WSCC Addition: the Party Room
Create a site-specific artwork for a prominent interior location in the new Washington State Convention Center Addition in downtown Seattle.
Steps to Apply
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About the Project
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About the Project
- Project Budget:$800,000 [Artist’s project budget is inclusive of artist fees, materials, fabrication, on-site installation, travel and transportation, and Washington State Sales/Use Tax. In addition to the artist’s project budget, the Addition has set-aside $200,000 for lighting and electrical service, engineering support.]
- Eligibility: Open to professional artists and artist-led teams residing in the United States or British Columbia.
- Application: submission of an online application is required for this opportunity.
- Deadline: Wednesday, July 3, 2019 by 4:00 PM PDT
Public Art 4Culture is supporting the artist application process, on behalf of the Washington State Convention Center.
Opportunity
The Washington State Convention Center and Pine Street Group seek an artist or artist-led team to create a site-specific artwork for a dramatic and highly visible site. Within Seattle’s newly expanding Convention Center, The Party Room is a cantilevered space extending event activities at the Ballroom (6th floor) level. Below this event space is an impressive site for artwork—visible within the Convention Center Addition from the escalators and dramatic stair climb landings, and also from outside the building on Pine Street, a main east/west connector from Capitol Hill to the waterfront.
Location
The Party Room artwork is not intended to occupy the space above the event activities, but rather below the event space, engaging the large interior volume of the Addition. The Party Room site hovers 100 feet above the main floor of the Addition. The area is 119’ east-west by 25’ north-south for a total of 2,975 square feet. It will be viewable from multiple levels within the space as well as from Pine Street through the building’s glazed curtain wall.
Potential artwork media and application are open including 2D and 3D applications as well as light and digital-based media and kinetic forms. The selected artist will be encouraged to think broadly about the possibilities for the art. There will be technical parameters to consider for this artwork including weight loads and other structural considerations and site installation logistics.
Site Views
Client Background
Washington State Convention Center
Washington State Convention Center Addition
For nearly 30 years, the Washington State Convention Center 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.
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Timeline
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Timeline
Timeline for Selection
Call for Artists released: Wednesday, June 5, 2019
Deadline for entry: Wednesday, July 3, 2019
Selection panel meeting #1: Friday, July 19, 2019 (selection of finalists)
Finalist orientation: Tuesday, July 30, 2019*
Selection panel meeting #2: Wednesday, July 31, 2019 (finalists’ interviews)*
*Applicants should be available in this timeframe to participate in an in-person or video conferencing orientation and interview if selected as a finalist. If in-person attendance is required, 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
September 2019: contract issued
October – December 2019: research and conceptual development
January 21, 2020: presentation of conceptual proposal
February – May 2020: design development and final design schedule dependent on approved concept and contractor milestones
TBD 2021: on-site implementation
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Are You Eligible?
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Are You Eligible?
Eligibility
This project is open to professional artists and artist-led teams residing in the United States and British Columbia.
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:
- Quality and strength of past work as demonstrated in the submitted application materials.
- Command of dynamic spatial relationships and demonstrated understanding of complex sites with multiple viewing points.
- Perceived ability to create an engaging environmental experience.
- Ability to think on a macro and micro scale about physical environment, view point connections, and public interaction.
- Perceived ability and interest in creating site-specific artwork.
- Availability to begin proposal development work immediately.
Selection Process
A six-person selection panel will review the applications and select three finalists for interviews. Prior to the interview, all finalists are asked to attend (either in-person or through an on-line conferencing option) 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 the commission.
All finalists will be asked to attend the orientation on July 30 and the interview session on July 31, 2019. Due to other activity in Seattle at that time, including the Art Fair and Sea Fair events, these meetings may be hosted virtually through an on-line meeting platform. If an in-person option is selected, the meetings will be held in Seattle, Washington and 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.
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How to Apply
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How to Apply
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.
Profile
Contact information for yourself or all members of your team if applying as a team.
Statement of Interest
Write a statement (500 words or less) explaining why you are interested in this opportunity and how you would approach this commission considering your past work. Consider the selection criteria as it relates to your experience and interests. Applicants are NOT asked to submit a proposal as part of the application.
Résumé
Two-page (maximum) current professional résumé. Keep the formatting as simple as possible. PDF is preferred; text (.txt) files will also be accepted. Teams should upload one document with two-page résumés for each team member.
Work Samples
You must submit 10 total work samples to be eligible for consideration. We encourage you to submit work samples that best illustrate your qualifications for this opportunity. Artists whose primary practice includes time-based media may submit up to 5 of the 10 samples as audio or video files, with a cumulative run-time of up to 5 minutes.
- Digital Images: submit up to 10 digital images (no composites) of past work. If applying as a team, a maximum of 10 images may be submitted, inclusive of all team members. Upload JPG files only; images must be under 2 MB in size, 1920 pixels on the longest side, and at least 72 dpi.
- Audio/Video: submit up to five (5) audio or video samples if these media relate to your art practice (i.e., to show kinetic artwork, gradations of light, sound or media-based art, etc.). Audio samples must be submitted via SoundCloud with the specific URL (e.g., soundcloud.com/29523) noted on the Work Sample Upload page. Video samples must be submitted via Vimeo or YouTube, with the specific URL (e.g., vimeo.com/2992575) noted on the Work Sample Upload page. All submissions must be publicly accessible (password protected files will not be accepted). Timed excerpts are preferred, but longer samples may be submitted with notation in the description field of specific start and stop time for a cumulative run time of up to 5 minutes. Please include the start and stop times for excerpted audio/video samples at the beginning of the descriptive text.
Each work sample requires a brief description (75 words or less). Descriptions should include the following information if applicable: project location, commissioning agency, budget, project partners, photo credit, and copyright owner.