Agenda Index City of Vancouver

TO:

Standing Committee on City Services and Budgets

FROM:

Director, Office of Cultural Affairs

SUBJECT:

1999 Community Public Art Grant Allocations

 

RECOMMENDATION

B. THAT funds be released on the authority of the Director, Office of Cultural Affairs after Park Board approval of projects intended for Park sites, and after Engineering or other civic staff have resolved any outstanding technical or administrative concerns.

THE GENERAL MANAGER OF COMMUNITY SERVICES COMMENTS:

The General Manager RECOMMENDS A and B.

COUNCIL POLICY

The Community Public Art program was established by Council in 1994. Its objectives are to encourage and assist artists and communities to collaborate on public art projects which contribute to community development and create art legacies. On May 18,1999, Council approved $85,000 for the Community Public Art program’s 1999-2000 cycle.

Approval of grant recommendations requires eight affirmative votes.

PURPOSE

This report recommends grants to 5 Community Public Art projects, discusses the selection process used, appends a description of the recommended projects and a list of those projects not recommended.

BACKGROUND

Since 1994, funds have gone to 48 projects, in most of the City’s neighbourhoods, from Hastings-Sunrise to Point Grey, Fraserview, mid-Main and Marpole, Strathcona, and the Downtown Eastside. Colourful mural and mosaic projects can now be found from Southlands Elementary School on Camosun Street at the City’s western boundary to the Thunderbird Community Centre on Slocan Street at the eastern boundary. While murals and mosaics are the two most common types of works, there have also been more unusual projects involving painted bus shelters, a sculpture on a Firehall, street banners, historical markers, and artworks in community gardens. The program mandate of making the arts available to the public in every-day settings has been welcomed by the many community organizations who have served as sponsors, and by the large number of participants involved in bringing the arts into their neighbourhood.

On May 18,1999, City Council approved an allocation of $85,000 to the Community Public Art Program. This is an increase from $75,000 in 1998. The deadline for applications was October 29, when 10 applications totalling $ 207,467 were received. This is the same number of applications as 1998, but an increase in the dollars requested. The applications were first reviewed by the staff Public Art Technical Team to identify departmental jurisdictions and requirements (risk management, permit needs, engineering implications, and Park Board approval requirements). Applications were then evaluated by an advisory committee of three community representatives familiar with the program goals, supported by one Cultural Planner and one Park Board staff member. The panellists rated the applications for the best fit between applications and the program goals. This report reflects the consensus of the committee members.

The three advisory committee members were:

Sheila Hall Artist, Emily Carr Institute instructor, Public Art Committee chair

Diane Thorpe Community/neighbourhood representative, past president Britannia Community Services Centre Association, Surrey Art Gallery staff

City and Park Board staff supported the review process.

Grants were recommended to 5 applicants, with preference given to projects that:
· presented a clear and well-developed plan of action and budget;
· identified lasting art legacies which are technically feasible, new or innovative, and respond to a community issue or concern; and
· demonstrated strong community support and involvement in the design and implementation of the project.

A detailed description of Program guidelines and criteria is contained in Appendix A-4.

DISCUSSION

Table 1:
Recommended Projects

Grants are recommended to the following non-profit societies which are the organizational partners in the community public art projects described in more detail in Appendix "A-1".

Community Organization

Requested

Recommended

Aunt Leah’s Independent Lifeskills Society

$ 18,900

$ 18,000

Britannia Community Centre Association

23,260

20,000

Hastings Community Centre Association

17,200

17,000

Urban Native Youth Association

15,842

15,800

Ecole Jules Quesnel/Vancouver School Board

5,215

3,000

Total

$ 80,417

$ 73,800

Approval of the recommendations in Table 1 leaves $ 12,200 in the Public Art Unallocated budget for future use.

The present report is for the program’s sixth year of operation. Staff are working with an existing Community Public Art project (Collective Echoes) to study prospective improvements in a neighbourhood’s ability to mark important places. This is being tested by providing early opportunities for residents to select desirable sites for community public art works in the Cedar Cottage and Mount Pleasant areas. This is an advance over the current process whereby sites are selected by the artist or the community organization sponsoring the project, with the immediately adjacent neighbours being asked if the proposed artwork and location are acceptable. This can behaphazard and may not recognize the opportunities and preferences that exist in a neighbourhood.

One successful model that has been reviewed for involving the neighbourhood is found in San Diego, where the neighbourhood first proposes several potential sites, and then a call to artists is issued based on these sites. Finalists are then selected by a committee of arts professionals and neighbourhood representatives. The entire process takes almost 12 months for approval, and requires matching funds from the sponsoring neighbourhood organization. Also, in contrast to Vancouver, San Diego’s relatively formal process of calls to artists and empanelled juries may limit the variety of work that is considered. However, the model does show promise for those substantial neighbourhood projects that enjoy strong community support, and might make an good option in the future without supplanting the current, more flexible process.

CONCLUSION

The Director of the Office of Cultural Affairs recommends 5 grants be approved as detailed in Appendix “A-1and 2”. Appendix A-3 lists the 5 projects not recommended for funding; and Appendix A-4 provides the guidelines and criteria of the Community Public Art program.

Staff will continue reviewing program improvements which may enhance the neighbourhood’s ability to mark significant sites.

- - - - -

Aunt Leah’s Independent Lifeskills Society
Title: Dragonfly 2
The Society is a community-based social service organization dedicated to working with young people. Through Monah Lea Gallery, its Marpole-area facility, the Society sponsored a pilot project in 1999, run by artist Eric Neighbour. The pilot successfully created 17 insect sculptures to “perch” on public buildings and added some humour and visual interest to the Marpole streetscape. This pilot enjoyed excellent community support and participation, including the Marpole Oakridge Community Centre and Firehall 22, Marpole Family Place, and the Musqueam Reserve. A grant is recommended to extend community participation through the implementation of a full-scale sculpture-making project for Marpole. Placement on civic buildings or infrastructure will be subject to the satisfaction of the General Manager of Engineering Services or General Manager of Fire and Rescue Services.

Requested: $ 18,900
Recommended: $ 18,000

Britannia Community Services Association
Title: Grandview Terrace Welcoming Poles
As part of a larger multi-year schoolyard greening campaign, the project will create two Sulias (half-totem poles) under the direction of a First Nations carver. The poles will form part of a covered outdoor classroom, to be used by students at Grandview Elementary, Grandview Terrace Childcare and adjacent residents.

Requested: $ 23,260
Recommended: $ 20,000

Hastings Community Association
Title: Water Play Wall
The artist will work with local residents and students to create a mosaic wall which will act as a colourful backing to the new “water play wall” being built in Hastings Park.

Requested: $ 17,200
Recommended: $ 17,000

Urban Native Youth Association
Title: Offerings: A Garden Installation
This project is led by two experienced artists who propose to work with urban native youth to produce a new mural in the courtyard of the Firehall Arts Centre plus a complementarysculpture/garden installation. The artists have experience working with native youth and have the support of the U.N.Y.A. and the Firehall Arts Centre. This initiative is the result of a year-long planning process, in part supported by a $2,000 grant provided by the Community Public Art program last year. The final design for the mural and the sculpture/garden installation will require approval by the Firehall Arts Centre prior to commencing production.

Requested: $ 15,842
Recommended: $ 15,800

Ecole Jules Quesnel (Vancouver School Board)
Title: Stepping Stones to the Future
The school, located at 14th and Crown, proposes a pebble-mosaic project to enhance the front entry area of their grounds. Pebble mosaics will create the focal point of a paved meeting place, a ring of “stepping stones” around an existing Cedar tree, a path through a more natural woodland area, and as part of a boulevard planting. The project is lead by an artist with substantial experience in creating such mosaics with a high degree of community participation

Requested: $ 5,215
Recommended: $ 3,000

Projects not recommended

Arts Umbrella Society
Title: “Under the Bridge”

Cedar Cottage Neighbourhood Association
Title: “Wisdom Circle”

Commercial Drive Clock Society
Title: “Commercial Drive Clock”

Urban Arts Club Society
Title: “Mobile Artopia”

West End Community Centre Association
Title: “West End Link”

1999 Community Public Art brochure
(not available electronically)

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