Artangel and the Changing Mediascape of Public Art

This article examines the early history of the Artangel Trust (1985–91), focusing on the use of advertising media such as billboards and outdoor screens in a series of prominently located projects, by artists such as Jenny Holzer, Barbara Kruger, and Les Levine. It also identifies significant shifts in the organization’s approach to practices of commissioning, mediation and promotion after 1991, following the appointment of James Lingwood and Michael Morris as co-directors. Instead of simply emphasizing the specific differences between these two incarnations of Artangel, the article draws attention to the altered – and continually changing – relationship betwen media and concepts of the public sphere in curatorial practice.