Adams State College Plachy Hall Renovation - Public Art Commission

The Colorado Council on the Arts and Adams State College seek to commission an artist or artist team for a site-specific public art project for Plachy Hall Renovation and Addition. Plachy Hall is an important educational building on campus and a public facility used by citizens of the San Luis Valley. The artwork must be welcoming to all, with possible themes including school spirit, health, sports, and community. The committee would like artwork that announces the entryway, with some portion continuing inside to the lobby.

Plachy Hall was constructed in 1965 and provides space for physical education courses, an Olympic-size swimming pool, weight room, trainers' facilities, basketball/volleyball/wrestling arena, and indoor track field house. The renovation will reorient the main entrance and include a new lobby with ceiling height of 20-24 feet, a hall of fame lecture hall, weight room, and human performance lab. The new entryway will move visitors into a lobby with exposed concrete panels comprised of exposed aggregate. The artwork should bring the outside inside, have an overwhelming sense of "Welcome," and integrate into the interior. Landscaping is minimal, so any enhancement with the artwork that includes landscape materials is encouraged.

$64,000 is available for all related expenses of this public art commission including artist fees, fabrication, insurance, shipping, travel, installation, documentation, and other costs. The Art Selection Committee will review all complete submittals and select semi-finalists to interview and submit in-depth proposals for a small honorarium that will be applied toward the commission amount. Final selection will be made from the semi-finalists. The deadline for receipt of submittal is October 1, 2007, with committee review on October 16, 2007. Artists with a current grant with the State are not eligible to apply. An artist with an existing public art contract with the Colorado Council on the Arts is not eligible for another Art in Public Places project until the current contract is over 50% complete.