Request for Qualifications: City of Baltimore Pre-Qualified Public Artist List 2015

The City of Baltimore, the Baltimore Public Art Commission, and the Baltimore Office of Promotion & the Arts are seeking interested artists and/or artist collaborators to submit qualifications for consideration and inclusion in Baltimore’s Pre-Qualified Public Artist List.  The pre-qualified list will go into effect upon review and approval of the Public Art Commission and remain in effect for three years. This list will be utilized and referenced for upcoming public art projects under the 1%-for-Public Art Program, most importantly federally funded construction projects requiring artists and/or artist collaborators to work directly with  the overall project design firm to incorporate artwork into the plan. (Note: Artists looking to apply with murals should apply directly to the Baltimore Mural Arts Program, application available at:https://boparegistrations.wufoo.com/forms/baltimore-mural-program-mural-artist-registry-rfq/)

APPLICATION DEADLINE

Applications must be received by February 13, 2015

Applications received after the deadline and those that are found to be incomplete will not be reviewed. It is the responsibility of the submitting artist to ensure that applications are complete and arrive by the deadline. Extensions to this deadline will not be granted under any circumstances.

TO APPLY

Applications must be submitted using the Call for Entry (CAFÉ) online application system managed by the Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF). Artists will be required to create a username and password and set up a personal account, free of charge, atwww.callforentry.org. Following successful set up, all interested applicants will be granted full access to our detailed application, simply click on “Apply to Calls” and click on the “Request for Qualifications (RFQ): City of Baltimore Pre-Qualified Public Artist List.” Your account information, including your resume, references, and images will be archived and saved for your convenience and easy access when applying to future calls using CAFÉ. 

SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

Please upload the following onto the CAFÉ online application system:

• Artist Statement: briefly describe your interest and qualifications for being included in the registry. Describe your prior public art experience and approach to working with communities (one page maximum)


• Resume: a current resume, which outlines your experience as a public artist. Artist teams or collaborative groups may submit a combined resume.


• Images: Ten (10) images of completed past artworks. Including: title of work, dimensions, medium, year of completion, location, three (3) sentence description, and budget amount. If applying as a team, only ten (10) images can be submitted.Images must be sized to the following dimensions (as required by the CAFÉ online application system) Dimensions: 1920 pixels horizontal by 1920 pixels vertical (one image per slide please) File Format: Baseline JPEG (do not use progressive JPEG format) Compression:Please size each image to be no more than 2 MB in file size. JPEG images cannot be saved as progressive JPEG files. Progressive JPEG files will appear on the CAFÉ Web site, but will not display properly during the jury process. File Name:CAFÉ will automatically rename files


• References: Names, addresses, email addresses, and phone numbers of three (3) professional references for each applicant.

OVERVIEW

1. Inclusion on the Pre-Qualified Public Artist List does not guarantee commission of artwork.


2. Artists, who are included on the Pre-Qualified Public Artist List, will remain on that list for a period of two years.  Artists must reapply every two years.


3. Exclusion of an artist from the Pre-Qualified Public Artist List does not make them ineligible to apply for individual project RFQ’s.


4. The Baltimore Public Art Commission is allowed and may require issuance of individual project RFQ’s.  Artists, who are included on the Pre-Qualified Public Artist List, must also submit an application for those RFQ’s to be considered for the corresponding project.


5. Artwork commissioned under Baltimore’s 1%-for-Public Art Program will be required to withstand a high-traffic, unmonitored outdoor environment with very limited maintenance.


6. Public art project budgets vary and may range, but not be limited, from $20,000.00 to $500,000.00. These budgets are inclusive of design, artist fees, fabrication, installation, insurance provisions, and all other costs associated with the public artwork.


7. In some cases, artists commissioned for Baltimore’s 1%-for-Public Art Program may work directly on the team with the construction project engineers and architects.  In such cases, artists will be hired as sub-contractors within these design firms; therefore, contracts and payment to artists will be negotiated by these firms.


8. Exclusion of an artist from the Pre-Qualified Public Artist List does not make them ineligible to apply for individual project RFQ’s.


9. The Baltimore Public Art Commission is allowed and may require issuance of individual project RFQ’s.  Artists, who are included on the Pre-Qualified Public Artist List, must also submit an application for those RFQ’s to be considered for the corresponding project.


10. Artists, who are included on the Pre-Qualified Public Artist List, will remain on that list for a period of two years.  Artists must reapply every two years.


11. The City of Baltimore, the Baltimore City Public Art Commission and the Baltimore Office of Promotion & the Arts reserves the right to reproduce images of submitted artwork for printed or internet publicity, catalogue, map or other marketing or educational purposes.

ELIGIBILITY

Any professional artist or artist team is eligible to apply. If artists are applying as a team, the team should be declared in the Artist Statement, specifying a team leader to receive notifications. Applicants must be 18 years of age or older. Current Baltimore Office of Promotion and the Arts employees and Public Art Commission members may not apply.

SELECTION CRITERIA & PROCESS

Qualifications will be reviewed by the Baltimore Public Art Commission based on the following criteria:

• Aesthetic merit of past projects; appropriateness of artwork medium and artistic concepts.


• Experience, success and/or interest in creating public artworks in collaboration with architects, design teams, and community members.


• Past public art commissions not requisite for review, but submitted work should demonstrate potential for consideration as part of a public art selection process.

PUBLIC ART PROGRAM GOALS

To enrich and enliven the experience of Baltimore City for its citizens and visitors

To establish a significant public art collection for the City.

To create an engaging space, artwork, and environment that accentuates construction efforts, and is sensitive to the community where the artwork is located

To commission public artwork that is durable and able to withstand high-traffic, unmonitored outdoor environments that include extreme adverse weather conditions, with very little maintenance

FOR FURTHER QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS PLEASE CONTACT:

Lou Joseph

Visual Arts Specialist

Baltimore Office of Promotion & the Arts

Email: ljoseph@PROMOTIONandARTS.org