Selection Criteria Process
City Arts’ community art projects come about in a variety of ways. Sometimes individuals find a site in their neighborhood that they think is appropriate for a community artwork, and sometimes we notice a site that has particularly good visibility from pedestrian and automobile routes, or is adjacent to an interesting neighborhood landmark that serves as inspiration.
If a site is privately owned, we contact owners and neighbors and speak with them about our interest in using the site for a public artwork. If they are interested, we begin designing concepts. Then we return to the building owner and plan a neighborhood ANC review so that others within the community can assess the plans for the artwork. We use their feedback to make the final design, and then we begin raising money.
If a site is publicly owned, we establish a list of agencies that might be affected by public art modifications to it, or that make decisions about its use. We contact these agencies to find out whether they are open to making enhancements to the site. In many cases, an agency approaches us to enlist our help designing public artwork to enhance the visibility of their site. We then work closely with representatives from agencies such as the DC Department of Transportation and the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities to plan and implement artwork that is appropriate to the site.