For Immediate Release: February 8, 2008 Elaine Mariner, Director, elaine.mariner@state.co.us 2008 Governor’s Arts Award Call to Colorado Artists

DESCRIPTION: The Colorado Council on the Arts and Arts for Colorado announces a Call to Colorado Artists in order to commission two original artworks for the 2008 Governor’s Arts Award.

ELIGIBILITY: Open to all visual artists residing in Colorado

PROJECT BUDGET: $5,250 including framing

DELIVERY DEADLINE FOR RECEIPT OF APPLICATIONS: Midnight (MST), Thursday, March 6, 2008

PROJECT OVERVIEW:
Reinstated in 2007, the purpose of the Governor’s Arts Award is to recognize and honor a Colorado town or city that celebrates and uses the arts as a focal point for community development and highlights the integral role the arts play in strengthening the vitality of their local community. The community chosen will have demonstrated their creative use of the arts to enhance their quality of life, build economic prosperity, improve educational achievement, and grow cultural tourism.

The Governor’s Arts Award Artist Selection Committee will commission an artwork to serve as the award presented to the winning Colorado community during the ceremony in summer, 2008. A total of two awards will be created by the selected artist. The second award will become part of the State of Colorado permanent art collection and will hang in the Colorado State Capitol.

The two finished artworks must be similar in size and media, be able to hang on a wall, and be related to each other thematically. The artwork should speak to the overall mission of the Governor’s Arts Award. For example, the artist may somehow reference the uniqueness of Colorado (its landscape, people, arts and culture, etc.), and/or speak to the important role arts and culture play in creating strong communities in our state. The finished artworks must be presented framed, and must be completed by June 23, 2008.

ARTIST & ARTWORK REQUIREMENTS:

BUDGET:
$5,250 for a total of two (2) pieces of art framed.

SELECTION COMMITTEE:
The Artist Selection Committee consists of artists, arts administrators from Denver and around the state, as well as a representative from the Governor’s Office.

SCHEDULE:
Thursday, March 6, 2008 Deadline for application materials to be received

Week of March 17, 2007 Artist Selection Committee meets to review materials and select finalist; All artists notified of outcome following review meeting via the CAFÉ website

Week of April 21, 2008 Finalist will present ideas to the committee at a Conceptual Design Review

June 23, 2008 Artwork completed (including framing) and delivered to Colorado Council on the Arts

HOW TO APPLY:
Applicants are asked to submit 6 digital images, a resume and a brief statement through www.callforentry.org (CaFÉ™). Please visit the website for complete instructions on how to apply. There is no fee to use this website.

The following materials will be required to complete this artist call:

1. Brief statement explaining the artist’s interest in being considered for this commission.
2. Current artist resume.
3. 6 digital images of recent work (within past two years). Please refer to complete instructions for image sizing and submission on the CAFÉ website.

The submission deadline is Midnight (MST) on Thursday, March 6, 2008.

SELECTION PROCESS:
The Artist Selection Committee will review all artists’ submissions and select one finalist based on the artists’ past work and applicability. Once chosen, the finalist will have four weeks to prepare sketches or general design ideas to present to the committee at a Conceptual Design Review to be held in mid-April. Upon acceptance of the final design idea, the artist must complete and deliver the artworks by June 23. If, for any reason the artwork does not meet the requirements set forth by the committee, the committee reserves the right to reject the final artwork.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
If you have questions or require additional information about this project, please contact Melinda Laz, project coordinator at melindalaz@earthlink.net or at 303.522.9694.