A guided tour of the best public art in all five boroughs of New York City, from outdoor sculpture in public plazas to murals and works of art in lobbies accessible to the public, to outstanding landscapes, and even a few examples of artistic sidewalks and creative lighting, this book focuses on how exemplary works of public art enrich urban public space. Organized by neighborhood, it covers Lower Manhattan, Soho to Lower Midtown, Midtown Manhattan, the Upper West Side, Central Park, the Upper East Side, Upper Manhattan, The Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn, and Staten Island. Illustrated with Francis Dzikowski's striking photos and colorful maps, it makes a perfect walking guide. in the words of Kent Barwick, this book is "an invitation to hit the streets." Sponsored by the Municipal Art Society, Public Art New York is organized by neighborhood, with maps suitable for walking tours.

Architect Jean Phifer specializes in planning, renovation and sustainable design projects for cultural institutions and has designed or restored over fifty distinguished buildings, public spaces, and landscapes, primarily in New York. She was president of the Art Commission of the City of New York, now the Public Design Commission, from 1998 to 2003. Ms. Phifer is a Fellow of the American Institute of Architects and teaches Environmental Design at New York University. She lives in Manhattan.

Francis Dzikowski is an architectural photographer based in New York City.

The evening's introduction was given by Michele H. Bogart, author of Public Sculpture and the Civic Ideal in New York City, 1890-1930 (University of Chicago Press, 1989), which received the Smithsonian Institution/ Museum of American Art's Charles C. Eldredge Prize in 1991; and of The Politics of Urban Beauty: New York and Its Art Commission (University of Chicago Press, 2006). From 1998 through 2003 she served as a member of the Art Commission of the City of New York, the City's design review agency, and for four years was its Vice President. She is presently a member of the Art Commission's Conservation Advisory Group and of the Board of Directors of the Fine Arts Federation. Ms. Bogart is a Professor and the Graduate Program Director of the Art Department at Stony Brook University.