St. Helena Art Mural Project

Description

The St. Helena Chamber of Commerce and the St. Helena Beautification Foundation committee is working with a volunteer committee comprised of property owners, gallery managers, members of the St. Helena beautification committee, PR professionals, and passionate residents, to bring public art to St. Helena. St. Helena’s Historic Shopping District has five high-end art galleries in a three-block radius, but no existing public art murals. The committee’s mission is to bring public art to St. Helena that celebrates St. Helena’s history and highlights its culture, in a bright and progressive fashion. With a goal of three murals in five years, the art murals are meant to enhance the character of St. Helena’s historic downtown district and create an entertaining and walkable art experience for the public.

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The mural will be located on the exterior wall of a two-story downtown hotel that has high visibility for through traffic. The building (image below) has wood siding and will require a scaffolding for installation. Important elements: The mural itself should be photo-worthy, demand the attention of both pedestrian and vehicle traffic, and provide sense of place. The highly visible art mural should represent the City of St. Helena, honor its historical significance of being the “roots of Napa Valley”, and bring vibrant energy to St. Helena's historic shopping district. It's important the piece is not only impressive but also feels timeless and can relate to people of all ages, backgrounds, and ethnicities.

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The commissioned artwork should achieve the following goals:
-Celebrate St. Helena’s history, natural beauty, cultural heritage.
-Express the “roots of Napa Valley” narrative (the importance as St. Helena is why Napa Valley is here today).
-Photogenic and share worthy. The mural should demand a social media photo opportunity.
-Bright colors, whimsical, creative, & innovative.
-With little to no art in public spaces in St. Helena, it is important this mural be engaging, thought-provoking, and representative of St. Helena’s diversity.

Artist eligibility opens August 4th, 2023. . Eligible artists must reside within the Western United States. Artist must be 21 years and older by the time of installation. The selected artist must be available to begin work Summer of 2024, pending weather.

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Budget: Project budget is $10,000 inclusive of all materials, lift/scaffolding rental, installation, and any supplies needed to complete the project. Additionally, a budget has been established to pay semi-finalists a proposal fee of $350. Lodging will be provided for the selected artist, outside of the project budget. Travel and meals are to be provided by artist. Artist will need to provide personal proof of insurance if selected as a finalist.

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Artist Selection Criteria: Criteria for selection of public art or approval of designs include but are not limited to the following:
-An ability to work collaboratively and enthusiastically with stakeholders.
-Experience creating large scale outdoor murals depicting historical elements in an innovative and colorful way.
-Strong art mural portfolio reflecting experience working on murals within a town’s downtown area or town center.
-Demonstrated successful creative, innovative, and effective approach in comparable projects.
-Artist’s ability to carry out the commission, keep the project within budget, and to complete and install the work on schedule.
-Artist’s knowledge of and ability to work with, durable materials that are appropriate for long-term exposure in a public environment and that require minimal care and long-term maintenance.

Application documents are to be submitted digitally through Dropbox, following the title directions above. Submission Deadline- completed applications must be received by Friday, September 29th, 5:00pm PST.