Far West Public Works Operations Building Public Art Meet & Greet

media release: The community is encouraged and invited to meet the artists in person ahead of the city’s next exciting public art project, which will be part of the city’s new Far West Public Works Operations Building. The new building will be located at 402 South Point Road.  

A neighborhood meet and greet is scheduled for 6:30-8 p.m., Aug. 21, 2025, at Fire Station 12 Community Room, 400 South Point Road.  

The city of Madison is working with Sketchworks and The Milligan Studio(link is external) for design, construction and installation of public art for the city’s new Far West Public Works Operations Building.  

Looking forward to this collaboration with the city of Madison and Sketchworks, the artists shared “the integration of art into public buildings allows for the care of the human hand to shape the experience of communal space as a frame for our lives. Public Art celebrates and remembers. It binds us to a place with beauty, and grace. Sometimes, it even gives us hope.” 

Earlier this summer, the city of Madison Engineering Division began the design process for the new Far West Public Works Operations Building. Sketchworks Architecture(link is external) and their design team was selected from 11 other architectural teams for the project.  The new building will allow the City to better serve the residents on Madison’s far west side. It will provide a home base for City services and support services closer to the Far West neighborhoods. 

Other public information meetings for this project will be planned as the design process develops. Public Information Meetings for the construction portion of the project is not covered in the Aug. 21, 2025 neighborhood meet and greet. This meeting is an opportunity for the community to learn about the Milligan Studio and how they will approach this project. 

As part of the construction project, the Milligan Studio will be tasked with incorporating public art into the building façade and/or the landscaping where it can be viewed and enjoyed by the public. The Milligan Studio is the Public Art practice of Irish sculptor Alan Milligan and novelist N.M. Kelby (Dr. Nicole Mary Milligan, PhD). Inspired by the natural world, The Milligan Studio are an award-winning collaborative team located in St. Paul, Minnesota. They use Old World craftmanship in contemporary applications, often featuring bronze, steel, and kiln-formed architectural glass. They have completed projects across the country, including recent works in Middleton, WI, Rochester, MN, and St. Paul, MN, 

The budget for public art is made possible by the city’s Percent for Art Ordinance. The Percent for Art program, which Common Council approved in 2017, increases public investment in art. Through the Percent for Art Program 1% of city funds committed to a project budgeted at $5,000,000+ is used for public art.