City of Seattle: 2016 Public Art Boot Camp

The Office of Arts & Culture is offering a FREE two-day intensive basic training overview to artists ready to translate their exhibition experience to the public realm. Up to 30 artists will be selected to participate in the Public Art Boot Camp, a competitive process open to artists living in Washington State.

The workshops will be held on Saturday, March 19 and Saturday, March 26, 2016, at SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival), 805 E. Pine St. at the Seattle Center, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m., for a total of 16 hours of training. Participants will be expected to create a temporary artwork proposal as homework in the week between sessions. Workshops will be presented by public art administrators and experienced public artists, covering public art opportunities (temporary, permanent, portable works), work samples and selection processes, working with architects and design professionals, contracts, budgets, materials, timelines, fabrication, installation, and dedications. Confirmed presenters include Kurt Kiefer, Celeste Cooning, Juan Alonso-Rodriguez, C. Davida Ingram, Norie Sato, and Gerald McGinness from Fabrication Specialties.

Eligibility is open to artists living in Washington State who have not received a temporary or permanent public art commission over $1,500. Applicants should have an interest in exploring the presentation of their work in public settings and an interest in community-building or enhancing the built environment. Priority will be given to emerging artists, artists from historically under-represented communities and communities of color. Artists selected for and completing the two-day boot camp will be eligible to apply for an opportunity to create a temporary artwork at one of two sites later that summer at either the Seattle Center campus or another Seattle neighborhood. To qualify, you must attend both sessions.

Application deadline: 11 p.m., Tuesday, February 2, 2016 (Pacific Standard Time). Required materials: résumé (1-2 page limit), letter of interest (not to exceed 2,000 characters), 8 images of past work, and image identification list (not to exceed 500 characters for each image). Selected artists will be notified by February 19, 2016. Contact: Marcia Iwasaki at (206) 233-3946 or Elisheba Johnson at (206) 684-0182.