Arts Downtown: Frankfort Sculpture Trail 

Call for Art: Outdoor Public Art - Sculptures Frankfort, KY

In partnership with the City of Frankfort, Josephine Sculpture Park is seeking contemporary public artworks for a 2 year outdoor exhibit in public spaces through the downtown Frankfort area. 

Entry Deadline: August 21, 2023.

PROJECT DETAILS AND BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Arts Downtown is a multifaceted, national juried exhibition in historic downtown Frankfort, KY curated by the Josephine Sculpture Park (JSP) and Franklin County Arts Council (Frank Arts). Through the Art in Public Places program, JSP seeks to connect, engage and instill an appreciation for art throughout the Frankfort/Franklin County community. JSP believes art is for everyone and placing art directly where community members and visitors live, work, and play helps remove geographical barriers.

Frankfort Sculpture Trail is a curated exhibition of outdoor sculpture displayed throughout the heart of downtown Frankfort. Frankfort is the capital of KY,  a small town with a population of 50,000. Frankfort is conveniently located within 80 miles of Lexington, Louisville, and Cincinnati, OH and draws 400,000+ visitors each year.  The Sculpture Trail is a collaboration between FrankArts, Josephine Sculpture Park, the City of Frankfort, and Frankfort Tourism Commission. Over the next 2 years, the Trail will highlight over 25 sculptures, including pieces from private and permanent collections. Up to 15 of the sculptures will be on loan from selected artists and on display for 2 years. This is an opportunity for artists to showcase and sell their creations, while enhancing the cultural environment of Frankfort. 

THEME

There is no specific theme, however, artwork should be physically and thematically suitable for exhibition in public spaces throughout Frankfort, KY.  Sculptures will likely be placed in both city spaces/sidewalks as well as in public parks and walking trails.

We encourage proposals that show creativity as well as a broad range of appeal to the general public.  We are looking for works that capture attention and engage the public. We encourage artwork that is whimsical, vibrant/colorful, kinetic, eye-catching, sound-making and/or physically interactive in some way, including art that you can sit on, climb into, photograph yourself inside, etc. 

ELIGIBILITY

This Call for Art is open to all artists 18 and over. Proposals can be new or existing work. If existing, work must have been created within the past 3 years. Artists working in a variety of materials are encouraged to apply, including but not limited to stone, metal, wood, concrete, found objects, natural materials, plastics, fiberglass, light, sound, etc. Artists must be able to adhere to the project timeline. Having and maintaining general liability insurance is strongly encouraged for all selected artists.

REQUIREMENTS

• Art must be suitable for a hands-on outdoor exhibition in a public space.
• Art must be a minimum of 4’ in at least one direction and no taller than 20’.
• Art must be ready for installation in Frankfort KY by Nov 2023 and will remain on exhibit for 2 years. Sculptures will be de-installed October 2025, exact dates TBD.
• Art must be able to be installed in a manner with sufficient anchoring to prevent the sculpture from being removed, tipped, broken or overturned due to adverse weather conditions.
• Art must be maintenance free for the duration of the two-year exhibition.
• All art must be an original creation by the artist.
• Works of art shall not create inordinate safety problems or liability problems for the general public, JSP,  or the City of Frankfort.

ARTIST BENEFITS

Up to fifteen works will be selected for the 2 year exhibition. Entries will be critiqued on artistic merit, creativity, and durability.  Entries will be reviewed by a selection committee comprised of art and design professionals, key funders/sponsors, and community members. Artists that are accepted for the exhibition will be required to sign an Exhibit Contract and adhere to the terms therein.

Sculpture Trail will bring significant exposure for participating artists. Artists are encouraged to sell their sculptures during the exhibition period, but it is not a requirement. Participating sculptures will receive widespread marketing including photos in a print brochure as well as online websites and social media. Each sculpture will have a sign indicating the title, medium, artist, and contact information for purchasing artwork, if applicable. The Josephine Sculpture Park will handle all sales and retain a 30% commission for any sculpture purchased during the exhibition. Every effort will be made to promote sales.  

All artists whose works are installed will receive an artist stipend of up to $2,000 per sculpture: $1,000 upon delivery to the site in Frankfort and $1,000 upon removal. Sculptures that are sold during the exhibition will not be awarded the $1,000 removal stipend.  

In addition to the stipend, all selected artists are eligible to be reimbursed for up to $500 in actual expenses related to shipping/delivery of the sculpture to Frankfort.  

JSP will provide comprehensive insurance at the site, less a $1,000 deductible.

EXHIBITION PERIOD AND PROJECT TIMELINE:

Works will be installed in close collaboration with JSP on the following dates: Nov 3, Nov 4, Nov 17 & Nov 18 although crane service will be available on a more limited basis. Selected artists are responsible for shipping, delivering, and removing their sculpture/s in close collaboration with the Josephine Sculpture Park.  Any costs incurred due to untimely installation/removal will be deducted from the 2nd installment of the artist stipend.  

REQUIREMENTS FOR SUBMISSION 

1. Artist Statement. Limited to 2000 characters including spaces.
2. Current CV/resume. (PDF preferred)
3. Artwork title and brief statement.
4. Helpful installation information.
5. 2-4 images of the single piece of artwork to be considered for this exhibition, showing all sides of the work. Showing the scale of the work is helpful.  Please review and follow the image preparation guide on the CaFÉ website and provide ALL details as outlined in CaFÉ upload process including: artwork title, media, dimensions, year completed, etc.
6. If the sculpture has sound or light components and/or is kinetic, artist can email a max of 1 short video to: josie@josephinesculpturepark.org. No more than 3 min. is preferred.

SUBMISSION PROCEDURES 

Submissions may only be submitted electronically through the CaFÉ website (callforentry.org). Artists may submit up to 3 works for consideration. Each sculpture to be considered must be submitted as a separate entry through the CaFÉ website.  

SUBMISSION DEADLINE

All materials must be received by 11:59:00 p.m. Mountain Time Zone (Denver, CO, USA) on August 21, 2023. Incomplete or late submissions will not be considered. 

CONTACT

Please direct all questions or requests for assistance to:

Josie Kirker

Grants Manager & Public Art Administrator

josie@josephinesculpturepark.org

Application Requirements

SUBMISSION PROCEDURES 

Submissions may only be submitted electronically through the CaFÉ website (callforentry.org). Artists may submit up to 3 works for consideration. Each sculpture must be submitted as a separate entry through the CaFÉ website to allow our jurors to score each entry separately.  

Eligibility Criteria

Artists must be 18 to apply.