RFQ: Port St. Lucie Botanical Gardens, Rose Garden Temporary Sculpture
Issue Date: September 5, 2024
Due Date: September 27, 2024 by 3pm EST
PROJECT PURPOSE AND SITE
The Friends of the Port St. Lucie Botanical Gardens (the “Friendsˮ) is seeking an artist or artist teams to install a sculpture at the Port St Lucie Botanical Gardens on a temporary basis for a period of eighteen (18) months. The artwork will be installed by November 12, 2024.
The Port St. Lucie Botanical Gardens is a welcome oasis of greenery in the heart of Port St. Lucie. Located on the banks of the North Fork of the St. Lucie River, the site features a lake with a fountain, paved public paths, beautiful gardens, a pavilion, and more. This beautiful sanctuary has numerous gardens overflowing with plant-life, including a butterfly garden, orchid room, and rose garden, where this artwork will be displayed.
DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS
The Town will have a staff committee as well as an Artist Selection Panel of community members that will review proposals and make recommendations to Town Council. In addition to working with these groups, the selected artist will need to review community preferences that have been gathered during development of the Town of Erie Art & Placemaking Plan. During the RFP process, the artist will be expected to describe their community engagement plan. Once an artist is selected, they will work with the staff committee to develop an event, attend a planned event, or design a creative way to gather community input specific to this particular art installation.
Other considerations include:
In-process and/or unfinished artworks may be considered
The selected artwork shall not exceed 8 feet in height, nor a diameter of 4 feet.
The Friends will provide:
a circular, 4-foot diameter, weight-bearing concrete pad to support the artwork; the pad is tinted green to blend into the surrounding landscape
a plaque that will feature the artworkʼs title and the artistʼs name
artwork lighting
Who May Apply
Visual, craft or design artists (or artist teams), in all media, including landscape architects and interior designers, at least 18 years of age and legal residents of the United States are eligible to apply. City of Port St. Lucie staff, Artist Selection Committee members and their family members are not eligible to apply.
SUBMISSION PROCESS AND GUIDELINES
Submittal materials will not be returned and incomplete applications will not be considered. All application materials below are required for submission of this RFQ. Please submit a single PDF package with the following:
Cover Letter (1 page)
Contact Information, including address, email, social media information, and phone number
Statement of interest and qualifications, including a description of the artistʼs experience with similar projects
Artist(s) Qualifications (1 to 3 pages)
Artist Resume/CV
No fewer than three professional references
Itemized list of artworks proposed for this opportunity, each of which must include:
Up to 10 images of each proposed artwork
Artwork title
Artwork dimensions
Artwork medium and materials
Artwork completion date
Artwork weight estimate
Artwork maintenance requirements
Declared purchase price
Submission Format
Responses shall be submitted as a single PDF file via email to Anna Talarico
anna@designinglocal.com. An acknowledgement of receipt will be sent upon submission. If the items are too large for email, please contact Anna for Google Drive Transmittal. Files may also be zipped and reduced so that the email attachments are no larger than 15MB. The selection committee may reach out to request higher resolution images.
Due Date: September 27, 2024 by 3pm EST
SELECTION PROCESS
The Friends will review RFQ submissions based on the following criteria:
Submittal of all required application materials as outlined in this RFQ.
Artistic Excellence: The aesthetic quality of the artwork, including distinctive qualities in the work and the overall visual impact of the artistʼs or artist groupʼs practice.
Evidence of quality and craftsmanship of product as exhibited by past work.
Public safety, and compliance with Americans with Disabilities Act.
Evidence of technical Feasibility: The artist must provide convincing evidence of their ability to complete the artwork as proposed.
Past Performance: The Selection Committee will consider the artistʼs performance under previous contracts including success in meeting established timelines and budgets.
Selection Process and Timeline
The timeline for the full process is below (timeline is subject to change):
September 4, 2024 RFQ released
September 27, 2024 RFQ submissions due
Early Oct. 2024 Review and Artist Identified
Mid-late Oct. 2024 Contract Negotiations
November 12, 2024 Artwork Installation
Budget
The selected artist will receive a fee of $8,000 for the eighteenth month lease of one artwork. This fee is inclusive of all costs associated with the project, including but not limited to: artist expenses/honorarium, administration, sub-consultants, travel/lodging, site preparation, artwork crating, storage, transportation and installation, related permits, licenses, deinstallation, taxes and insurance. Any expenses that exceed the contracted amount will be the artistʼs responsibility.
Questions?
Inquiries about the program or the project should be made by sending an email to:
Anna Talarico, Public Art Coordinator
Designing Local
anna@designinglocal.com
704.999 9795