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Press Release
HARVEY MILK COMMEMORATIVE SCULPTURE COMPETITION
What: Display in City Hall of Maquettes by finalists for the Harvey Milk City Hall Sculpture Competition
When: January 10, 11, 12, and 16, 2007, 8:00 AM – 8:00 PM
Where: San Francisco City Hall, One Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Place, Van Ness Lobby, First Floor
Press conference: January 10, 2007 – Noon – Van Ness Lobby
Reception: January 10, 2007, Wednesday, 5:30 - 7:30 PM, Van Ness Lobby of City Hall, Free
The San Francisco Arts Commission is pleased to announce the exhibition of maquettes by the three finalists for a commemorative sculpture representing former San Francisco Supervisor, Harvey Milk, for placement in City Hall. The proposal maquettes will be on display for public viewing and comment in San Francisco City Hall’s Van Ness Avenue lobby from Wednesday through Friday, January 10, 11, and 12, and Tuesday January 16. The exhibition is free and open the public during City Hall’s normal hours of operation, which are 8:00 AM – 8:00 PM. City Hall is not open to the public on week-ends or City holidays.
The three finalists, selected in a nationwide competition, are Bruce Wolfe, Cedric Wentworth and The Daub Firmin Hendrickson Sculpture Group. These artists are all from the San Francisco Bay Area and have significant experience with commemorative sculpture of civic leaders.
The public is invited to submit written commentary about each of the maquettes displayed. The original selection panel of community members will reconvene to select the winning proposal after reviewing the maquettes and the public commentary.
The selection panel is comprised of the following members:
Jeannene Pryzyblyski: Artist, Urban Strategist and San Francisco Arts Commissioner
Jewelle Gomez: Poet, Library Commissioner and Program Officer at Horizons Foundation
Dugald Stermer: Artist, Educator and former San Francisco Arts Commissioner
Gary Nathan: Spectrum publisher, and Harvey Milk City Hall Memorial Committee member
Dan Nicoletta: Harvey Milk City Hall Memorial Committee member and friend of Harvey Milk
The winner will be announced in early 2007 and they will be given a full year to complete the finished sculpture. A free public unveiling of the finished sculpture in City Hall is being tentatively planned with a targeted date of Harvey Milk’s birthday May 22, 2008. The proposed location in City Hall for the finished work is the loggia across from the entry to the Board of Supervisors’ Hearing Room.
The non-profit Harvey Milk City Hall Memorial Committee launched the sculpture competition in May 2006 after a three-year fundraising drive. The competition is being co-produced by the Milk City Hall Memorial Committee and The San Francisco Arts Commission and was made possible through major funding provided by the Bob Ross Foundation as well as by donations by hundreds of individuals and organizations from around the world.
Harvey Milk (1930-1978) became the first openly gay person to be elected to public office in San Francisco when he was elected to the Board of Supervisors in 1977. Tragically, he was assassinated, along with Mayor George Moscone, on November 27, 1978, only eleven months after taking office. Although he did not live to see his dreams fulfilled completely, the example of his life and his leadership has made him an important national symbol for the struggle for human rights and freedom of expression. The Harvey Milk Memorial Committee website (www.milkmemorial.org) states, “Harvey Milk transformed City Hall and the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Community in the historic moment of his election then galvanized it with the tragedy of his death.” Mayor Newsom comments, “This tribute to Harvey Milk is long overdue. It is indeed time for his legacy to be commemorated with a place of honor and distinction in San Francisco’s City Hall.”