City Centre
– Artist’s Website –
‘A city sidewalk by itself is nothing. It is an abstraction. It means something only in conjunction with the buildings and other uses that border it, or border other sidewalks very near it. The same might be said of streets, in the sense that they serve other purposes besides carrying wheeled traffic in their middles. Streets and their sidewalks, the main public places of a city, are its most vital organs. Think of a city and what comes to mind? Its streets. If a city’s streets look interesting, the city looks interesting; if they look dull, the city looks dull.
– Jane Jacobs, The Death and Life of Great American Cities, New York: Random House, 1961
Artists and/or artist-led multidisciplinary teams are invited to submit concept proposals to this expression of interest for permanent public art with up to 3 artworks to be installed in 5 laneways in the heart of the city.
The introduction of light rail and pedestrianisation of George Street are transforming Sydney’s city centre and providing further opportunities for contemporary public art. This process is encouraging people to think in new ways, particularly about Sydney’s civic spaces and more generally about the role and function of public art.
The City of Sydney is looking for artists with an interest in the city and its people, willing to develop proposals for site-specific works of art that are unique to Sydney and reflect an understanding of this place, the spaces and times we live in.
Ideally these works will inspire the engagement of future generations of artists, thinkers, activists and members of the general public to engage with.
The selection of artists will be in 2 stages with up to 8 artists shortlisted from this stage 1 expression of interest and paid a fee of $3,000 + GST to further develop their ideas as part of the second stage.
The deadline for submissions is 11am Tuesday 4 October 2016 (AEDT).
For more information, to download the brief and to be eligible to make a submission for this expression of interest, artists must register with Tenderlink. Tenderlink issues the full expression of interest documents, additional information and addendums that may be supplied during the process. The PDF on the City Art website does not provide access to addendums and other important information that may help artists to develop their concept proposals.
The City Centre Public Art Plan supports the introduction of permanent new public art to complement existing projects and enhance the quality of life for those visiting, working or living in the city centre. Linking closely with the City’s plan for the pedestrianisation of George Street and implementation of the light rail, the Plan recommends an integrated approach to public art and urban design.