The Public Art Archive™ (PAA) is a free, continually growing online database of public artworks throughout the U.S. and abroad. The portal is a comprehensive resource providing universal access to discover, explore, and learn more about public art across communities.We invite the public to delve into the complex stories that characterize public artworks as dynamic, interconnected keepers of history, context, and meaning. 

Our mission to make public art more public has guided the program’s growth into the largest active database of public art. The system invites artists and organizations to contribute completed public art projects to the online public engagement portal at no cost. By making all projects discoverable on the world’s largest centralized source of public art information, artists and organizations can increase the accessibility and visibility of public art in every community.

Powered by WESTAF (the Western States Arts Federation), a 50-year-old nonprofit arts service organization, PAA was built to serve and support artists, administrators, consultants, planners, educators, researchers, and audiences of all ages and backgrounds.

A recreation center with a colorful painted mural on the building outside by the pool.

untitled [Heitzman Recreation Center mural by Jessie & Katey] (2023). By Jessie and Katey. Mural Arts Philadelphia Collection. Courtesy of the collection.

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Cultivating Creativity, Connection, and Change in Public Art

Your presence on PAA can increase the visibility and reach of your collection to viewers across the world and help make public art more accessible to all audiences. Here are just some of the ways you can do this by collaborating with PAA:

  • Document public artworks across the globe
  • Provide centralized, free access to information
  • Raise awareness of public art’s significance
  • Showcase diverse works from emerging and seasoned artists
  • Encourage sustained engagement and exploration
  • Preserve the evolving history of public spaces for continued learning

Ask us about our eligibility criteria, which are a key component of PAA’s values-based mission and commitment to inclusiveness and equity.

A large white arc sculpture placed outside with people inside of it.

Chinook Arc (2014). By Joseph O’Connell. City of Calgary Public Art Program Collection. Courtesy of Creative Machines.

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Connect with the Public Art Archive team today.

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