Call for Art: ArtsinStark invites any artist over 18 years of age living in the state of Ohio to submit an image to fit inside the giant television set being created for the sixth moment of The ELEVEN public art series: “Monday Night Football, 1970.” Images submitted can be drawings, paintings, or digitally created art.  ArtsinStark will award $5,000 to the artist with the winning image, and $500 to five runners up as well.  The winning image will become part of a banner mural to be installed on the south wall of the Chase Bank Tower (101 Central Plaza South) in downtown Canton, OH.  The dimensions of the television screen wall are approximately 36’ high by 72’ wide.  The area inside the TV screen the winning image will fit into is approximately 30’ high by 48’ wide.    All entries must be submitted by the end of the day on Monday September 18 at CAFÉ www.CallForEntry.org  (Fee: $10).  Winners will be announced on Monday October 2, 2017.  “Monday Night Football” will be unveiled in November of 2017. The sponsors of “Monday Night Football” are: The Deuble Foundation, The Hoover Foundation, Stark Community Foundation, The Timken Foundation.  For more information, please go to www.artsinstark.com/84  Note: if you are new to CAFÉ www.CallForEntry.org ,please reach out to Alaska Thompson, Project Coordinator at (330) 546-3098 or artbyalaska@gmail.com with questions.   It is a two-step process: 1) first you create a profile on CAFÉ https://youtu.be/2XOoFON-HMw , and 2) then you use your profile to apply for this specific call: Monday Night Football Design Competition ($7,500 in Prizes)

Background: Canton, OH is the birthplace of the NFL.  The ELEVEN is a public art project of ArtsinStark and The Pro Football Hall of Fame celebrating the greatest moments in professional football history.  Five of the ELEVEN moments have been completed to date (three sculptures, one banner mural, and one painted mural).  The “Monday Night Football” banner mural will be the sixth moment. 

Why this moment is important: The “Monday Night Football” moment recognizes the phenomenal success of NFL games telecasted during prime time on a weeknight which began on September 21, 1970, when the Cleveland Browns faced the New York Jets on ABC-TV’s Monday Night Football debut.  Here is an excerpt from the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s 150 Anniversary Book:

Sundays have long been synonymous with NFL football. But in 1970, a new weekly tradition that included one featured game on Monday night forever changed the landscape of the game. Few could imagine the enduring impact of ABC’s telecast of the NFL during prime time on a weeknight. Doubters were prevalent when the Cleveland Browns faced the New York Jets in the Monday Night Football debut on September 21, 1970. Yet the tradition became a nationwide phenomenon that captured huge ratings and in turn was a major reason for the NFL’s dramatic rise in popularity in the years that followed.

Materials to be submitted: The CAFÉ  www.CallForEntry.org website allows 10 attachments. Please use them for examples of your previous work.  Also you will see separate boxes that request: #1: your one page resume, #2: your submitted image (either a concept image or a finished image), and #3: an artist statement about your submitted image. (If you choose to submit a concept image, rather than a finished image, please make sure that your examples of your previous work are as strong as possible). Note: if you submit digitally created art, the Selection Committee reserves the right to request from you copies of the original images you used so we can understand how they were manipulated.

 Judging: The criteria are: a) Does it truly capture the moment?  b) Is the art of the highest possibility quality? and c) Is the concept so amazing that even visitors who don’t love football will still want to come see it? 

Time winning artist will have to complete project: If image submitted is a concept image, the winning artist will have 22 days to create the finished image. 

Research: We are open to all ideas for an image to fit inside the TV set that captures what this  historic moment was about.  Here are some resources that might help:

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgYsrhmT2tw  Few minutes from first broadcast

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rqRkUkpSjHE  Comments about the idea

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPUbS_sNv_o  A 25 year look back

http://www.cleveland.com/ohio-sports-log/index.ssf/2010/11/cleveland_browns_vs_new_york_j.html   How one writer saw first game

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Monday_Night_Football    Wikipedia history

Application Requirements

Eligibility Criteria