Arts Council of Fairfax County

Summary
The Arts Council of Fairfax County is accepting qualifications from artists or artist teams for a public art project in Fairfax, VA.  The selected artist/team will design, fabricate, and install a permanent work of art at 8401 Arlington Boulevard, Fairfax, VA at Dewberry’s Fairfax Headquarters in spring 2019.  

Background Information

Dewberry is a civil engineering and architecture firm based in Fairfax VA with over 2000 employees in 50 locations throughout the United States.  Dewberry is an engineering/architecture firm that specializes in major transportation, emergency management, geospatial, water management, and environmental projects. Sidney O. Dewberry co-founded the firm in 1956, and Barry K. Dewberry is executive chairman of the family owned company. Family and corporate values include team work, honesty, loyalty, fairness, professional ethics, dedication, respect, community involvement, and hard work. The headquarters building is also home to a significant collection of historical surveying instruments.

Scope of Work

The artist/team will be responsible for designing, fabricating, and installing a permanent iconic work of art that will convey the nature of the firm’s work, acknowledge the husband and wife founding team, as well as the corporate and family values.  Bot figurative and abstract designs will be considered. 

Project Budget

The $1 million artist fee includes design, materials, fabrication, insurance, travel, packing, shipping, installation, and a maintenance plan for the artwork.  All necessary site preparation and lighting will be provided by the firm. 

Installation Site

There are three possible sites for the installation as noted on the site plan.  1) The grassy slope in front of the building may be considered for the site and may be expanded. 2) The patio area at the main entrance.  The railing may be removed, replaced, or incorporated into the project. 3) The street level corner of the access road and driveway. All three locations can be viewed from vehicles along Arlington Boulevard and the corporate offices. 

Link to Site Plan and images:    

site plan with scale

Eligibility

Professional artists and design professionals are invited to apply as individuals or teams.  Public Art experience with comparable scaled projects is required. 

How to Submit Qualifications

Applications must be submitted on-line at https://artsfairfax.submittable.com by April 30, 2018.

The following materials will be required to be uploaded:

Statement of      Interest.       Describe your interest in the project and experience working on      comparable projects, and preliminary ideas for how you would approach this      project. If applying as a team, identify all team members in the      statement. (500 words maximum)

Resume. Maximum of      three pages outlining your professional accomplishments.  If submitting as a team, please include      resumes for each team member, with each resume being no longer than three      pages.

Images of Past      Work. At least five unique examples of installed past work of similar      scope, scale and budget as shown with a minimum of five and a maximum of      ten (10) jpeg images of prior public art projects.  Each image must be numbered and include      the title, date of completion/installation, media, dimensions (height x      width x depth, in feet), location, final project cost and a brief      description of the work.

Three      Professional References, including name, affiliated      organization (if appropriate), email address, phone number, and      relationship to each reference. References      should be able to speak to your ability to provide services for the public      art project.  

Finalists will be invited to present:

1. Written description of project (up to 1000 words), which includes an overview of the concept, description of materials and fabrication method being contemplated;

2. Visual illustration(s) of the concept(s) in either a rendering or maquette;

3. Site plan showing how artwork will fit into the site; 

4. Preliminary budget(s) that address major costs, including materials, fabrication, insurance, installation requirements, transport, and fee considerations.

Anticipated Schedule

RFQ Issue date………………………………………………………………………………………………….March 9, 2018

Deadline for Submission of Qualifications…………………………………….....……………………………April 30, 2018

Notification of Finalists……………………………………………………………………………………………..May 15, 2018

Artist presentations.…………………………………………………………….…………….…..…………….. June 15, 2018

Artist selection…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..June 30, 2018

Award of Contract(s)………………………………………………………………………………………………….July 2018

Final Design Review……………………………….……………………………………....…………………............fall 2018

Installation ……………………………………………….…………………………………..……………......……spring 2019 

Selection Process and Criteria:

A panel of stakeholders will select artist/team(s) based on preliminary submission materials, and will interview up to four finalists. Finalists invited to interview and present their proposals will receive an honorarium of $2500. Site visits are welcome. The following criteria will be used to make the selections:

·         Artistic merit as evidenced by digital representation of past work

·         Experience of artist/team with projects of similar scale and scope

·         Appropriateness of the artist/team’s medium, style, and previous professional experience as they relate to the goals and site for this project

·         The ability of the artist to successfully work within the project timeline and budget.

Questions

Please contact Lisa Mariam at LMariam@artsfairfax.org for questions on this RFQ.  

The Arts Council is collecting contact information and descriptions of programs by and for 50+ residents including teaching artists, art therapists, and arts programs in all arts disciplines.  The resulting Creative Aging Resource Guide will be used to assist senior centers, community centers, adult day programs, and recreation centers for the 2018 Creative Aging Festival as well as year round programming.

The goal of the Creative Aging initiative is to encourage older adult participation in the arts by promoting programming by and for 50+ residents and education on the benefits of older adult participation in the arts. 

This Final Report form is for completion by FY2018 Fast Track Grant recipients and is due within 60 days of receipt of funds.

Fast Track Grants are non-matching grants to Fairfax County arts organizations to fund one-time events or activities that fall outside the regular cycle or scope of Arts Council grants.

Award Amount

Applicants may request up to $1,000. No Match is required. A Fast Track Grant is paid in full at the time of award.

Applicant Eligibility

Please contact the Grants Department of the Arts Council about an activity’s appropriateness or eligibility before beginning the application process.

All applicants must meet the following criteria to apply for a Fast Track Grant. Staff reviews all grant applications for eligibility prior to any awards consideration.

1. An organization is eligible to apply if it has as a core mission the creation, exhibition, presentation, production, or performance of and/or education in an arts discipline.It has regular activity in a minimum of four different months in the year or 120 days of the year.

2. An organization must:

• Be in compliance with all local, state, and federal laws; and

• Hold current or pending status under IRS code 501(c)(3); or

• Operate as a specifically defined arts division, or have its own arts program identity, within a larger nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization.

3. The organization or the division/program that is applying must have an address of record within the geographical boundaries of Fairfax County, the City of Fairfax, or the City of Falls Church and satisfy TWO of the following four criteria:

• Present at least 51% of public artistic activities within the geographical boundaries of Fairfax County, the City of Fairfax, or the City of Falls Church, or

• Meet, rehearse, exhibit, and operate within the geographical boundary of Fairfax County, the City of Fairfax, or the City of Falls Church, or

• Have 51% of board of directors’ members work or reside in Fairfax County, the City of Fairfax, or the City of Falls Church, or

• Verify that 51% of attendees at performances, exhibits, events, and activities reside in Fairfax County, the City of Fairfax, or the City of Falls Church evidenced through acceptable statistical data including but not limited to: ticket analysis, subscription data, box office surveys, and audience surveys.

4. The applicant must have submitted all required final reports for any grant(s) received from the Arts Council of Fairfax County during the most recently completed fiscal year.

5. An organization must have independently prepared financial statements such as an audit or a treasurer’s report.

6. An organization is not eligible to apply to the Fast Track Grant program if it receives line item funding from Fairfax County in fiscal year 2018 or directly supports a county government program or agency.

7. Organizations may receive Fast Track Grants only once per 12 month period.

8. An organization has to be a county wide non-profit organization or foundation.

9. Preference will be given to programs that serve Fairfax county residents.

Criteria:

• Project addresses an opportunity or need that falls outside the regular cycle or scope of Arts Council grants

• Grant funds will meet the applicant’s identified need

• Project costs are realistic

Eligible Expenses

• Unforeseen project costs that could threaten an organization’s ability to successfully carry out a project

• Equipment lease, purchase or repair that was not anticipated

• Unexpected artistic opportunity not part of regular season or artistic calendar

• Emergency situation as defined by the organization

The Fast Track grant is not an alternative for submitting late applications or missing deadlines in other categories. Funds may not be used for deficit reduction, construction or renovation projects, political advocacy, expenses that have occurred in the past or fundraising events. If funds are requested to support an activity or performance, the event must be open to the public.

Grant Preparation Assistance

Please contact the Grants Department of the Arts Council with questions about an activity’s appropriateness or eligibility.

Deadlines

Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until available funds are expended.

Review Process: Applications will be internally reviewed by a panel of staff members and approved by the Grants Committee of the Arts Council. Applicants will be notified of their grant status within 30 days of receipt of the application.

Final Report: A one-page (maximum) final report is required within 60 days of receipt of funds summarizing how funds were spent and the impact of the grant.