How does public art improve safety?

Research cited by Dr. Michael Cohen suggests that women and gender-diverse people feel safer in public spaces where visible effort has been made in aesthetics and public art. Art creates a sense of care and community presence that enhances the perception of safety.

What is the role of memory in placemaking?

Dr. Michael Cohen argues that memory is the most important ingredient in a successful place. Because memory is where humans hold feelings and associations, art serves as a tool to create 'feelingful' experiences that build long-term attachment to a location.

Why is early artist involvement important in urban design?

Involving artists in early masterplanning prevents 'plonk art'—objects added at the end of a project without context. Early collaboration allows artists to influence the layout, materials, and emotional resonance of a precinct from the ground up.

Art, Memory & Creating Safer Places

We have all experienced that sudden, unexpected moment of wonder while going about our daily routine. Perhaps it was a splash of colour in a grey alleyway, a busker playing a haunting melody in a train station, or a sculpture that made you stop and look at a familiar view in a completely new way.

These aren’t just “nice-to-have” embellishments. According to Dr. Michael Cohen, Director of City People, these artistic interventions are the fundamental building blocks of how we remember and feel safe in our cities.

In this episode of The Placemakers, I spoke with Michael about his journey from international performing artist to a leader in cultural placemaking. We explore why the most successful public spaces are those that prioritise human memory and emotional connection over mere physical objects.

Key Takeaways for Placemakers:

Memory is the Metric: Successful places are defined by the memories they create. Art is the catalyst that transforms a physical location into a “feelingful” experience.
Safety Through Aesthetics: Research shows that women and gender-diverse people feel significantly safer in environments where visible effort has been made in the aesthetics and public art.
Beyond ‘Plonk Art’: Artists should be involved in the early stages of masterplanning, helping to shape the very fabric of a precinct rather than just adding an object at the end.

🎧 Listen to the Episode
We discuss the power of temporary activations and how to authentically engage communities in the design process.

[Listen on Spotify]

📄 Accessibility & Reference
Prefer to read? Download the full word-for-word transcript of this interview.

[Download Transcript (PDF)]

The Connection Between Art and Memory

For Michael Cohen, the most important ingredient for a successful public place is memory. While design and the built environment have a huge impact, it is how we build feelings about a place that truly matters.

“Memory is where we hold feelings; memory is where we change our associations,” Michael explains.

By introducing art into the everyday environment, we create “person-to-person” experiences. Whether it is a large-scale mural or a subtle piece of public art in a metro station, the viewer is essentially engaging with the mind of the person who made it. This connection turns a sterile transit hub into a place of personal interaction and emotional resonance.

Creating Cultural Safety

One of the most profound insights from our conversation was the link between art and public safety. Michael shared a project in Blacktown where Transport for NSW sought to change the feel of transport hubs where women and gender-diverse people often felt unsafe.

The research was clear: people feel safer when they are around arts-driven experiences. “When we feel like some effort has been made in the aesthetics of a place… we feel safer,” Michael notes. This perception of safety is often rated higher than traditional measures like increased lighting.

This shift in perspective is crucial for urban designers. It moves art from a “luxury” to a functional necessity for creating inclusive, successful, and high-footfall environments.

The Power of ‘Staying True’ to Community Voice

Michael is a fierce advocate for deep, authentic community engagement. He warns that participants can easily “sniff out” a tick-box process where engagement is treated as a phase to be completed and then forgotten.

He shares the story of the “Big Voices Committee” a group of children who helped design new children’s hospitals in Sydney. By bringing kids into the strategy phase to meet with architects and project leads, the team ensured the outcomes reflected the actual users’ needs.

“You actually have to take some pretty big shifts in your own perspective to try to think about users,” Michael says. Whether it is designing for children or working with First Nations communities to reclaim colonial icons through art, the goal is to create “cultural safety” a sense that this place belongs to them.