REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS

ART AT THE WALLACE AND HILL ROAD ROUNDABOUT

Total Budget: $29,000

Deadline to apply: October 15, 2018

Your response to this Request for Qualifications in not intended to be a finished design of a proposed piece.  Rather, your response should present your qualifications for creating such a piece and one or more concepts for the finished piece.  Finalists will be chosen to develop the finished design based on your responses to this Request for Qualifications.

Submission of an existing work is an acceptable response to this Request for Qualifications.

The McMinnville Downtown Association Committee for Public Art (MDACPA) in collaboration with the City of McMinnville is seeking qualifications from professional artists or artist teams for this project.  Interested artists/teams must submit a brief statement providing adequate information to describe a conceptual approach to the project.  The deadline for submittals is October 15, 2018.  Artist/teams must be available for an interview on a mutually agreeable date between October 15 and November 15, 2018 and the selected artists/teams must be available for project development, coordination and installation in winter 2018 to Spring 2019. The art for the Roundabout is intended to be a permanent installation and enhance the experiences of drivers and pedestrians using both roads and sidewalks.

A total budget of $29,000 has been established for this project, including all artist fees, materials, insurance, delivery to site, travel, fabrication, and periodic communications and/or meetings with the Steering Committee.  Finalists will be selected for a personal interview with the Steering Committee.  Each finalist will receive an honorarium of $500, designated for preparation of interview meeting materials and travel.

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

Art in the Roundabout will be the fourth piece of public art commissioned by the MDACPA in conjunction with City of McMinnville and the County of Yamhill, Oregon,  both of which are in the mid-Willamette Valley, 40 miles Southwest of Portland, Oregon.  The project will be overseen by the MDACPA which has commissioned or selected 28 pieces of public art for the City of McMinnville over its 10 years of existence. 

The Steering Committee for this project is the MDACPA Committee and private funders of the project.

The Roundabout is located at the intersection of Wallace and Hill Roads (See site map below).  The Roundabout is presently under construction and is expected to be completed in fall of 2018.    

The highly public nature of this site specific public art installation presents an excellent opportunity to engage and inform the general public and regional decision makers of the purposes and benefits of public art and its process.  The Artist/team will be invited to participate, in partnership with the Steering Committee, in at least one public forum about or dedication of the piece.

PROJECT BACKGROUND

In November, 2014, McMinnville voters passed a $24 million General Obligation Bond measure for street improvements throughout the City.   Part of the project was the installation of the first two traffic circles, roundabouts, within the City.  As part of the roundabout project, the MDACPA was tasked with arranging for public art in the center of each roundabout. 

McMinnville has a population just under 33,000.  It is the home to a four year liberal arts college, Linfield College, and also has a branch campus of Salem’s Chemeketa Community College.  The City puts emphasis on supporting its Library services and the arts.  We have several festivals and events that celebrate our heritage and the arts.  We also have one of the largest “Alien Days” festivals in the Country.

We are a community that uniquely works in cooperation with each other, is fiscally responsible and is serious about maintaining the quality of life for its citizens.  We also try to maintain our sense of humor. 

PROJECT GOALS AND CRITERIA

The art procured for this project should be appropriate to the site, e.g. it should be able to be appreciated while going by in an automobile, etc.  There is no firm subject matter requested.  We leave it to the Artist/teams to be creative and propose something that is fitting for this significant work of art for McMinnville.

PROJECT LOCATION DESCRIPTION (THE SITE)

The Roundabout is presently under construction.

The roundabout is designed to accommodate up to a 12 foot diameter concrete pad in the center.  The proposed piece must fit within that diameter.  Within reason, there are no height restrictions. 

There is no firm schedule for installation of the mounting pad.  To some degree, that date is flexible.  The mounting pad will be installed by the City and the cost will not come from the $ 29,000 budget of the project. 

INSTALLATION

The City can make a boom truck and crew available to assist the Artist/team with the sculpture placement, if desired.  The Artist/team will be responsible for overseeing, placement and attachment of the sculpture to the pad.  The City provided boom truck can be made available to a mutually agreeable schedule between the MDACPA, City and the Artist/team.  The sculpture should be installed on a single installation date if at all possible in order to minimize negative effect on local traffic.

The artist is expected to arrange for transport to the installation site.  Any payment due for transportation to the installation site will be considered part of the overall budget of the project.

BUDGET

A total budget of $29,000 has been established for this project, including all artist fees, materials, insurance, delivery to site, travel, fabrication, and periodic communications and/or meetings with the Steering Committee.  Finalists will be selected for a personal interview with the Steering Committee.  Each finalist will receive an honorarium of $500, upon completion and submission of a final design for the proposed piece. 

Funding has been achieved by the MDACPA through City funds and private donations. 

ARTIST ELIGIBILITY

We are seeking a qualified professional Artist or Artist team for this project.  Interested Artists/teams must submit qualifications and a brief statement providing adequate information to describe a conceptual approach to the project, or to propose a specific piece.

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

All application must include the following to be considered:

• An Artist’s Statement, not exceeding three pages, addressing a broad concept approach and a proposed budget estimate.

• Referral to Artist’s web site containing photographs of past work, or visual documentation (up to 10 images) in digital format that illustrates the artist’s capabilities and labeled with image identification stating title, dimensions, site installed, year created and artist’s name.

• One copy of a current resume (in PDF form) not to exceed three pages for the artist, or each artist if applying as a team.

• Contact information for the artist and two professional references.

The Steering Committee may not consider applicants who do not follow these guidelines.

CALENDAR

Issue Request for Qualifications               September 15, 2018

Deadline for submissions                           October 15, 2018

Selection of Finalists                                    November 15, 2018

Final selection & notification                     December 15, 2018

Final installation                                          April/June 2019

SELECTION PROCESS

A Steering Committee has been empowered by the City to:

• Develop and issue an RFQ

• Review RFQ submittals and select semi-finalists

• Schedule and conduct the interviews of the semi-finalists

• Recommend the finalist Artist/team to the City of McMinnville

• Serve as a resource for the Artist/team

All submitted and complete applications will be subjected to a juried evaluation process.  The Steering Committee serves as the project’s selection panel and will select semi-finalists to develop a more complete project proposal and participate in a personal interview with the Steering Committee.  Selection criteria include:

• Successful completion of other creative projects of a similar nature.

• Mastery or skill in an artistic medium, with emphasis on materials suitable for exterior installation.

• Strong communication and organizational skills.

• Creative, cost-effective solutions to the project’s goals.

• Proven ability to work within a budget and meet deadlines.

SOURCES FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

www.ci.mcminnville.or.us

RESOURCES FOR QUESTIONS

Steven Rupp, Chair MDACPA

mdacpa@onlinemac.com;

971-241-9251

Application Requirements

Eligibility Criteria