public art installation project - funding...

As part of our group project we produced a booklet containing various items of information relating to the project. Within this booklet, I produced the section on funding for Public Art...

Funding for Public Art
There are many organisations willing to provide support for projects related to public art. A comprehensive list of resources around the United Kingdom can be found at http://www.publicartonline.org.uk/resources/practicaladvice/funding/funding.php.

When applying for funding, organisations will require an application form to be completed. Many application forms require similar information regarding the project;

- Project Description A brief outline of the project which outlines the issues and factors that will contribute towards the project. An indication on location, timescale, possible partners and scale of project would also be required.
- Project Funding An indication of resources and funding bodies contributing towards the project. Clearly distinguish confirmed funding and potential funding.
- Project Aims Define the project in line with the guidelines set by the organisation you are applying funding from.
- Project Outcomes Give an outline of the desired results of the project; physical, cultural, human and economic.
- Roles and Responsibilities Provide the organisation with a contact person within the project – a co-ordinator for all involved. Give an indication of the responsibilities for each individual involved in the project and any associated agencies.
- Project Constraints Conduct risk assessments in respect of legal, environmental and site related issues.
- Marketing Identify any opportunities to communicate the project with local, national and/or international audiences.
- Documentation Provide requirements for visual, written or published forms of project documentation and responsibilities for delivery.

Once an application has been submitted, on average it takes about 6-8 weeks for a decision to be made.

A.T.E Project Funding
The timescale for this project was 4 weeks and funding for Public Art takes a minimum of 6 weeks to be approved, therefore as a group we took the decision to keep the project internal. We used the University’s free resources and kept costs to a minimum as we would be funding it ourselves.

If we had been given a longer timescale for this project we would have applied for funding. Following extensive research, we would have applied for funding from Kirklees Council as part of their ‘Arts in the Neighbourhood’ grants scheme.

http://www.kirklees.gov.uk/community/money/communityfunding/ain.asp

“Arts in the Neighbourhood grants are designed to help community and voluntary groups set up arts and cultural projects and events by contributing towards the costs. Projects must be wholly or mainly for the benefit of Kirklees residents, involve Kirklees residents and be organised by Kirklees based groups. ”

The proposal for the project would be to create an interactive Public Art installation where the public can post their comments on the statement “Public Art is worthless”. We would ask the population of Huddersfield to write their comments on post-it notes which would then be displayed until the end of the installation. Following this we would then commission a sculptor to create a piece of Public Art which would be engraved with the comments left to create a permanent piece of work that can be displayed within Huddersfield Town Centre as a representation of the town’s views on Public Art.

As part of the project we would have to gain permission from Kirklees Council to erect a Public Art piece and establish a suitable location within the town centre for it. The money from the ‘Arts in the Neighbourhood’ grant would help to pay for the following items:

- Materials used within the installation, such as pens and post-it notes.
- Hiring out a space within a local gallery for a week to hold the installation. A space we have considered is The Media Centre in Huddersfield.
- Commissioning a sculptor to create a piece of artwork that would be engraved with the comments posted by the local residents.
- Marketing/advertisements within Huddersfield to promote the event.

As the project would be part of our University research project, A.T.E would work on a voluntary basis, taking no pay from the project.

We believe there is a need for this form of Public Art within Huddersfield as it would give the local population a chance to express themselves individually and collectively. It would also be a permanent reminder of their contribution to the Huddersfield Town Centre environment, perhaps sparking regeneration within the town.

Following research into artists who have been involved with projects similar to ours, we decided that if given a longer timescale we would have appointed Gordon Young to design the piece of Public Art that would be displayed within Huddersfield Town Centre.

Gordon Young
“Gordon Young is a visual artist who focuses on creating art for the public domain. His work ranges from sculptures to typographic pavements for places as dis-related as government headquarters and village squares. The common denominator for all projects is the basis of relevance to the surroundings.”

Gordon Young has completed several projects where he has engraved text onto various materials. The ‘Walk of Art’ at the Yorkshire Sculpture Park involves the names of all the donors to the park cut out of a stainless steel walkway. His project ‘Cursing Stone & Reiver Pavement’ also involves words, specifically the Archbishop of Glasgow’s infamous curse of 1525, engraved on a granite boulder which sits at the end of an 80m public footpath.

As a group we considered many artists before settling on Gordon Young, as the chosen artist for our project. I personally feel that the work previously produced by Gordon Young fits well with what we envisage for our project. I particularly like his Cursing Stone & Reiver Pavement project, specifically the cursing stone in which he engraved words onto a granite stone which produces a beautiful piece of art as well as something the community can enjoy.