Public Art Committee

Public Art Committee SUMMARY MINUTES Wednesday, March 16, 2022 9:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Zoom Meeting Public Meeting Zoom Link located: https://durhamnc.gov/453/Public-Art-Committee Committee Members Present Antonio Alanis Patricia Harris JP Trostle Marcella Camara, Chair Molly Matlock Mya Castillo-Marte Nicole Oxendine Caroline Dwyer Laura Ritchie City/County Staff Present Summer Alston, General Brenda Hayes-Bright, Annette Smith, General Services Durham County Public Art Services Alexandra Benson, General Jina Propst, General Services Fallon Thompson, General Services Linda Salguero, Durham Services Rebecca Brown, General County Public Art Services Guests Present Susan Amey, Discover Anna Fiore, Discover Durham Cheryl Stewart, Public Art Durham Theresa Huffman, Artist Consultant Margaret DeMott, Durham Veronika Payne, Durham Arts Gary Warner, Artist Arts Council Council R. Stein Wexler Sherry DeVries, Durham Arts Cara Rousseau, Discover David Wilson, Artist Council Durham I. Call to Order and Guest Introductions a. The meeting was called to order at 9:00 a.m. by Marcella Camara. II. Approval of Minutes – February 2022 a. The approval of February’s summary meeting minutes have been moved to the April meeting. III. Adjustments to the Agenda a. N/A IV. Announcements a. Keep Durham Beautiful is working with student interns from Duke University to help re- envision a small parcel of land on Foster Street through placemaking initiatives like seating, planters, community gardens, etc. A survey is currently open to gage feedback on how to create that space into a small parklet.  b. A new exhibit at Laura Ritchie’s Pop Box Gallery titled “Maroon Archive” curated by Marcella Camara features a living library holding the stories of life and movement across the Black diaspora, past and present is on view from March 18 to April 9, 2022. V. Updates/Old Business a. Updates on Current Public Art Projects i. City staff provided updates on current and upcoming public art projects: https://durhamnc.gov/450/Cultural-Public-Art-Development ii. Merrick Moore Park / Hoover Road Athletic Complex. More information here: https://durhamnc.gov/3940/Hoover-Road-Park 1. Five finalists are currently working on site-specific proposals to be submitted on March 18. The artist selection panel will meet the following week to review proposals and select a finalist to move forward into contracting. iii. Black Wall Street Gardens. More information here: https://durhamnc.gov/3912/Black-Wall-Street-Gardens 1. The sculptures by artists Stephen Hayes and David Wilson have been fully installed. City staff is coordinating signage for the two artworks at the site, working towards final acceptance of the project, and planning an opening celebration. iv. South Ellerbe Restoration Project. More information here: https://durhamnc.gov/4598/South-Ellerbe-Restoration-Project 1. The artist team consisting of Anna Wagner, Julienne Alexander, and Ben Reid have submitted their initial designs and are currently being reviewed by City staff at General Services and Public Works. v. Keep Bull City Litter-Free Public Art Project. More information here: https://www.durhamnc.gov/4464/Keep-Bull-City-Litter-Free-Public-Art-Pr 1. City Staff is in conversations with a new artist finalist to move into the contracting phase for this project. vi. Durham Station. More information here: https://durhamnc.gov/4469/Durham- Station 1. City staff have selected Theresa Arico to create a bench and set of planters using mosaics to provide public art amenities at Durham Station. Project is anticipated to be delivered by end of 2022 and is currently in the initial design phase. vii. Celebration of Black Artistry in Neighborhoods. More information here: https://durhamnc.gov/4430/Celebration-of-Black-Artistry-in-Neighbo 1. The artist selection process for Weaver Street Recreation Center for an artist-in-residence has been slightly delayed due to staff turnover at DPR. Candidates will need to go through a background check and the final selection will be made by youth in the program.  viii. Participatory Budgeting Bus Shelter Public Art. More information here: https://www.durhamnc.gov/4281/Public-Art-for-Bus-Shelters 1. Three contract amendments have been issued to the artists on this project to account for an extended timeline, increase in materials cost, and changes to locations. VI. New Business and Presentations a. DPLEX Public Art: Request for Letter of Support i. Durham Arts Council is requesting for PAC to express support for the presented designs to move forward to fabrication and installation. 1. The selected artist team consisting of David Wilson, Theresa Huffman, and Gary Warner have developed design proposals for the plaza outside of the Durham Convention Center, to be coined as “DPLEX”. 2. The goals of the placemaking initiative are to: a. Create a unified branding of Durham Convention Center through public art elements while honoring Durham’s unique stories and identities b. Capitalize on the history and heritage of the four participating facilities c. Distinguish the complex as a unique, creative convention and arts environment that attracts meeting and event planners 3. Engagement efforts took place through online surveys and in-person events at Third Friday and programming at the Marriot, Armory, and Carolina Theater. 4. The landmark sculpture will consist of polycarbonate and an engraved mosaic finish. The design will mirror so that the viewing experience is the same from either side. The team is collaborating with stakeholders on the branding of a color-coding system for each of the four buildings in the plaza that will guide the population of content on each panel. The sculpture will be made from polycarbonate, a tough, transparent plastic material with impact resistance. Innovative surface treatments like glow-sand will be used to light the pathways, trails, and seating surfaces in addition to LED lighting components. 5. Durham Public Art Committee expressed positive feedback on the proposal and requested further information about the glow sand and lighting elements as well as ADA safety requirements. 6. MOTION: The Public Art Committee expresses support for the DAC proposal and will sign the letter of support drafted by the DAC (Castillo- Marte, Harris 2nd). 7. ACTION: Approved. (9-0). VII. Governance a. Meeting Change i. PAC will change the monthly meeting time to the second Wednesday of the month at 12:00 p.m. – 1:30 p.m., which would begin in April 2022. ii. MOTION: To adopt the new meeting date and time for Public Art Committee’s monthly meeting (Harris, Ritchie 2nd). iii. ACTION: Approved. (9-0). b. Member Attendance i. The Public Art Committee recommends discontinuing the membership of two members who have been unable to attend for the entirety of the 2021 Calendar Year. This recommendation will be brought forward to the Durham Cultural Advisory Board for final approval. c. New Member Recommendations i. Action: To recommend six members for Public Art Committee members to the Durham Cultural Advisory Board for their consideration and appointment. 1. Governance Task Force recommended the following applicants: a. Abijah Gattis b. Doreen Jakob c. David McClay d. Carlos O’Briant e. Christina Perkins f. Myra Weise g. Shante Stewart 2. MOTION: The PAC recommends Abijah Gattis (Trostle, Matlock 2nd) and Shante Stewart (Dwyer, Trostle 2nd) to the DCAB for their consideration and appointment to the Committee. 3. ACTION: Approved with one abstaining due to conflict of interest. (8-1). d. 2022 Goal Discussion i. PAC’s 2021 Goals will be discussed at the next meeting. 1. Develop and implement public art projects in neighborhoods outside of downtown to create community conversations and connect residents to public spaces, with an emphasis on robust, authentic and equitable community engagement and considerations for COVID-19. (approved 10/21/20) 2. Identify capacity building solutions for local artists based on community conversations and survey(s) in order to develop mentor and mentee guidelines/opportunities and other artist resources to address local artists' needs. (approved 10/21/20) 3. Define advocacy for the Public Art Committee and develop a roadmap for community advocacy priorities. (approved 10/21/20) 4. The Public Art Committee will develop the skills needed to assess, identify and address where implicit and explicit bias may impact or  affect arts and culture in Durham, in order to develop a set of best practices for public art with a focus on anti-racism, community accountability and equity, and to uplift intergenerational, gender diverse, racially diverse, and LGBTQIA+ artists. (approval pending) a. Conversations about 2022 goals will be revisited at the next meeting after further evaluation of the past year’s goals have been conducted. PAC’s 2021 Goals will be discussed at the following meeting. ii. Group Discussion Question 1. The PAC task forces to review the 2022 PAC Goals by discussing the following questions: Is this the right goal? When you determine what the right goal is, what are the steps you recommend PAC takes to achieve this goal? What bias do you expect to occur in this process and what suggestions do you have to counteract bias? a. These questions guided DCAB’s goal setting b. The group discussion will be moved to the next Public Art Committee meeting in April. iii. Task Forces Teams 1. Project Cultivation: implement public art projects in neighborhoods outside of downtown a. Molly Matlock b. Laura Ritchie 2. Capacity Building for Local Artists a. Antonio Alanis b. Mya Castillo-Marte c. JP Trostle 3. Identify and address where implicit and explicit bias may impact or affect arts and culture in Durham a. Caroline Dwyer b. Patricia Harris c. Nicole Oxendine 4. Governance Committee a. Marcella Camara b. Caroline Dwyer iv. Goal Concepts and Goal Adoption 1. Review and adoption of goal themes/ideas. 2. Subcommittee to refine goal wording. 3. Final goal adoption at April meeting.  a. The final goal adoption will be revisited and rescheduled for the April or May PAC meeting. VIII. Public Questions a. No questions were submitted by the public. IX. Adjournment a. The meeting was adjourned at 10:30 a.m. by Marcella Camara. b. Final Thoughts and other reminders by Chair/Vice Chair. c. Next Meeting: i. 2022 Goal Adoption ii. Task Forces Discussion iii. The current term of the current Chair, Marcella Camara, will end on June 30, 2022. In April, PAC will provide a recommendation vote for the Chair, for a term beginning July 1, 2022 ending June 30, 2023. Vice-Chair term began on December 16, 2021, and will ending January 1, 2023. Submitted respectively, Alexandra Benson