Harnessing the Visual Public Realm for Community Prosperity
Authors: Marine Tanguy and Holly Norman
Editorial team: Professor Henrietta L. Moore (Founder and Director of the Institute for Global Prosperity) and Dr Hanna Baumann (Principal Research Fellow at the Institute for Global Prosperity).
This white paper from the Institute for Global Prosperity (IGP) and Fast Forward 2030 casts a critical light on the increasing saturation of public spaces with commercial imagery, an encroachment that erodes civic values and weakens social cohesion and highlights inspiring public art initiatives and forward-thinking policies that point toward a more inclusive and community-driven future.
“Today, the imagery in the shared spaces through which we move and in which we interact is increasingly dominated by commercial interests. Our streets, transport hubs, and urban landscapes are saturated with visual messaging that positions individuals primarily as consumers. These messages often promote consumer debt and or harmful beauty standards, exacerbating existing power dynamics rather than addressing crucial challenges such as social cohesion and environmental sustainability.
Public spaces in cities, understood as part of the commons belonging to all, have been co-opted by advertisers and corporate brands who extract value from them – profiting financially while communities bear the social and environmental costs. The erosion of local identity, declining wellbeing, and deepening inequality are among the consequences that commercial visual saturation leaves in its wake.” Dame Professor Henrietta L. Moore
This White Paper calls for a transformative approach: policies that compel advertisers to reinvest directly in the communities whose spaces they profit from. It proposes redirecting revenue from outdoor advertising toward community-led public art projects, the creation of green spaces, cultural programming, and neighbourhood revitalisation initiatives.
By placing community voices at the heart of decision-making – and fostering collaboration among artists, local authorities, cultural agencies, businesses, schools, and civil society – cities can co-create visual landscapes that celebrate shared values, reflect local histories, and tell the authentic stories of their people. Such partnerships lay the groundwork for urban environments that are more inclusive, cohesive, and resilient.
Public art, in this vision, becomes a catalyst for social and political renewal, challenging dominant commercial narratives while elevating marginalised voices.
To truly transform the visual public realm, we must go beyond reducing exposure to advertising. This shift opens space for creative, healthy, and socially cohesive content that celebrates local places. It signals a move from corporate promotion to collective expression – a reinvestment in the visual culture of care, identity, and connection.
In doing so, we aim to transform the visual public realm from a site of passive consumption into a living infrastructure of community, culture, and care.
This paper was led by Marine Tanguy, Founder and CEO of MTArt Agency, the art sector’s leading talent agency for visual artists – in collaboration with experts at the Institute for Global Prosperity (IGP), whose mission is to redesign prosperity for the 21st century through pioneering research.