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Recreation & Community Department

Call to Artists – Nist Family Park Sculpture

Parks & Recreation Director

Parks & Recreation Director Amanda Leon

February 18, 2021

The City of Normandy Park Arts Commission is pleased to announce a Call for Artists for a sculpture for Nist Family Park. This request for proposals seeks artists who will design and create a sculpture for Nist Park, located at 242 SW Normandy Road, Normandy Park, WA. 98166. Proposed designs should tell a story and reflect the history, culture, and environment of Nist Family Park and Normandy Park. The deadline to apply is March 1, 2021.

Nist Family Park was donated to the City in 2002 by longtime resident Emmet J. Nist. Located in Manhattan View Neighborhood, this 5.23-acre park features woodland trails and an open sloping lawn, which provides spectacular views over the community to the Salish Sea. Emmet’s farm was known for its horse pasture with apple trees. “Tonto” was a beloved Arabian paint horse that lived on his farm for many years and was infamous for escaping and visiting neighboring backyards. This park has excellent winter sledding, picnic tables, a parking lot, and forested and meadow walking trails. The park is home to fruit trees and an edible berry garden that neighbors enjoy during the growing season.

Submitted works will be evaluated based on four criteria

  • Aesthetics – Characteristics such as being compelling, original, approachable, skillful, and satisfying.
  • Durability – The work will be outdoors for many years in an accessible, unregulated public park space. The sculpture must pass a safety inspection before installation.
  • Safety – Does it have features that could cause injury to a person coming in contact with it? Would it invite climbing or other inappropriate interaction?
  • Suitability – This has two parts. One is whether the work would fit into the park environment. The other is whether it would be appropriate for viewing by our general population of Nist Park visitors.

Who May Apply

  • Professional artists experienced in larger scale public art installation.
  • Local Washington State artists with sculpture abilities but without largescale public art installation experience are still encouraged to apply.

Funding

The selected artist will receive $16,000 for designing, creating, and transporting their artwork for Nist Park.

Detailed Requirements

  • Color is encouraged, and the City will provide a color palette.
  • The Artist is required to submit a minimum of two (2) images for review.
  • Artwork needs to illustrate theme, narrative, concepts, and style and incorporate Nist Park and Normandy Park’s culture and history.
  • Include a minimum one paragraph story behind the artwork. This will be used for self-guided tours and City publications.

Selection Criteria

In reviewing artist applications, we will be applying the following criteria:

  1. The sculpture celebrates the history of Emmet Nist, Nist Park, and Normandy Park.
  2. The design is appropriate for a public park.
  3. The design demonstrates the ability of the Artist to complete this type of work.

Application deadline

March 1, 2021, by 4:00 pm.

The City reserves the right to adjust the due date and add additional rounds of calls for proposals and/or not award commission to any submission. All submitted artwork will become the property of the City and will not be returned to the Artist.

Schedule:

  • Call for artists: January 28, 2021
  • Proposals due & received: March 1, 2021, by 4:00 PM
  • Contract Award: April 1, 2021
  • Applicant notification: April 5, 2021
  • Final sculpture delivered: September 30, 2021
  • Installation: November 2021

Contact

For more information and the approved color palette and site plan, please contact Amanda León, Parks and Recreation Director, 206.735.0913.

“The selected artist will receive $16,000 for…”

Amanda Leon, Parks & Recreation Director

City of Normandy Park
801 SW 174th Street
Normandy Park, WA 98166
(206) 248-8257 (Direct Phone)

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