2023 City Yards Artist Residency - Call for Artist Qualifications

The City Yards campus is a 14.7-acre site located at 2500 Michigan Avenue in Santa Monica, CA. The City is seeking a Resident Artist to work with the Resource Recovery and Recycling (RRR) Division beginning in early 2023 through spring 2024. The Resident Artist will learn about Division activities and priorities through staff and public engagement, illuminating the work of RRR. Projects may respond to themes of ecological sustainability and justice, the cycle of municipal maintenance activity and its connections to the community, and/or the labor of essential workers at the site. The Resident might also delve into the history and general operations of City Yards, potentially expanding their project to include neighboring businesses and residents, previous site histories, or other topics.

The residency includes regular communications with staff and a major checkpoint in June 2023 to assess accomplishments and adjust the workplan. The City will provide scheduled access to RRR administration, ride-alongs with staff, and some use of office resources. RRR events include compost giveaways, paper shredding and electronic waste disposal, mattress and carpet recycling events, motor oil collection, and holiday tree collection. The Resident will have opportunities to integrate with annual events such as the Greens Festival in Virginia Avenue Park. Strategies might include oral history gathering, visibility campaigns with signage and wayfinding, artwork on sanitation trucks and street sweepers, or other temporary or permanent projects. The Operations Building lobby is a potential site for permanent work if proposed in the residency plan.

The all-inclusive budget for artist fee, planning and execution of all residency activities, including stakeholder and public engagement, project management, licensing and insurance, potential recruitment and supervision of other artists, fabrication and installation of any temporary or permanent work, and evaluation, is $80,000. The Resident Artist is encouraged to include artists of different disciplines, graphic designers, performers, or other subcontractors. In addition to an evaluation document, the Resident Artist should plan for a final presentation, exhibit, performance, or other event to be coordinated with RRR on or before spring 2024. Up to five semifinalists will be invited to visit the site, develop a project proposal, and participate in a virtual interview. Finalists will receive an $800 honorarium to develop their proposal and presentation. Selection criteria include professional qualifications in social practice or community organizing, merit and relevance to the specific concerns and themes of City Yards, and technical and logistical experience including understanding of community engagement processes and ability to adhere to timelines and budgets in a government context.