Palm Beach County’s Art in Public Places Program is seeking an artist or artist team to create an integrated site-specific artwork for the new Water Utilities Customer Service, Glades Office. The commissioned piece is expected to raise community awareness about the importance of water in our lives, water conservation practices and water’s critical functions in the local and national environment.
Palm Beach County’s Water Utilities Department serves over 500,000 residents in unincorporated Palm Beach County and operates a robust wastewater collection system and treatment facility. The new facility will provide Belle Glade, Pahokee and South Bay customers with improved and more efficient services.
The cities Belle Glade, South Bay and Pahokee together with unincorporated lands make up the western region of Palm Beach County. The Glades region is often referred to as the gateway to the Everglades, which runs from Palm Beach County to Miami. The earliest records suggest that the Glades were originally inhabited by Calusa Indians. Today, the Glades population is diverse with strong cultural and local pride which is celebrated in several annual festivals.
A defining time for many residents of The Glades was the hurricane of 1928, a storm that killed some 3,000 people when the waters of Lake Okeechobee surged the southern portion of Palm Beach County. This prompted the Army Corps of Engineers to build a levee to control future floods. A sculpture nearby the Lawrence E. Will Museum commemorates those who perished.
The Palm Beach County’s Art in Public Places Program has identified the new facility’s windows, walls and ceilings (suspended works) as possible areas for the installation of the artwork contemplated for this project, which has a budget of $38,225. The budget includes all costs such as artist fees, travel, shipping, engineering, fabrication and installation.
The selection process shall occur in two phases. In the first phase, artists will submit a Letter of Intent, resume and images of past work to Elayna Toby Singer, Palm Beach County Art in Public Places, 2633 Vista Parkway, West Palm Beach, FL 33411. A Short List Selection Panel will then review each applicant’s qualifications and select up to three artists or artist teams. In the second phase, these finalists will attend a mandatory pre-proposal site inspection and then develop a site specific design proposal to meet the project’s goals. Each artist/ artist team that makes a live presentation of their proposal to the Final Selection Panel shall receive a flat fee of $500.
Applications are open to all professional artists residing in Florida who have experience in creating integrated artistic environments. Applications must be received by 5 p.m. on August 12, 2013.
For more information, please email Elayna Toby Singer at esinger@pbcgov.com (subject line: “Water Utilities, Artist Name”) or visit the County’s Public Art website: http://pbcgov.com/fdo/art/artists/.
