City of Memphis | UrbanArt Commission
ED RICE COMMUNITY CENTER | DESIGN ONLY
REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS
Release Date: Monday, November 29th, 2021
Design Stipend: $4,000 (in addition to three finalist honoraria of $500 each)
Deadline: Monday, January 10, 2022 at 11:59 pm
Eligibility: Any artist living and working within the Memphis metropolitan area. Artists may submit only one proposal per project opportunity, but are invited to submit as a team if desirable.
Information Session: Wednesday December 15th @ 5:30pm, RSVP now.
BACKGROUND
The Frayser neighborhood began as a small farming community in the 1800s, growing rapidly after the construction of a railroad between Covington and Memphis. It is a resilient neighborhood with a strong sense of pride, where residents value entrepreneurship and community activism around home ownership, environmental concerns, and youth activities and education.
The Ed Rice Community Center is very much an anchor of Frayser and acts as “City Hall” for many of the organizations in the neighborhood. More than 50 years ago in 1965, the City of Memphis built Frayser’s Ed Rice Community Center and in 2020 was demolished to make way for a state-of-the-art facility designed by local architecture firm archimania. The original facility was dedicated to Ed Rice, a prominent landowner in Frayser, soldier and chief lieutenant of Mayor E.H. "Boss" Crump, in 1982 upon Frayser’s annexation by the City. Previously and currently, it serves the neighborhood from a site that once served as a pauper’s graveyard for Shelby County. Between 1890 and 1965, 30,000 individuals who did not have relatives or resources for a proper burial were buried on this land. In 2007 through a collaborative effort consisting of the Frayser Inter-Faith Association, Frayser Community Association (FCA), and Ed Rice Community Center, the Frayser Memorial Garden in the trail area of the center was established to recognize and acknowledge the 30,000 deceased buried beneath the grounds. Video rendering of the new community center facility: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLgBZVc6b_Y
SITE SPECIFICS
The Ed Rice Community Center is located at 2907 Watkins along one of the main gateways to Frayser and the plot features a walking trail, a pool and tennis courts, and is centrally located. Throughout the year Ed Rice averages about 450 people a day. The summer season is peak season when the center averages between 500 and 600 people, given the addition of camp kids. Ed Rice Community Center offers a vast array of programs focusing on sports, recreation and education, actively serving youth and adults from the neighborhood. Additionally, three festivals are held annually: the Spring Festival, the Fall Festival and Block Party for Peace. archimania intentionally utilized glass as a feature to provide a natural component inside of the building as beautiful landscape, green spaces and tall trees are a focal point from each window. Artists should also take note of the intention for the glass features to provide transparency: the ability to see into the community center promotes a welcoming environment and is externally focused on what is outside in the community.
SCOPE OF WORK
UrbanArt Commission (UAC) is partnering with The City of Memphis to commission a series of small, interior mural installations. Selected artists will be commissioned to create designs only, which should be free-form and flowing to be printed on vinyl and applied to walls and glass on the interior of the Ed Rice CC. UAC will contract directly with a fabricator to print and install the selected artwork. The company will collaborate closely with the selected artist to translate their commissioned artwork into vinyl. The selection committee expresses an interest in a public art piece that will:
Highlight the environmentally conscious and sustainable concepts and amenities of the new facility through an abstract theme of concepts
Reflect the activities and experience of a modern-day community center, including its function as a flexible community gathering space and hub for the exchange of exercise and education
Reference the history of Frayser, but focus of the future of this community that values families, children, entrepreneurship and growth
Consider existing nearby public art and the design of the new facility
The selection committee will select three finalists for the installation based on their portfolio, application materials, professional qualifications, and demonstrated ability to meet deadlines. The commissioned artist will be selected based on the strength of their proposals, which will be presented to the selection committee.
UAC is committed to equity and inclusion in our work, both in the artists and organizations supported through the development of public art. UAC is especially interested in applications from artists who have not previously received public art commissions. People of color, differently-abled persons, indigenous peoples, LGBTQ+, seniors, and women are strongly encouraged to apply.
SELECTION COMMITTEE
The Community Center Director, Site Representative
Jana Wilson- Arkwings, UAC + Neighborhood Artist Representative
Amanda Nalley- UAC’s Frayser Library Artist + Neighborhood Artist Representative
Regenia Dowell- President of Frayser Community PTSA, Resident
Telise Ezell-Turner, Frayser Resident
Shelly Rice, Ed Rice’s Son
Greg M. Price, AIA, ASLA, LC, archimania, Architect Representative
Mike Flowers, City Parks Representative
Mike Lemm, City Engineering Representative (non-voting)
PROJECT TIMELINE
Monday, November 29th, 2021 RFQ released
Wednesday, December 15th, 2021 UAC Virtual Information Session
Monday, January 10th, 2022 RFQ deadline
Monday, January 24th, 2022 Notify finalists of RFP invitation
Monday, February 7th, 2022 RFP deadline
Spring 2022 Completion celebration
INFORMATION SESSIONS
UAC will host a virtual information session for interested artists on Wednesday, December 15th at 5:30 pm. The virtual session will be recorded and a link made available to applicants who are unable to attend during that time. Interested artists who have not completed a public art project previously or not completed a mural at this scale are strongly encouraged to reach out to the UAC team in advance of submitting their application. Artists may also schedule a meeting with UAC staff to review their application and portfolio. Appointments are available until 1 week prior to the close of the call to artists. See project contact information below. RSVP now.
FINALIST REQUIREMENTS
Each of the three finalists will be asked to prepare a schematic design or mockup, followed by a presentation to the selection committee. Each finalist will receive a $500 honorarium for an original design developed specifically for the site.
DESIGN FEES
One artist will receive a $4,000 design stipend for commissioned artwork with final fabrication costs handled by UAC.
GUIDELINES
Please submit the following materials online by following the “Ed Rice CC Design Only RFQ” via the Submit link below:
Completed application form
A typed letter explaining your interest in the project and your general approach/concept to its design and production. Please do not submit design proposals at this point.
Up to 20 images of past work including title of work, date, medium, budget and project partners, if any.
Résumé or CV, not to exceed 2 pages.
List of three professional references, including current phone and email.
To apply to an open Request for Qualifications (RFQ) or Request for Proposals (RFP), go to uacmem.org/calls-to-artists. Click on the opportunity that you are interested in to view more details.
Clicking on the Submit button will redirect you to our Submittable page, which contains all of our current open opportunities. Click the Submit button next to the opportunity that you wish to apply for, or if you are already within an opportunity, scroll down to the Create your account / Have an account? Sign in form.
If you already have a Submittable account, click the Have an account? Sign in tab to sign in to your account. If you don’t remember your password, use the Forgot? link on the login form.
If you don’t have a Submittable account, you must create one to apply. Create your free account by filling out the Create your account form. Fill in all information and click the Create Account and Continue button to continue with the submission process.
From there, you will be able to complete and submit your application. You can now use this account login when submitting to all future UAC opportunities. Once you have submitted your application, you will receive a confirmation email that confirms receipt of your full application.
For more information about this project, please contact:
Whitney Williams | Program Manager
901.335.1343 | whitney@uacmem.org
This RFQ can be found on www.uacmem.org/calls-to-artists
DISCLAIMERS
Applicants will be notified as to the status of their application. Commissioning of artists by UAC and the pursuit of all UAC activities are implemented without preference to racial or ethnic origins, gender, sexual orientation, religious affiliation, disability or age.
UAC reserves the right to modify this solicitation and to request additional information from participating artists.
UAC reserves the right to accept or reject, at any time prior to the commissioning of a work, any or all proposals when the acceptance, rejection, waiver or advertisement would be in the best interest of the project.
The staff of UAC will be responsible for all correspondence and communication by and between applicants and members of selection panels. Discussion regarding these projects by and between any applicant and any member of a selection panel outside of regularly scheduled meetings during the selection process may be grounds for the disqualification of the applicant. Such determination shall be at the discretion of UAC.
