Public Art Commission

Salem Public Art Commission Meeting May 17, 2016 The Public Art Commission (PAC) was held on Tuesday, May 17, 2016, in Room 312, Third Floor, at 120 Washington Street, Salem, MA. Norene Gachignard, Chairperson, called the meeting to order at 6:29. Roll Call: Members Present: Norene Gachignard, Austen Barron Bailly, J. Michael Sullivan, Mary Best, Amanda Moore and Deborah Greel, Public Art Planner Absent: Keshia De Leon and Lillian Hsu Approval of April Minutes: Best made a motion to approve. Sullivan seconded the motion. Discussion: Moore noted in the amended minutes there is a typo in the first paragraph and to change ‘ambition’ to ‘ambitious’. Gachignard noted in paragraph four under Discussion and Vote on Proposal for Salem Sound Coastwatch Smart Salem!, the word ‘how’ appears twice. Also noted under Salem Arts Festival Community Project, 2nd paragraph, there is an incomplete sentence. Best made a motion to approve the minutes as amended. Sullivan seconded the motion. Motion passes: 5-0 Discussion and Vote on Proposal: Documents and Exhibitions: nAGLY Proposal for Public Art Project Steve Harrington, Executive Director and Ronny Desjadon, Volunteer, presented the nAGLY proposal to build and exhibit three free standing closet doors in locations in the downtown during the Salem Arts Festival. The doors will display a poster on the outside and stickers, art and a poster inside of the nAGLY space with kids and staff. The intent is to inform the public about nAGLY, resources with take-away informational material. Sullivan inquired about the locations if they would be in the Salem Common, the pedestrian mall or Lappin Park. Gachignard mentioned Artists’ Row as a location and Greel mentioned Derby Square during the Salem Arts Festival. Harrington said he is working with a contractor to secure the doors outside and he and members of nAGLY will check on them. Sullivan noted that putting them on soft scape might be more secure and wondered about vandalism. Moore, sometimes you put work in the world and see what happens. Sullivan made a motion to accept the nAGLY Proposal for Public Art Project. Best seconded the motion. Motion passes: 5-0 Discuss Public Art Work Plan 2016-2017 Documents and Exhibitions: Work Plan 2016-2017 PARKing Day was discussed and Sullivan said it is the third Friday of September. The mission of PARKing Day is to bring awareness to the need for more open urban space. The community is invited to ‘buy’ a parking space for a day and to set up an event, green space or bring awareness to a non-profit in a parking space. Sullivan suggested using the spaces in the Museum Place Mall parking lot. Moore suggested the spaces should be up and down Washington Street. Bailly said they should be prime spaces and would be lost if it is not located in a main street. And she said it could feel like a street festival kind of event. Moore said that she would speak with business owners about the event with Bailly suggesting that the communication about the event should be door to door. She also said that this could be a multi- cultural event and have activities for children. Moore also suggested that the Mayor have an initiative for Parking Day. She said that we could more research with Hsu who has helped facilitate the event in Cambridge. Before I Die Wall As this was a project requested by the Mayor Moore suggested that PAC invite the Mayor to a meeting to discuss projects. Bailly said that the Mayor picks pet projects that she would like to see the PAC pursue. Sullivan noted that the “Before I Die Wall” came from the Mayor and is a good idea. Sullivan asked if there was an allocation of funding for special requests. Moore asked if the city wants to activate other areas. Sullivan said the Masterplan calls for many spaces and we need a bigger budget for these projects. Bailly said the Salem Common is an interesting site for art. She suggested reaching out to artists and offer them a budget for a project. Sullivan suggested putting together a proposal for a series of art projects and solicit corporations in the city. He said to have something to bring to the table and three or four sponsors can react positively. Gachignard suggested going to the neighborhood associations to elicit ideas. Social Media Social media can be used to solicit ideas for public art Moore said. It is a way to launch a public art installation and Bailly added it can be used to promote public art including installations, monuments, sculptures, and events. Moore will work with Greel to set up a PAC Facebook page and Instagram. Updates: Artists’ Row: The tenants have been preparing their spaces to prepare for the soft opening on Thursday, May 19th. They will be open for the first Derby Square Flea/Salvage/Art Market on Saturday, May 21. A ribbon cutting is scheduled for June 9th with the Mayor. Public Art Installation: The firm of OP | Architecture Landscape PLLC was chosen as the winning proposal for the public art installation. Greel notified the firm and asked for revisions of their plan to be more ideally suited to space around Old Town Hall as their initial plan was too large for the spaces they originally proposed. Mural Slam: Applications from artists are coming in and the goal is to have 10 artists painting on site during the Salem Arts Festival. Artbox Program: A Call for Artists has not been sent out for this year’s program. Public Comments: There were no public comments. Adjourn: Sullivan made a motion to adjourn. Best seconded the motion. Meeting Adjourned: 7:38pm