Fontein en twee ornamentele vazen op Place de la Carrière te Nancy before 1896

This is a photograph of ornamental vases and a fountain on the Place de la Carrière in Nancy, France. The photograph is a document of urban design. It captures a moment in the history of Nancy as a city keen to use art and architecture to project an image of itself as a modern, forward-looking place. It speaks to us about how, in that time and place, cities sought to use art to shape the experiences of their inhabitants. Here, we can ask questions about the role of public art. Who decided what kinds of art would be suitable for public spaces? What messages were they trying to convey, and to whom? How would we find out more about the social and political context in which these urban designs were conceived? For instance, municipal archives might contain records of the commissions and correspondence related to the placement of these objects. Art is never created in a vacuum; it’s always shaped by the society in which it's made.