When hungry locals approach the new Madison Public Market next summer, public art will welcome them from every direction.
Imagine turning onto First Street to view a massive rendering of a young woman in a Ho-Chunk tribal costume, surrounded by beadwork. “Elizah Leonard” (2019) is a reprinting of an iconic [Professor] Tom Jones photograph, part of the artist’s “Strong Unrelenting Spirits” series.
From another direction, a bright mural from the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests on State Street will face visitors. The flower-lined portrait of a woman with a huge purple Afro was a collaboration between LaFollette High School teacher Monique Karlen and local students.
“Public art is a symbolic language,” said Karin Wolf, the city’s arts program administrator, who’s been planning these art selections for roughly a decade.
“We’re concentrating a lot of public art on this site,” she said, “because this is a place that we want to draw people, to celebrate what is special about Madison and in Madison food culture.”
In late September, Wolf and Meri Rose Ekberg, the city’s community and cultural resources planner, presented to the Common Council a mockup of 10 public artworks destined for the Madison Public Market. The market, which recent construction updates estimate for a July 1, 2025 opening, will host a mix of publicly funded art and pieces made possible by private donations.
“It really is one of the more complex projects I’ve worked on since I started here,” said Wolf, who began work for the city of Madison in 2006.
The renovation of the Central Library was a similar lift, but it was a faster turn-around, and she had a point person (Trent Miller at The Bubbler) to collaborate with. The public market has been in the works for a very long time. After decades of planning, the 50,000-square-foot future food hall at 202 N. First St. broke ground in November 2023.
“It’s complicated, but it’ll be really cool when it’s finished,” Wolf said. “Anywhere you enter the space, you will be greeted by art.”
Greetings from a friendly bear
Artists chosen for the Madison Public Market favor bold colors. Ash Armenta’s [MFA ’22] “Sky Sail” drapes triangular kites with geometric patterns from the site’s pipe-lined ceiling.