What is plop art? When I heard this term in this week’s lecture, I was confused and intrigued. It sounded like “pop art,” but it was clearly something different. As I continued to listen, I learned that this term is derogatory. I later researched and learned that plop art is a slang term for public art made in public venues. It indicates that the work is unattractive or inappropriate to its surroundings. In other words, it has been thoughtlessly plopped where it lies. The word “plop” suggests something formless and meaningless, something that fell where it lays by accident and with no care or skill. However, I don’t agree with these negative opinions about plop art. For example, the bean in Chicago, called Cloud Gate, is considered plop art; however, I feel it is a uniting factor in that city. It may appear to be placed there randomly, but I feel it serves a larger purpose than simply visual art. It serves as a conversation starter, a symbol of the city, and a sense of belonging and meeting for tourists and locals alike. Thus, I think when talking about plop art, more should be taken into consideration than simply the logistics of where it is placed. It should be acknowledged the conversations it starts and what it does for citizens of that city.
a wiki of socially engaged art