Qualifications are requested from artists and/or artist teams interested in creating site specific public artwork(s) for the University of Colorado’s new Anschutz Health Sciences Building on their campus in Aurora, Colorado. The budget for this opportunity is $218,000 and the deadline for submission is January 6, 2020.

ABOUT THE UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO ANSCHUTZ & THE HEALTH SCIENCES BUILDING
The University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus (CU Anschutz) is the largest academic health center in the Rocky Mountain region, and a world-class medical destination at the forefront of transformative education, science, medicine, and healthcare. The campus includes the University of Colorado health professional schools, multiple centers and institutes and two nationally ranked hospitals, UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital and Children’s Hospital Colorado, which treat nearly 2 million patients each year. All interconnected, these organizations collaboratively improve the quality of patient care they deliver, research they conduct, and health professionals they train.

 The Anschutz Health Sciences Building (AHSB), which is expected to open in mid-2021, integrates functionality, healing and future-mindedness into its stunning seven-story design, providing much-needed space for education, research and clinical programs at CU Anschutz. The research and innovation that will happen in the AHSB will improve mental, behavioral and overall health for Coloradans and people across globe; and the combination of programs within the facility will be a centerpiece for collaboration, a space where leaders, entrepreneurs and other thinkers work together to reshape the future of health care. The Anschutz Health Sciences Building will be an integral and dynamic focal point of the campus, furthering its trajectory as one of the leading medical care, research, and education facilities in the world.

The seven-story, 390,914 square foot interdisciplinary building, designed by ZGF, in partnership with Anderson Mason Dale, will be located at the western portion of campus, serving as an entry point to the “artwalk” – the main pedestrian promenade of our campus. ASHB will support multiple users, including researchers, faculty and staff, students and patients, and includes facilities for computational research and clinical trials, an educational medical simulation hub, mental/behavioral health research clinics, faculty offices, and other educational and amenity spaces to be shared by the campus.

The Anschutz Health Sciences Building’s sculptural form takes its cues from the carved mass of the surrounding mountains and canyons integral to Colorado’s regional identity and is expressed as a rich layering of plateaus and faces in the crystalline exterior of metal and glass. The exterior architecture extends into the interior spaces, creating moments for occupants to interact between the interior and exterior environments with ledges and terraces that allow access to the outdoors and Colorado landscape views. A sky lit atrium serves as a central gathering space, promoting connection and collaboration across the multiple floors. The project is targeting LEED Gold v4.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR ARTWORK
The Art Selection Committee is looking to commission an artwork for the interior of the Anschutz Health Sciences Building, and has pinpointed several possible locations for the artwork. One of the possible sites is a second-floor wall, designated as the southwest site in the provided plans and renderings. This southwest site visible from the main entrance on the southwest side and likely also visible from the exterior. Artists could propose a wall or ceiling mounted artwork for this particular location. This location can support up to 5,000lbs hanging from above. The second location, the northwest site, is a two story area between the 1st and 2nd floors. The final artwork opportunity is a two-story space on the south side of the building, near the entrance and next to floor-to-ceiling windows. This location can accommodate a ceiling-hung artwork that could activate the vertical space. This artwork likely will also be visible from the building’s exterior. The south location can support 1000lbs hanging from the stair above, with a required involvement from the building’s structural engineers for input on vibration characteristics and how that may affect the artwork.

The committee would like the work to address the science focus of the Anschutz Health Sciences Building’s programs, including the interface between data and nature. The core goal of ASHB is collaboration and a multidisciplinary approach to medicine, so an artwork that relates in some way to these aspects of the building would be appreciated. 

Full RFQ and images of the building and site plans available here.

BUDGET: $218,000
The contract amounts are inclusive of all costs associated with the project including, but not limited to, the artist’s design fee, other consultation fees such as structural engineering, insurance, materials, fabrication, transportation and installation, including any building or site modification required, travel to and from the site, per diem expense, project documentation, contingency to cover unexpected expense and any other costs of any kind. Out-of-state semi-finalist artists will receive $1,500 and in-state semi-finalists will receive $1,000 as an honorarium for the creation of a design proposal.

COLOADO ART IN PUBLIC PLACES PROGRAM
In 1977, the Colorado General Assembly passed the Art in Public Places Act requiring that 1% of the construction costs of new or renovated state-owned buildings be used to acquire works of art for permanent installation at the project site. Colorado Creative Industries is responsible for implementation of the law. All works of art commissioned pursuant to this request are owned by the State of Colorado via the University of Colorado Anschutz. De-accession of the public art, if necessary, will follow the policies and procedures established by Colorado Creative Industries.

SELECTION PROCESS AND SCHEDULE
The Art Selection Committee will review all complete submittals. A short list of semi­finalists will be invited to prepare and present a final proposal in person. Final selection(s) will be made from the semi­finalists’ proposals by the Art Selection Committee and approved the Creative Industries Council. The approximate schedule is as follows:

Deadline for entry (via CaFÉ™ system): January 6, 2020 11:59 pm MST
Semi-finalists notified: January/February 2020
Semi-finalist presentations to the committee: February/March 2020
Building construction completed: November 2020
Building Occupancy: 2021

QUESTIONS
If you require more information or clarification, please contact Ruth Bruno, Public Art Program Manager, at 303­892-3813 or ruth.bruno@state.co.us.

ADDITIONAL SOURCES OF INFORMATION
https://www.cuanschutz.edu/
https://medschool.cuanschutz.edu/
https://youtu.be/ZrGJMcthyVU’
https://www.caaicon.com/portfolio/anschutz-health-sciences-building
https://medschool.cuanschutz.edu/cape
https://www.cobiobank.org/
http://www.ucdenver.edu/about/departments/FacilitiesManagement/Pages/AMC-Walk.aspx

 

Application Requirements

Eligibility Criteria

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