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GARMENT DISTRICT ALLIANCE

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS

Temporary Public Sculpture on the Garment District Plazas

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

The Garment District Alliance (GDA) is seeking artists interested in submitting their qualifications, preliminary concepts, and examples of their work to be considered for a temporary public art installation on the outdoor plazas along Broadway in Manhattan’s Garment District.

The plazas are a dynamic, highly visible focal point of the Garment District enjoyed by both a diverse local business population and tourists. As part of a placemaking initiative, the GDA presents diverse programming ranging from gourmet food markets to performance art. To enhance this public environment and to increase community access to art, the GDA regularly presents sculptural art installations.

As part of the selection process, the GDA is inviting artists to submit qualifications, including examples of their recent work. Descriptions of project concepts for consideration are encouraged in the artist’s initial submission.

Following this RFQ process, selected artists may be invited to submit developed proposals including budgets for their installations. Of these, one or more artists may be selected to enter into an agreement to work with the GDA to install their work.

ARTIST AND ARTWORK CONSIDERATIONS

GDA is seeking to have new or existing artwork installed which will have strong visual impact and which will complement or otherwise enhance and highlight the public plazas and the Garment District. Works selected for installation will be outdoors for an extended period of time (a minimum of two months) and exposed to significant and generally unmonitored pedestrian traffic.

Artists selected in this phase of the process will present their background, qualifications, and examples of their artwork which will establish their ability to present and install works with the following qualities:

o Artistic Merit: The artist’s work must demonstrate a high standard of design and proficiency in their medium.

o Site Suitability: The artist’s work must demonstrate that their work would be suitable to the environmental and social context in which it would be placed, including, but not limited to, concept, size and scale relative to surrounding environmental elements, and visual quality.

o Durability: The artist must demonstrate that their work would be constructed from durable materials suitable for outdoor installation. Works need to be weatherproof, require little or no maintenance, and not easy to vandalize.

To see previous selections, please visit http://garmentdistrict.nyc/arts/plaza-art

RFQ SUBMISSION GUIDELINES

Interested parties must submit, in a single document, the following:

o Contact information: Name, Address, Telephone, Email, Website;

o Artist statement or other description of your work (up to 500 words);

o Brief description of proposed project, including how it relates to the plaza sites and the Garment District neighborhood (up to 500 words and may include concept drawings);

o Artist resume or CV;

o List of previous public installation works; and

o List of artwork images being submitted.

Please also submit

o Up to twelve (12) images of your existing work in jpeg format, 300 dpi, 5” x 7 “

All required information should be sent on a CD, USB drive or via Dropbox or Googledrive. Please provide a SASE if you would like any submission materials returned. Otherwise, works will not be returned.

SITE DESCRIPTION

The five public spaces of the Garment District Plazas project area are located on Broadway in Manhattan, between 36th Street and 41st Streets (36th to 37th Street, 37th to 38th Street, 38th to 39th Street, 39th to 40th Street, and 40th to 41st Street). Proposals may be for installations on one or more plazas. Artworks will be installed for a minimum of two months with length of time determined at time of contracting with proposer subject to conditions, plaza availability, and NYC DOT approval.

The plazas are paved with asphalt over a concrete base and coated with painted gravel. They were formerly part of the Broadway roadbed which has been transformed into places of public use and enjoyment. Lined with planters of bushes, trees, flowers and other plants, the block-length plazas feature tables, chairs, benches and umbrellas to create a park-like atmosphere in midtown Manhattan. There is no access to electricity or water on the plazas.

Situated between Times Square and Herald Square, the Garment District plazas are in one of the most heavily traversed and highly visible areas of Manhattan. Thousands of employees work in buildings around the plazas. With over two dozen major hotels, the area is a major pedestrian corridor for tourists and commuters. Additionally, as home of the American fashion industry, the district is an international market, bringing in tens of thousands of business visitors annually. On average, over 50,000 people pass through the plazas daily.

A map of the plazas is located on our website at http://garmentdistrict.nyc/arts/plaza-art/ Artists are strongly encouraged to visit the Garment District plazas on Broadway before responding to this RFQ.

DOT APPROVAL

The GDA maintains and operates the Plazas through an agreement with the New York City Department of Transportation (DOT). All works will be subject to DOT regulations and approval by the DOT Public Art Program.

PROJECT BUDGET

The final project budget may be up to $50,000. This budget will include engineering reports, insurance, shipping, installation, and de-installation. This budget also includes any artist or gallery fee for design and project management (planning and overseeing installation and de-installation). The GDA will be responsible, among other things, for permits, signage and promotion.

RFQ SUBMISSION DEADLINE

Each year the GDA presents up to three sculptural installations. It is currently accepting submissions for an installation in Spring 2020. While the GDA accepts submissions on a rolling basis, it asks that any

proposals for Spring 2020 presentation be submitted no later than September 30, 2019. Proposals submitted after this date will be considered for future installations.

All submissions must be mailed or delivered to:

Garment District Alliance

RE: Plaza Public Arts Proposals

209 W. 38th Street, 2nd Fl.

New York, NY 10018

Or

Send a link to jscupp@garmentdistrictnyc.com

SELECTION PROCESS

Artists are chosen through a competitive process that uses a selection panel, comprised of visual arts professionals and community representatives, which will review submissions and select the artist(s) to develop full proposals.

Following a review of RFQ submissions, one or more artists may be selected to submit full proposals. Selected artists may receive a $500 honorarium for developing a full proposal.

Only the artists selected to develop full proposals shall receive direct notification

QUESTIONS

All questions should be emailed to Jerry Scupp at jscupp@garmentdistrictnyc.com.