Call for Artists in Downtown Simcoe!
Photo: Felena Pereira of Schuyler Farms, David Lopes of the Downtown Simcoe BIA, and Hayden Miller-Cluckie and Andrew Gunn of young & free press will help to coordinate the new ‘Global Garden’ project at the Norfolk Arts Centre in downtown Simcoe. This initiative is part of the ‘Celebrate Simcoe’ mural project currently underway in the community featuring new works by artist Meaghan Claire Kehoe.
Call for Artists
presented by the Downtown Simcoe BIA and young & free press
The Downtown Simcoe BIA and the team at young & free press are excited to share this call for artists to paint picnic tables to be placed on the beautiful grounds of the Norfolk Arts Centre! Located at 21 Lynnwood Avenue, the Norfolk Arts Centre offers a lovely urban green-space adjacent to the downtown core. Beginning in summer 2020, the BIA has collaborated with Norfolk County to utilize this area as a ‘Downtown Dining Garden’, allowing residents and visitors to gather, eat, and enjoy live music together. This has been one of the silver linings of the COVID-19 pandemic: finding innovative ways to use public spaces! Now, we are pleased to invite artists to paint picnic tables to make the setting even more vibrant and welcoming.
Funding for this project has been provided through the Healthy Communities Initiative supported by the Government of Canada, Community Foundations of Canada, and the Canadian Urban Institute. This program is designed to create safe and vibrant public spaces, and to boost those who have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Background
Artists have started to paint a series of murals in downtown Simcoe, part of the new ‘Celebrate Simcoe’ project supported by Norfolk County (through the RRRF program), the Norfolk Community Foundation, and multiple private sector sponsors. Now, we are adding the picnic table project to the equation, and have dubbed this particular initiative ‘Celebrate Simcoe: The Global Garden’ – this is a fun spin on the fact that Simcoe is located in Norfolk County, which has long been nicknamed Ontario’s Garden. Simcoe has a distinctive international culture, which this project aims to highlight.
Every year, approximately five thousand seasonal workers come to the community from outside the country – mainly Jamaica, Mexico, and Trinidad and Tobago – to work on large fruit and vegetable farms. Typically, on the weekends, the workers come downtown to shop, eat, and socialize. The atmosphere on ‘Town Nights’ is unique, and we want to amplify this experience by adding artwork that celebrates the diversity of the community. Gradually, the murals and picnic table art will transform Simcoe into a true ‘Global Garden’, enhancing the visual landscape for residents & visitors.
We are requesting expressions of interest from artists based in & around Norfolk County, including seasonal workers, who would like to paint an original design on one of five picnic tables to be placed outside on the lawn at the Norfolk Arts Centre in downtown Simcoe! The goal is to add artwork that is welcoming and inclusive, highlighting the unique intersection of urban and rural culture that exists in the community, and especially the contributions of seasonal farm workers to the productivity of farms in the area.
Here are some guidelines for the project:
The picnic tables have been sourced locally through Henderson Recreation Equipment Ltd. and feature galvanized frames and wood tops and seats. Artists will be expected to develop an original design that covers the wooden sections completely, using exterior paint and finishing the work with protective coats to ensure durability. We encourage artists to contemplate the setting in downtown Simcoe, the surrounding natural environment and agricultural sector in Norfolk County, and how food production and preparation bring people together, including seasonal farm workers. We intend to select designs that will add to the distinctive character of the space at the Norfolk Arts Centre and help to make downtown Simcoe more welcoming. Our interest is in artwork that feels contemporary & joyful -- think Instagram-worthy, for sure!
Public art has the power to build neighbourhoods, generate captivating public spaces, prompt discussions, add beauty to our surroundings, and drive economic development. We are seeking submissions from artists with diverse experiences, backgrounds, styles and techniques that reflect our focus on creating safe, vibrant, and inclusive public spaces.
FEES
Each artist selected will be paid a total of $1000 to paint one picnic table.
REQUIREMENTS
Entries must be received before noon on Tuesday, July 27th.
Insurance and safety requirements are the responsibility of the artist and must be provided upon request.
ELIGIBILITY
Priority will be given to artists based in southwestern Ontario, particularly those from in & around Norfolk County, including seasonal workers.
APPLICATION PROCESS
Professional artists should provide a complete CV with full contact information and highlight previous experience painting murals or creating other works for outdoor settings – please include hi-res images of these past works;
We are also welcoming submissions from emerging artists! For those with limited experience painting outdoor works, please submit a short description (100 - 150 words) highlighting your background as an artist, explain your vision for the picnic table, and include a preliminary sketch of the design;
Submit entries by email to Andrew Gunn at andrew@youngandfreepress.ca
Please use ‘Celebrate Simcoe’ as the subject line of your email;
We encourage interested artists to contact Andrew Gunn by email or phone for additional images that may assist with the development of the design (phone contact: 519.709.5227)
SELECTION PROCESS
This call for artists is being administered by the Downtown Simcoe BIA in collaboration with young & free press. A committee will review the submissions and select up to five artists to paint the picnic tables. The committee with include representatives of the BIA, young & free press, and the seasonal worker community. All entrants will be notified of the results. The artists selected to paint the tables will develop their concepts and submit the designs to the committee for review. Decisions will be based on artistic merit, technical feasibility, and the connection of the artwork to the overall project goals.
Once the designs are approved, we will arrange to deliver the picnic table to each artist selected, and then retrieve the table to be placed on the lawn at the Norfolk Arts Centre!
Our goal is to establish a safe, welcoming space, and add these new works of art to strengthen the local social and cultural infrastructure. The tables should generate conversation while adding beauty and depth to the downtown core.
We are very excited to offer this opportunity, and look forward to revealing the painted picnic tables later this summer at the Norfolk Arts Centre in downtown Simcoe!
The Downtown Simcoe BIA ‘Global Garden’ project is supported by the Government of Canada’s Healthy Communities Initiative
