Opportunities + Context

Boren Avenue is a four-lane, fast-moving thoroughfare. The frontage of the WSCC Addition is a steep block rising from north to south at about a 12% grade. The goal of the artwork here is to create a more pedestrian friendly edge condition and experience along Boren while also helping to promote connections to adjacent neighborhoods, particularly Seattle’s Capitol Hill. The landscape, lighting, seating, and building facade are all potential elements of a collaborative artwork opportunity. The selected artist will be encouraged to think holistically about this site as place with the other members of the design team: LMN Architects and GGN Landscape Architects.

The Olive Way site exists in proximity to the interior elevator banks of the Addition. This location presents a collaborative opportunity to engage the kinetic/lighting potential of the moving elevators and the streetscape. This streetscape experience is setting the stage for future mixed-use development across the street at the co-development sites and beyond to the Denny Triangle and South Lake Union.

The artists selected to design site-specific artwork for the Boren and Olive Way sites need to maximize their interaction with the rest of the design team. The selected artists will need to begin design work immediately.

To build the Addition project, the WSCC requested several street and alley vacations from the city. In exchange, the project provided a package of public benefits, including three significant public artworks. These opportunities at Boren Avenue and Olive Way are two of those public benefit artwork sites. All of the public benefit artwork areas are perceived as zones of experience, allowing the selected artists the broadest opportunity to define the intent, materials and possibility of the artwork.

Locations

Client Background

Washington State Convention Center
Washington State Convention Center Addition

For nearly 30 years, the WSCC has been the Northwest’s premier meetings and events facility. WSCC welcomes thousands of visitors from around the globe each year, offering industry-leading service, award-winning catering, and a comprehensive range of services for event planners, exhibitors, and guests.

Following years of study and continuing demand from convention goers who prefer to meet in Seattle, the WSCC is building an additional facility.

The existing WSCC and its new Addition are located in Seattle’s downtown core at the intersection of several distinct, urban, and rapidly evolving neighborhoods. The Addition project includes two co-development sites and will transform the equivalent of four blocks of downtown streetscape. The design of the WSCC Addition and its public art program aim to create enhanced connections with the surrounding neighborhoods and promote a unique experience that embodies the essence of the Pacific Northwest.

Timeline for Selection

Call for artists released: Wednesday, May 23, 2018
Deadline for entry: Thursday, June 21, 2018, 4:00 pm PDT
Selection panel meeting #1: Friday, July 13, 2018 [selection of finalists]
Finalist orientation: Thursday, July 26, 2018*
Selection panel meeting #2: Friday, July 27, 2018 [finalist interviews] *

*You should be available in this timeframe in order to participate in an in-person orientation and interview if selected as a finalist. Out-of-town finalists will be reimbursed for travel and lodging expenses to attend both the orientation and interview in Seattle, Washington. If applying as a team, the allowance for travel may not fully reimburse all team members. The panel reserves the right to make no selection from the submitted applications or finalist interviews.

Project Timeline

August 2018: contract issued
September—October 2018: research and preliminary ideation
November 20, 2018: presentation of conceptual proposal
December 2018–May 2019: design development and final design schedule dependent on approved concept and contractor milestones
TBD 2021: on-site implementation

Eligibility

This project is open to professional artists and artist-led teams residing in the Pacific Northwest region: WA, OR, ID, BC.

WSCC and Pine Street Group employees and board members, 4Culture employees, selection panel members, WSCC Art Advisory Committee members, project personnel including design consultants, and immediate family members of all of the above are not eligible to apply.

Selection Criteria

Finalists will be selected on the basis of the following criteria:

Selection Process

The artists for these commission will be selected through an open call process. A six-person selection panel will consider both the Boren Avenue and the Olive Way sites, review the applications and shortlist up to six finalists total for interviews. Prior to the interview, all finalists are asked to attend an orientation so that they can fully understand the site context and scope of the WSCC Addition project, as well as adjacent developments and neighborhood connections. The panel will reconvene to interview the finalists and select one artist for each of the commissions.

All finalists will be asked to attend the orientation on July 26 and the interview session on July 27, 2018. These meetings will be held in Seattle, Washington. Finalists from outside of the greater Seattle area will be reimbursed for travel expenses and hotel accommodation.

The panel reserves the right to make no selection from the submitted applications or finalists’ interviews. The panel’s recommendations are subject to approval by the WSCC Board.

Applicants must submit the following materials via online application. The Public Art application system is being used for this process. You may be required to create a new account. Please don’t hesitate to contact us with questions.

Contact

If you have questions or concerns, please contact:

For project-related questions:
Cath Brunner
cath.brunner@4culture.org
206-263-1596

For online application questions:
Brennan Jernigan
brennan.jernigan@4culture.org
206-263-1587

Download a PDF of this Call for Artists.