Jeong Ilgyun, Daegu City Council Member, Points Out Negligent Management of "Art on the Street" Building Artworks, Including Damage and Loss

Calls for Systematic and Effective Post-Management of Building Artworks
Jeong Ilgyun Stresses the Need for Concrete Plans and Institutional Improvements in Daegu

On October 10, Jeong Ilgyun, a member of the Daegu City Council (People Power Party, Suseong District 1), raised concerns over the post-management of artworks installed in buildings through a written inquiry to the city administration, urging Daegu City to establish a more systematic and effective management plan.

The current Culture and Arts Promotion Act stipulates the "Building Artworks Installation System," which requires building owners who intend to construct buildings with a total floor area of 10,000 square meters or more to use a certain percentage of construction costs to install artworks such as paintings, sculptures, and crafts in the building.

Jeong Ilgyun Daegu City Councilor

Since the "Building Artworks Installation System" became mandatory by law in 1995, the number of building artworks has increased over the past 30 years, and the importance of post-management for these artworks has grown not only in Daegu but also nationwide.

Currently, a total of 1,471 artworks have been installed in Daegu since 1995. To address issues in post-management, a legal provision for a status survey was newly established in 2022. Although local districts have been conducting status surveys since 2023, these surveys remain largely superficial due to a lack of specialized personnel. As a result, post-management issues such as aging, damage, and loss of artworks persist.

Jeong Ilgyun emphasized, "If post-management after installation is not properly conducted, these works cannot fully serve their function as public art and may even impact citizen safety. Therefore, continuous and systematic management must be carried out just as thoroughly as ensuring the quality of the artworks themselves."

He continued, "It is now time to concretize post-management plans for building artworks," and added, "We plan to closely review Daegu City's current management measures and, if necessary, also consider institutional improvements or ordinance revisions."

Jeong Ilgyun further stated, "Building artworks have played a positive role as 'art on the street,' enhancing the dignity of the city and enriching the cultural experiences of its citizens," and urged, "To ensure these roles continue, we must establish a more robust operational system by securing specialized personnel and reflecting these needs in the budget."