| After years of study and deliberation, city council recently voted 11 to three to approve a public art policy for the City of Calgary.
The cornerstone of the policy is to have one per cent of total construction costs of all new capital projects with budgets of more than $1 million directed towards commissioning, purchasing and installing public artwork.
"Calgary was one of the last major municipalities to adopt a public art policy," says Heather Saunders of the City of Calgary. "We consulted with a number of other jurisdictions, including Vancouver and Toronto, before finalizing this policy."
In what Saunders terms as a "transitional year" for the City of Calgary, the next 12 months will see the public art policy tested in a pilot project that will include up to four capital projects that have yet to be announced. More details on the pilot project and eligible capital projects for the next five years are expected to be released in February. That information will eventually be integrated into a Public Art Master Plan that is to be completed by the end of this year. Although the implementation of the new public art policy is in its formative stages, some details have been made public.
"Public art will be selected in three ways," says Saunders. "Open competition, limited competition and direct award. We want to ensure most of the projects should be an open competition."
To help keep the process of selecting public art fair, a Public Art Board will be formed. This nine-member volunteer board will advise city administration on guidelines in the implementation of the new policy. The Public Art Board will be appointed by city council and will include a minimum of two visual artists, with other members being considered from related disciplines such as art historians, curators, architects and art consultants.
"There will be advertising to announce the recruitment process," says Saunders.
The selection of artwork for future City of Calgary capital projects will become the responsibility of art juries, which will be struck for each project. Membership for the juries will be drawn from a roster of qualified candidates that will be developed by City of Calgary art program staff.
"Local arts organizations, such as alumni associations, will be contacted for names," says Saunders. "We will also be recruiting members by placing ads in the media."
This spring, the City of Calgary plans to host a number of open houses to raise awareness about the new art policy and let interested parties know how they can become involved.
"Although the City of Calgary was late in adopting an art policy, that circumstance also allowed us the opportunity to get it right," says Saunders. "The policy will contribute to Calgary’s spirit and identity." |
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