Saint John taking steps to protect public art following destruction of pedway mural

After a mural in a pedway connecting Saint John's city hall and Market Square was destroyed, the city is taking steps to make sure it doesn't happen again.

The city's new direction on public art comes after the loss of the mural, called Nest, in the Saint Patrick Street pedway.

Painted by well-known New Brunswick artist Deanna Musgrave, it was damaged by water after a ceiling pipe froze and split because of cold weather, a staff report said. The city tore it down after becoming aware of the damage. 

By the time Musgrave learned her work had been affected by a leak, it was already gone with nothing left to salvage, according to the city.

Art, commissioned by the city and that are part of the city's art bank are given certain protections, such as standard maintenance and insurance. This wasn't the case for Musgrave's mural.

Now, art that hasn't been commissioned by the city will no longer be installed in public, city-owned spaces, the city says.

"The city has hundreds of pieces of artwork, whether it's murals, or statues, or paintings hung up or placed in city buildings, on city property all throughout the city," said David Dobbelsteyn, Saint John's director of growth and community support services.

"But this piece wasn't commissioned by the city, which is what caught the city a little off guard when the department was dealing with it."

Dobbelsteyn said the mural was a "collaborative gift" to the city from the artist and the company that co-owns the pedway, the Hardman Group, but not being a part of the city's art bank meant it had no insurance protection.

The city will also discourage art installations in spaces that may pose infrastructure risks.

"We had this unfortunate experience where this beautiful mural had to be removed because the infrastructure above it got damaged by natural causes," said Dobbelsteyn.

"We want public art ... But we need to be a little more careful about where those are placed, so it may not be on ceilings or walls where there's infrastructure."

Musgrave said she wishes she had been informed sooner by the city about the problem.

To address that, the city plans to hire a new arts and culture co-ordinator to address communication failings and it plans to update its arts and culture policy.

The current policy, the staff report says, does not provide strong provisions for commissioning, installing or maintaining art. Dobbelsteyn said the city intends to adopt a new policy in 2026.

A policy change is an opportunity for the city to consult with local artists, including Musgrave.

Artist applauds city staff, leaders

Musgrave said following the mural's removal, Mayor Donna Reardon called her to apologize. Reardon also apologized publicly at council.

"It means a lot to me that the city, the council and the mayor are trying to make this right in the ways that are available to them," Musgrave said. 

"It means a lot to me that the sacrifice of Nest is going to lead to better cultural policy for the city."

Musgrave said she hopes her experience teaches others the value of public art. 

"I encourage citizens to just walk through the pedway now that it is a white ghost of what is left, and just see how that feels in your body," Musgrave said.

"And to remember how it felt to walk through that headway with the blue and the clouds and the birds and that imaginary space and how it's different now that it's that whitewashed ghost."

Dobbelsteyn said that there are many murals in the city that are not a part of the city's art bank but are still significant. 

"We're going to tread more cautiously whenever any contractors are having to do work in and around those, regardless of whether the artwork is part of the city's art bank or not," he said.