Public Art Committee

Durham Cultural Advisory Board’s PUBLIC ART COMMITTEE Meeting, December 17, 2014, 8:30 a.m. Adaron Hall, Durham Arts Council MINUTES Members Present: _X_ Kathy Bartlett _X_ Dan Ellison ___ Noel James _X_ Chris Ogden (Chair) _X_ Charlene Reiss _X_ Julie Rhodes _X_ Karen Slotta ___ Gail Williams OEWD Staff Present: _X_ Peter Coyle Also Present : Sherry DeVries, I don’e recall his being there?Tony Waldron, Jessica Kemp, Margaret DeMott, Kelly McChesney, Valerie Ward, Tim Walter, Renee Leverty The meeting was called to order by Chair Chris Ogden at 8:30 a.m. Dan Ellison made a motion to accept the minutes of the November 19, 2014 meeting. Kathy Bartlett seconded the motion. It was approved unanimously. Ogden reported on the City’s membership in Americans for the Arts, which includes the Public Art Network, and that members of the committee and the Cultural Advisory Board have been added to the membership list. He thanked Peter Coyle for making those arrangements. Ogden reported that he had met with Chris Beacham of the North Carolina Arts Council for assistance in gathering information about best practices from public art programs in other North Carolina municipalities. He noted that the NCAC lost state funding for their full time public art staff member many years ago, but that Beacham now had that function as part of his job and was willing help as time allows. He reported that Jean Greer, a public art consultant on the SmART grant project, agreed to present at the committee’s January meeting to share her deep experience and educational materials on best practices in public art programs overall. Also, she will share information to help us with our strategic planning for funding and our messaging to advise others about the value of public art. Ogden suggested that the committee look at working with other cities and the NCAC to do a statewide public art conference, but noted that the state does not have funding available to sponsor such a conference. Margaret DeMott reported that the Durham Arts Council had hosted a statewide conference on public art in 1989 and that she can provide materials from that conference to the committee. 17 Dec.- 2014 Durham Public Art Committee Minutes page 1 of 4 Karen Slotta suggested that if Jean Greer is coming, it might be useful to do a combined meeting of the committee and the Cultural Advisory Board as well as inviting representatives from the County and other agencies. Renee Leverty expressed support for the idea, but suggested a need to work out a separate meeting time. She suggested video taping the session. Ogden reported that Duke student intern Nick Orr is on Christmas break, but will be continuing his public art policy research for the committee when he returns. Julie Rhodes reported on the strategic funding task force’s goals, which include researching proposals for changes to the City’s public art policy. Overall trends that have emerged are to connect early in the process for CIPs to integrally embed public art, starting with public art aware/friendly architect choices. She discussed the need for key stakeholder and public education about public art through outreach programs. She discussed the need for staffing, consulting and grant writers to advance the program the task force’s next steps will be to finish enumerating tasks and adding high level cost estimates for hiring a public art consultant. Kathy Bartlett reported that she is working on assembling a list of Public Art Committee accomplishments to date. Ogden suggested that the information could be leveraged across many instruments, including a brochure that could be developed for use by the Office of Economic and Workforce Development. Bartlett noted that the committee is an advisory committee and that the focus should be on the City’s public art accomplishments and the role the committee played in support of them. Ogden reported that Gail Williams is traveling and unable to attend the meeting but that she is working on getting photographs for existing public art works in the City for the public art inventory project. Her students at NCCU will be taking the photographs. He showed some of the snapshots her past students had taken. Ogden introduced Kelly McChesney and Valerie Ward, to discuss the mural proposal being made by the American Tobacco Campus management. McChesney reported that American Tobacco is looking at adding murals to buildings and structures. They are working with Durham City staff on a proposal for a mural on the NC 147 (Durham Expressway) retaining wall, on state right of way property on Willard Street, to the south of the American Tobacco Campus. The wall is approximately 400 feet long. So far one artist, James Marshall (who is also known as “Dalek”) has presented ideas. Ward reported that, under terms being discussed with the City and the North Carolina Department of Transportation, the proposal will be for the City to enter into an encroachment agreement with the state and to contract with American Tobacco’s management company, Blackwell Street Management, LLC to fund, create and maintain the mural, and to do appropriate landscaping, at its own expense. McChesney showed some examples of James Marshall’s work on similar projects and discussed his biography. Coyle, DeMott and Bartlett discussed the need for public input into the design process for the mural. McChesney indicated that Marshall wants to involve the community in the design and painting of the mural. He has done some mockups of potential ideas, but is waiting for more community feedback. McChesney and Ward described the general concept for the 17 Dec.- 2014 Durham Public Art Committee Minutes page 2 of 4 mural as a contemporary abstract design that would be site specific and relate to Durham. They noted that murals do not last forever and it might be seen as the first of a series of murals on the site, each to last for five to ten years. Sherry DeVries noted that the site is within the area of the SmART grant project so that it would be useful for this project team to be in discussion with the SmART grant-visioning consultant when she returns to Durham in January. Dan Ellison made a motion to recommend City approval of the project for an abstract, non- figurative mural at the proposed location, assuming that it will include a public engagement process within the planning. Charlene Reiss seconded the motion. It was approved unanimously. Reiss reported that the police headquarters public art task force of the committee is being organized. The City is planning to hold a public visioning session for the new headquarters in late January. The task force will be meeting to develop ideas for what art might be appropriate for the site. Her hope is to recruit a diverse group (across both the common elements of race, ethnicity, gender, etc. and also elements of education, economics, geography, etc.) to meet in January and consider ideas to present at the visioning session. Committee members discussed approaches to looking at successful projects at similar police buildings around the country. DeVries suggested looking for artist names who conducted/oversaw the engagement processes, so when we are ready to put out call on CAFÉ we can target a national field of artists. She also suggested that we explore landscape architects who have portfolios showing their successful collaboration on public art projects. DeMott underscored that a primary goal should be to get public art involved at the front end of the project. Discussion continued around the funding. DeVries asked what is in the contract, specifically if the City actually held back 1%. Slotta asked Coyle whether to lock in 1% we need to make an official ask and include the project in an Annual Public Art Plan. Slotta asked Coyle if he can get the City to present us with their 2016-21 CIP. Coyle responded affirmatively to both questions. Ogden reported that a proposal for a Bloomberg Philanthropies grant for temporary public art has been submitted by the City, based on the work done by a committee consisting of Ogden, Coyle, Leverty, DeVries and American Dance Festival Director Jodee Niemerichter. He thanked Coyle for leading the process and assembling the draft proposal. The proposal is for a dance in the neighborhoods program in the summer of 2016, targeting low income neighborhoods and involving major international dance companies as well as local dancers and community members. Ogden reported that he and Coyle had met with a representative of Self-Help about the Kent Street project and public art possibilities on the site. While the project timing, as it moves to completion and occupancy, does not allow for an immediate public art component, this is something they are willing to consider in the future. 17 Dec.- 2014 Durham Public Art Committee Minutes page 3 of 4 Coyle reported that, as a result of weather issues and other delays, the Civil Rights Mural Project has been extended, with a recommendation to the City Manager that the artist be given until June 30 to complete the mural. Coyle reported that the Bull City Sculpture Show donation has been accepted by the City, and that the sculpture will be moved from Central Park in January after the holiday decorations have been removed. He also reported that the County Commissioners approved purchase of the Roig sculpture in place at the courthouse. Ellison made a motion to extend the meeting fifteen minutes; second by Bartlett; passed unanimously. DeVries reported on Mikyoung Kim’s site visit on November 18 and 19 as the first visit under her consultancy on the SmART grant project. There were over 100 participants in eleven meetings over the two days. Her team will be returning in mid-January for additional meetings with groups including a charrette and a meeting with private developers. Charlene Reiss made a motion to adjourn. Dan Ellison seconded the motion. It passed unanimously. The meeting adjourned at 10:10 am. 17 Dec.- 2014 Durham Public Art Committee Minutes page 4 of 4