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Artist Selection <br /> Artist selection is a logical component of public art master planning, if artwork is being <br /> commissioned, artists will need to be selected to complete the projects. Nine out of ten plans outlined <br /> some form of artist selection methodology, or a set of practices to be used. The plans reviewed tended <br /> to prefer a request for proposals or artist competition model. Literature on this topic would suggest that <br /> a request for qualifications is more appropriate. A publication from Americans for the Arts establishing <br /> suggested methods for artist selection provides very practical guidance for this component.The author <br /> presents the two major processes for selecting an artist, a request for proposals and a request for <br /> qualifications. A request for proposals tends to favor inexperienced artists,while a request for <br /> qualifications has the opposite effect.The author states that "most experienced artists will not submit <br /> proposals in response to an open call (Esser, 2004, p. 7)." Because of the concern of limiting the artist <br /> pool,the author suggests a multi-step process that starts with a request for qualifications, the field of <br /> artists will then be narrowed by the approval authority. At this point proposals will be solicited from <br /> selected artists,followed by artist interviews.The process is completed with a design contract. <br /> While the process outlined above is rigorous, it favors experienced artists. Due to this bias it is <br /> recommended that alternate selection methods be used if the specific project has a goal of bringing new <br /> artists into the program. It is also appropriate if a local artist is preferred, as the pool of local artists that <br /> have previous qualifications in public art may be limited.The alternate process is typically a request for <br /> proposals, rather than a request for qualifications, and has three steps; publishing an RFP, artist <br /> interviews, and then a design contract. <br /> The selection method is recommended to also be tied to the scale of the project and <br /> engineering concerns. Large sculptural projects and installations in public places have serious concerns <br /> with regard to both maintenance and public safety. Due to the complexity of these structures, a request <br /> for qualifications would be best. Community murals and highly local projects that do not have these <br /> 24 <br />