CITY of LOS ANGELES DEPARTMENT of CULTURAL AFFAIRS

LOS ANGELES LAUNCHES FIRST PUBLIC ART BIENNIAL – SUMMER 2016

PUBLIC ART DIVISION - Request for Proposals (RFP)

DEADLINE: MONDAY, NOVEMBER 16, 2015

CURRENT: LA WATER

CALL FOR ARTISTS

 

BACKGROUND

Developed by the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs (DCA), CURRENT:LA is an ongoing, biannual temporary art initiative that aims to establish a new paradigm for public art in LA, one that is transformative and contributes to the creation of social capital and public discourse locally, nationally, and globally. CURRENT:LA seeks to maximize the potential for public art to create dialogue and help change how we understand and respond to issues, with an inaugural presentation in 2016 that will respond to the issue of water.

DESCRIPTION OF OPPORTUNITY

CURRENT:LA Water will establish the rst Public Art Biennial for Los Angeles. Led by DCA’s Public Art Division, the initiative will utilize public sites throughout LA for temporary public art projects that aim to generate civic discourse on the issue of water and allied topics such as infrastructure, drought, ecology and conservation, among others. CURRENT:LA Water will take place for one month in late summer 2016.

CRITERIA

DCA is seeking to award up to ten (10) temporary public art project commissions through this Request for Proposals (RFP).

Artists may apply individually or as a team; artist teams may not change over the life of the project. Each artist/team may submit only one (1) project proposal in response to this RFP. Artist/team proposal submissions should demonstrate the professional capacity to oversee the design, fabrication, installation and de-installation of temporary artworks in outdoor public space, and experience working in consultation with curators, project teams, City staff, technical professionals, governmental committees, and the public. Successful proposals will demonstrate artistic merit, conceptual strength, and inventive strategies for public engagement before and/or during the one-month presentation of CURRENT:LA Water.

ELIGIBILITY

This RFP is open to professional artists/teams living and working in the County of Los Angeles. Artists and artist teams pre-qualied for other DCA-administered public art opportunities are not prevented from applying to this RFP. Employees of the City of Los Angeles are ineligible to apply.

PROJECT BUDGET

The maximum budget for each project proposal is $20,000. The preliminary/itemized budget included in each proposal submission must cover all expenses required to execute the proposed project, inclusive of all costs for design, fabrication, installation, de-installation, insurance, and public engagement. CURRENT:LA Water is funded by DCA and Bloomberg Philanthropies through its Public Art Challenge initiative.

SELECTION PROCESS

A Curatorial Committee of Los Angeles-based professional curators will review the proposals submitted in response to this RFP. The Committee will assess all submitted proposals and select up to ten (10) artists/teams to be awarded a CURRENT:LA Water public art commission.

SITE NAME

Weddington Park / South

Origin of LA River

Grifth Observatory

Cheviot Hills Recreation Center

South Los Angeles Wetland Park

Kenneth Hahn State Recreation Area

Ballona Wetlands

Bell Canyon Park

Banning’s Landing Community Center

NEIGHBORHOOD

Studio City

Canoga Park

Los Feliz

West LA

South Park

Ladera Heights

Playa del Rey

West Hills

Wilmington

POTENTIAL PROJECT SITES

Nine (9) sites have been shortlisted for CURRENT:LA Water. Proposal submissions must include a Preferred Site List that identifies three (3) of these sites as preferred for the proposed project. Artists/teams are encouraged to visit and/or research the shortlisted sites. Any site-related inquiries must be directed only to DCA; not to facility staff or other City agencies. All locations are subject to change subsequent to the commission of projects through this RFP.

1. CONTACT INFORMATION for artist submitting the proposal; artist teams must identify one artist as DCA’s primary contact and provide contact information for each member of the team;

2. STATEMENT OF INTEREST [max 500 words] in being part of CURRENT:LA Water;

3. PROPOSAL DESCRIPTION [max 750 words] including the proposed artwork concept, physical materials, and potential maintenance and/or security needs;

4. TIMELINE [max 250 words] for proposed project, indicating the approximate time required for proposal tenement, fabrication/production, installation, presentation, and de-installation, and during which project phase(s) public engagement would be implemented;

5. ITEMIZED BUDGET [PDF upload] including preliminary costs for all aspects of the proposed project;

6. PREFERRED SITE LIST [max 300 words] listing three (3) preferred sites for the project, each ranked rst, second, or third choice, and a statement that describes the reason(s) for these site preferences and how a site change would impact the proposal logistically and/or conceptually;

7. PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT PLAN [max 500 words] describing public and/or community engagement strategies for the proposed project;

8. RÉSUMÉ/CV [PDF upload] for the artist; teams must submit a résumé/CV for each member of the team;

9. PROPOSED ARTWORK / MEDIA ITEMS [max five (5) file uploads] of images, video, and/or audio, including a description for each file and, if applicable, approximate dimensions;

10. PAST PROJECTS / MEDIA ITEMS [max fifteen (15) file uploads] of images, video, and/or audio, including title, year, dimensions, media/materials, and description for each file, as well as client, budget, and location if applicable; teams are encouraged to include projects completed by the team.

DEADLINE

Proposal submissions are due by 5P on Monday, November 16, 2015. Late submissions will not be accepted and incomplete submissions will not be reviewed.

HOW TO APPLY

Proposals must be submitted via SlideRoom and a complete submission must include all of the following:

RIGHTS + RESPONSIBILITIES

DCA reserves the right to decline all applications to this RFP, and/or cancel this RFP at any time. This RFP is subject to the City’s Campaign Finance, Contractor Responsibility, Equal Benets, Equal Opportunity, Living Wage, Minority/Women Business Enterprise and Slavery Disclosure Ordinances, and any other ordinances in effect in the City of Los Angeles.

ABOUT DCA

DCA manages the City of LA’s public art programs. DCA supports the creativity of local artists by funding and partnering with the City’s arts and cultural communities. The City demonstrates an ongoing commitment to arts and culture through DCA’s ongoing activities, including community arts programming, cultural grants, marketing, public arts and youth arts and education programs, to stimulate and foster the creation of arts and cultural experiences throughout the diverse neighborhoods of LA.

QUESTIONS?

Contact DCA’s Public Art Division: email Paul Pescador <paul.pescador@lacity.org> or call 213-202-5544.