PROJECT LOCATIONS
Great Meadow area of Butler Park
Town Lake Metropolitan Park - Auditorium Shores
Mexican American Cultural Center grounds
Fiesta Gardens



EXHIBITION DATES
March 7th – Dec. 31st (or earlier, depending on nature of artwork)


OPENING RECEPTION
Saturday March 7th, 2009


CALENDAR
Call for Entries Dates: April 16th - May 31st, 2008 - CLOSED
Artist Notification of Selection: July 31st, 2008
Commencement of Contract with City of Austin and funding awarded: August 1st, 2008
Artists present final designs for approval: November 1st, 2008
Fabrication Begins: December 1st, 2008
Installation Begins: TBD on project/ Beginning of 2009

STRUCTURE AND GOALS

The goal of the Art in Public Places program is to commission works of art and art projects of redeeming quality which advance public understanding of visual art and enhance the aesthetic quality of public places. The City of Austin was the first municipality in Texas to make a commitment to include works of art in construction projects when it established the Art in Public Places program in 1985. By ordinance, 2% of budgets is allocated to commission or purchase art for public sites such as the airport, convention center, libraries, parks, police stations, recreation centers and streetscapes.

This will be the first programmatic commission of temporary public art from the Art in Public Places program. In keeping with the recommendations stated in “Approaches to Public Art for Town Lake Park” (October 2003), a temporary art program would allow artists to explore a range of themes suitable for the environment in which the artwork would be sited and provide the opportunity for “innovative, thought-provoking artwork that favorably changes the way people experience their environment.”

For specific information on review criteria for temporary outdoor work, see section below called “Artist Selection Criteria.”


OUTDOOR TEMPORARY ART OPPORTUNITIES

The outdoor temporary artwork shall be located within the parkland environment of Austin’s central core, within a variety of available potential sites identified by the City. The exact scope and siting of the artwork shall be based upon the vision and proposal of the artist. Artwork may be conceptual or functional, and should be appropriate and responsive to the pedestrian-oriented aspect of the sites.

The proposed available sites include:

- Great Meadow area of Butler Park (formerly Town Lake Park)
- Auditorium Shores (areas not regularly used for programming or festivals – mainly the area immediately to the south of Town Lake and to the north of the hike and bike trail)
- The grounds of the Mexican-American Cultural Center (MACC)
- The eastern portion of the Town Lake Trail (to the east of IH-35, to Fiesta Gardens)

Artists may propose work in other parkland sites within the central core of Austin, but alternate sites will be subject to approval by City staff. Artists will be responsible for any installation and removal costs as well as restoration or repair of premises after artwork has been de-installed.


BUDGET

The available budgets for each temporary public art piece can range from $3,000 - $10,000, depending on t he artist’s proposed design scope. The exact number of projects to be funded will be determined upon review of proposals.

The artist’s commission amount must include all aspects of design and construction including design fees and travel, insurance, fabrication and materials, engineering fees, and installation costs including transportation, foundations or bases, city permitting and site inspections and any special landscaping around the piece. A budget template and typical associated costs will be provided in order to help applicants to fully anticipate their proposed project costs, and will be a required submission component. The artist would retain ownership of his or her piece of work after the exhibition time period has elapsed.


ARTIST / MEDIA ELIGIBILITY

Professional artists living or working within the state of Texas who have experience working in a public context are invited to submit a proposal (visual, narrative and budget) supporting their qualifications (resume and images/descriptions of past work). City of Austin employees and project consultants and their employees and sub-consultants are not eligible.


ARTIST SELECTION CRITERIA

The selection panel will be open to a wide range of ideas, but successful applicants must demonstrate the following qualifications and qualities:

- Ability to work in coordination with other design and engineering professionals and City staff
- Experience working with materials suited or adaptable to the outdoor environment
- Ability to understand a locale’s sense of place, and design in a context-sensitive manner
- Demonstrated successful creative, innovative, and effective approach in comparable projects
- Excellent communication and organization skills
- Posses a proven mastery or skill in at least one artistic medium


SELECTION AND COMMISSION PROCESS

The Art in Public Places program will host an artist information meeting on April 30, 2008, to familiarize artists with the project, the available sites and clarify information on the process of applying. The Texas Biennial curator and a representative from the Art in Public Places Panel as co-curator of the outdoor temporary artwork (see bios below) will constitute the selection panel to evaluate the applications. The artist or artist team may be selected directly from the initial submitted applications, with possible interviews. The selection panel (curators) and advisors shall review applications in order to recommend the artists (or artist teams) to be placed under Design contracts. This recommendation will be presented to the Art in Public Places Panel and Arts Commission for approval.

The selected artist or artist team will be expected to work in cooperation with the Parks Dept. and AIPP to refine and identify the nature and location of the public artwork. The artist will be responsible for fabrication of the work and for coordinating installation and removal. Prior to fabrication, the artist’s final design will also be presented to the Art in Public Places Panel and Arts Commission for approval before placing artist under a commission contract to complete the work.