Must do better: Standards in public art

The letters pages of many a newspaper, the lively high-stool forums or the online chat rooms that neatly reflect the heartbeat of a society have often been exercised by the idea and quality of public art.

Those debates usually focus on the concept behind a piece — Dublin’s Spire was an example —rather than its execution.

The idea, the affection instigating a work usually wins out over the authenticity of an artist’s representation. That latitude can, however, lead to unnecessarily poor outcomes.