I find most public art pretty dull. Most of it is hampered by its public nature, and so any inventiveness is buried under triumphalism, inoffensiveness, and pandering.  I do have a fondness for some of it, like the statue of Alice in Central Park.  To see what public art can be, check out the gallery that’s been assembled at haha.nu, of “strange statues around the world.” I kind of take issue with their title; yes, it’s a little weird to have a life-size replica of Optimus Prime, the head Transformer, but most of them (including Optimus) are just breathtaking in their originality, beauty, and use of public space. What’s really amazing is how many of these statues get away with placing eroticism in public, where the wimmins and children can see them. Some of the more frank statues wouldn’t even be allowed in our most liberal enclaves, like San Francisco and New York.