Public Art Projects

CENTRAL SUBWAY PUBLIC OUTREACH AND PARTICIPATION PLAN

September 2007

The San Francisco Arts Commission’s Public Art Program is developing a comprehensive outreach plan as a core part of the Central Subway Public Art Program. Over the next few months the Public Art Program staff will work on an ongoing basis with a range of community organizations and neighborhood residents, as well as San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) staff and Project Architects to develop a vibrant Arts Master Plan for this extensive underground transit system that will serve neighborhoods from Chinatown to the South of Market. Involvement of people who live and work in these neighborhoods is essential in creating a collection of artworks and art experiences that will reflect the histories, cultures and values of the communities served by this significant new urban development.

Outlined below is a description of opportunities currently planned by the Arts Commission for meaningful public involvement in the Central Subway arts planning process by the many diverse communities constituting the northeast side of San Francisco. The Arts Commission expects that the communities themselves will help shape their involvement in this project over the next few months.

1. Meetings with Community Organizations
   In the early stages of the public outreach process, Arts Commission staff will meet with numerous community organizations in each of the three neighborhoods.

   Community organizations will be asked to assist the Arts Commission in helping to disseminate information about the development of the Central Subway Public Art Program and to be involved in the development of the Central Subway Arts Master Plan over the next few months.

2. Public Informational Meetings
   Arts Commission Public Art and Municipal Railway staff, as well as community organizations and individuals in each of the three Central Subway neighborhoods, will collaborate to organize informational meetings for the public about the Central Subway Project, including information about the Public Art Program, the process for selecting artists and developing art proposals, general art opportunities specific to the Central Subway Project, and a status report about the Central Subway artist selection process.

   The Arts Commission will provide information about the Third Street Light Rail Phase I Public Art Program through a brochure and a Power Point presentation which includes images of the many artworks commissioned for the transit line. This recently completed project extended over a ten year period and involved significant input from community members living in neighborhoods adjacent to the T-Third Street Light Rail Line. The project artists developed designs that reflected the community input and resulted in 85 artworks which are installed on the 28 platforms of the T-Third Street Light Rail Line.  A primary focus of the art program for the T-Third Street line was to enhance the transit users experience. A youth art program initiated in collaboration with three existing neighborhood youth programs culminated in the creation of 40 original semi-permanent art posters installed in ad panels on 20 of the 28 platforms. For additional information about the recently completed Third Street Light Rail Public Art Program, please visit: www.sfartscommission.org/pubart/projects/third_street_rail/index.htm.

   In addition, examples of artworks from other transit subway systems internationally will be presented to familiarize meeting attendees with the types of projects that have been designed for other systems. Hopefully, this will stimulate ideas and encourage discussion in the community about art possibilities for the stations and public space in the vicinity of the Central Subway station.  Public Art staff will use these meetings as an opportunity to solicit input from meeting participants regarding aspects of their neighborhood that might inspire artists.

   Following these meetings, the draft Central Subway Arts Master Plan outlining goals, specific sites and appropriate art opportunities for the Central Subway will be developed and shared with all participants and the public in general. This plan will be revised as needed with ongoing input from SFMTA staff and community members throughout the artist selection process, and updated versions if the Master Plan will always be available on our website.

3. Public Outreach to Local Artists
   The selection of artists for the Central Subway stations will occur in several successive stages, continuing over the next year or more.  In response to an earlier project time line for the Central Subway, the Arts Commission had established a pre-qualified Artist Pool through a national open competition.  That pool will be augmented with many more local artists as the Arts Commission prepares to issue a new Request for Qualifications this fall. The Arts Commission will work with local organizations to recruit additional local artists and assist them with the application process. Community members in all three neighborhoods, among others, will be encouraged to provide the Arts Commission with the names and contact information for artists in their community to whom the announcement of this additional recruitment process can be sent.

   Central Subway Artist Applicant Meeting: A public Central Subway Artist Applicant meeting will be scheduled this fall for artists interested in learning more about the Central Subway Project and the application requirements and procedures. At this meeting, artists will be introduced to the goals and procedures of the Central Subway Public Art Program, will view documentation of previously completed art in transit projects in San Francisco and other cities, and will learn of the preliminary art opportunities associated with the Central Subway stations.

4. Artist Selection Panels and Art Advisory Committees
   Artists will be selected through a public process involving community based panels that will review artist applications and recommend specific artists for Central Subway art opportunities.

   Artist Selection Panel: The Artist Selection Panel serves a central role in the development of the public art component for each of the Arts Commission’s public art projects. The Artist Selection Panels are authorized by the Arts Commission to:

   1. Review prescreened artist applications at a public meeting let by Public Art staff to select artist semifinalists.
   2. Attend an orientation meeting for artist semifinalists to obtain pertinent information about the project parameters and community interests.
   3. At a final public meeting, to interview artist semifinalists, review their proposals, review public comments from the exhibition of semifinalists’ proposals, and select one or more finalists to recommend to the Arts Commission for approval to enter into contract with the Arts Commission to finalize their designs and fabricate their artworks for the project.

   Panel composition: Representative members of each of the three Central Subway communities will be invited to participate on the individual Artist Selection Panels for each of these stations. The Artist Selection Panel will include representatives from the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency, a Project Architect, arts professionals, an Arts Commissioner and community representatives.  Community representatives will be expected to represent a relatively broad range of viewpoints in their community about the Central Subway station artworks, and to act as liaison between the panel and other community members. Some members of the Artist Selection Panels may vary for each different phase of the artist selection process.

   Prior to the first Artist Selection Panel for each station, Public Art staff will hold an informational meeting for all panelists to explain the artist selection process in detail and to familiarize the panelists with the preliminary architecture for their station.

   Artist Semifinalists Information Meeting: Before artist semifinalists prepare their proposals, they will meet with Arts Commission and Muni staff, project architects, and community representatives, to become more familiar with the project sites and architecture, the project parameters and community interests. Community members will be encouraged to attend this meeting and share their views with the artist semifinalists prior to the development of their proposals.

   Selection of Final Artist(s): The Artist Selection Panels will reconvene after the exhibition of the artist semifinalists’ proposals in each of the three neighborhoods.  Panel members will have received a compilation of public comments regarding the art proposals for their station. At this meeting, the panel will interview each artist semifinalist and discuss his or her proposal.  After the artists are interviewed, the panel will discuss the appropriateness of each proposal for the station and then select one or more artists as finalists, depending on the station requirements at that point in the artist selection process.

   Art Advisory Committee: The Artist Selection Panels will also serve as the basis for art Advisory Committees for their Central Subway station.  Some of the members of the Art Advisory Committees may vary as the project progresses.  The Art Advisory Committees will convene to provide feedback at various points throughout the development of the Central Subway art projects.

5. Community Exhibitions of Art Proposals
   An exhibition of the proposal boards by artist semifinalists for each station will be organized at a public site near the future location of the station for public comment. A compilation of the public comments will be forwarded to each station’s Artist Selection Panel prior to their last meeting.

6. Art Commission Meetings
   All artist semifinalists and finalists, and the final artists’ proposals must be approved by the Arts Commission by resolution.  Following approval of artist finalists and their proposals, each artist will enter into contract with the Arts Commission for the final design and fabrication of their artwork.

The Arts Commission welcomes your comments and suggestions on this plan, including the names of artists and community organizations who might be interested in the Central Subway Public Art Program.
Email: judy.moran@sfgov.org