Augmented Reality Art Project – Temporary Public Art

The City of Santa Clarita is seeking an artist for its Augmented Reality (AR) Public Art Project. The project is now accepting proposals for a series of ten thematic artworks that invoke interactivity, storytelling, and site-specificity to create dialogue with the surroundings and audience. Artwork may be informed by the environment, community, and history in which viewers encounter them. The selected digital artworks will be experienced as virtual 3D or 2D art that can be viewed using a smart device. The app will allow users to view virtual art installations geo-positioned around the Old Town Newhall Arts and Entertainment District, with locations disclosed to app users in advance through alerts when near an installation or a gamified experience where users are challenged to find and collect all artworks.

Artwork is encouraged to connect with the history of the Old Town Newhall area, with special consideration for site-specific, interactive, and storytelling proposals. Artwork must be an original design suitable for viewing by all ages and may not be used for advertisement or to promote business or product. Designs must not include any breach of intellectual property, trademarks, brands, business names, corporate or organizational branding, or images of drugs. Artwork can be of any digital medium following technical file requirements. For submission, images must be JPG files only (minimum 1,200 pixels on longest side, 5 MB maximum). Video files accepted in 3GP, WMV, AVI, MOV, ASF, MPG, MP4, M2T, MKV, M2TS formats (minimum resolution, 100 MB maximum). Semi-finalists will be required to resubmit files in OBJ or FBX format with maximum polycount around 50K polygons.

The selected artist will receive a $5,000 honorarium to create the series of ten artworks, with full payment upon project completion. The artist will receive recognition on SantaClaritaArts.com, the Public Arts App, and the City's social media outlets, with a press release shared with local news agencies. Eligibility is open to artists 18 years of age or older living and working in the United States, including individual or collaborative applications. Artists must submit a resume or CV, artist statement, CAFÉ portfolio of three to five past artworks, and a detailed project proposal or proof-of-concept. Application deadline is March 26, 2021 at 11:59 p.m. PST through CAFÉ (callforentry.com). Selections will be made in April 2021, with Arts Commission and City Council review in May 2021 and artist notification in June 2021.