect local history in prominent locations. Photo: Can Pac Swire / Flickr
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Provide spaces, funding, and support for community-created art.
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Consider opportunities to invite people living with dementia and their care partners to participate in creating community art in a safe and comfortable way.
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Reflect local history and heritage in community-generated art to help celebrate the past and provide memory cues.
Co-create art with the community
3.2.2
A woman paints a community mural with a local artist. Photo: Happy Cities
Public art supports a sense of belonging, better wayfinding, and opportunities for people to pause and interact. Public art creates destinations for people living with dementia to visit, increasing their physical activity and opportunities for community interactions.
Actions under this strategy:
Public art is unique and can help with wayfinding and placemaking. It also helps people to connect. Often, we can see people gathering around a public art and talk about it. Children are also always stopping. It is a good way to stimulate social connectedness. - DemsCAPE Project participant -
Dementia-inclusive principles:
Distinct: People living with dementia can recognize where they are in the neighbourhood.
Familiar: Triggers memories and familiar sights, and can enable social connections with familiar neighbhours.