Norman Arts Seeks New Grants Review Panelist Volunteers for Upcoming Grant Cycles

The Norman Arts Council is seeking volunteers to serve as grants review panelists. We currently have 7 open positions on our panel. Deadline to submit an application is October 30, 2021.

If you have an interest in how public funding for the arts is allocated to our Norman Arts Organizations, this will be a very rewarding experience for you!

Panelists may serve 1, 2, or 3 year terms. The majority of the review work is done independently and the panel comes together for 2-3 meetings between November and February.

Renowned Architect and Visual Artist to Exhibit 'Collage Thinking’ at MAINSITE Contemporary Art

Civil Rights by Herb Greene

MAINSITE Contemporary Art is honored to host an exhibition of works by architect and visual artist Herb Greene. The event marks the first solo exhibition of Greene’s work in Norman, where he studied architecture under Bruce Goff at the University of Oklahoma in the 1950s and built the iconic Prairie House in 1962.

Exploring his collage paintings, architectural structures and the intersection therein, Mapping the Mental Continuum runs from Friday, October 8 through Saturday, November 27 at MAINSITE Contemporary Art, 122 E. Main, Norman, OK. 

An opening reception takes place from 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday, October 8 with a second reception set for 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday, November 12, both in conjunction with Norman Arts Council’s 2nd Friday Norman Art Walk. 

A catalog of the exhibition, which includes an in-depth interview with Greene in addition to essays and striking images, will be available for purchase at the November reception and preorder in October. A short film is being produced to further document the exhibition, featuring Greene among his artworks and beloved architectural projects across Oklahoma.  

A percentage of proceeds from artwork sales will be donated towards a feature length independent documentary film in the making, Remembering the Future with Herb Greene, due for preview screening in Fall of 2022.

Texas Man and Lenin by Herb Greene

Mapping the Mental Continuum surveys Herb Greene’s use of ‘collage thinking’ as a theoretical and aesthetic expression of Organic philosophy. The importance of collage to Greene’s art and architecture manifests itself in the varied and simultaneous perspectives existing within a single image. 

Greene’s architectural structures and painting compositions map the mental continuum as a topological space in which thinking, feeling and perception are a unified progression of events. The cognitive process emerges and converges in a world of relation that suggests an overlap of entities in space-time and a widening multiplicity of perceptual vantage points. 

The artworks in the exhibit highlight a timeline that spans paintings from 1964-1984, with content that bridges pivotal moments in American history, including three different wars, The Great Depression era and social justice movements. The documentary photographs embedded in the collage paintings, dialogue throughout the exhibition space with three of Greene’s most notable built projects: the Joyce Residence (Snyder, OK, 1959), Prairie House (Norman, OK, 1961) and the Cunningham Residence (Oklahoma City, OK, 1962). 

‘Collage thinking’ is Greene’s term for interpreting the world through an integrative perceptual lens as opposed to a bifurcated reality that divides subject/object, figure/ground, interior/exterior, mind/matter and time/space. 

Exhibits at MAINSITE Contemporary Art — including Mapping the Mental Continuum — are made possible by support from Norman Arts Council sponsors, including The City of Norman, Mid-America Arts Alliance, Oklahoma Arts Council, National Endowment for the Arts, Fowler Automotive, Oklahoma Department of Commerce and the Kirkpatrick Foundation.

Prairie House by Herb Greene | Photo by Robert Alan Bowlby

More about Herb Greene

Herb Greene studied architecture under the direction of Bruce Goff (1904–1982), one of the nation’s most original architects and influential architectural educators. Following the retirement of Goff in 1957, Greene taught architecture at the University of Oklahoma for six years, furthering Goff’s legacy and developing his own unique pedagogy.

In 1961, Greene designed and built the Prairie House in Norman, Oklahoma. The idiosyncratic and innovative architecture of Greene’s Prairie House caused an international sensation and was published in Life and Look magazines, Progressive Architecture (St. Martin’s Press), and numerous journals throughout Europe and Japan. 

After his retirement from teaching in 1982, Greene moved to Berkeley, California where he continued to write, paint, and promote his concept for building with artists. In 1981, Greene published the book Building to Last: Architecture as Ongoing Art (Architectural Book Publishing, 1981), which incorporates the work of artists and crafts people into built environments and advocates for regional and cultural identity in architectural forms. 

Greene’s architectural drawings are in The Art Institute of Chicago’s collection alongside works by Louis Sullivan, Frank Lloyd Wright, Bruce Goff, and other works in the “Prairie Tradition.” Greene’s collage paintings are also in The Art Institute of Chicago’s collection, as well as numerous private collections across the United States. 

Prairie House by Herb Greene | Photo by Robert Alan Bowlby

Norman Arts Council, Norman Public Arts Invites Students to Write Haikus Inspired by the Walker Arts District to Become Public Art

Rendering of what haiku-inspired public art set for light poles in Downtown Norman is expected to look like.

Haiku Poetry Contest

Submissions DUE: 11:59 p.m. Friday, December 1

The Norman Arts Council and Public Arts Board announce a haiku poetry contest! Students in grades 3 - 8, living in Norman are invited to Submit. All poems must be submitted via this form.

Haiku's must be themed about the Walker Arts District in Downtown Norman. This is the area of downtown along Main Street from University Blvd to the East Main Street Roundabout and along the Railroad tracks from The Depot to the Central Library. 

Haiku's can be about any aspect of the Arts District - events, food, shopping, arts, etc. 

24 Haikus will then be selected to be converted to public art displayed on the light posts in the Walker Arts District! 

All submitted haikus will be exhibit at MAINSITE Contemporary Art during a spring 2022 2nd Friday Art Walk (exact date TBD). 

Timeline

December 1, 2021, 11:59pm - Deadline to submit haikus to the Norman Arts Council

January 2022 - Selected Haikus announced

Spring 2022 - Haiku art project installed and exhibition of haikus at MAINSITE (exact date TBD).

Parents may help their children in creating the haikus. Resources to guide in haiku writing:

YouTube Series, Hai and Ku: https://youtu.be/JHB3k7yxepo

YouTube, Haikus for elementary students: https://youtu.be/-bHxSMXU560

Example of haiku and what public art created to visualize it will look like!

Norman Arts Seeks Proposals for Parking Structure at Norman Regional Hospital HealthPlex

Norman Regional Hospital HealthPlex Parking Structure RFP

DEADLINE: 11:59 p.m. Friday, September 10, 2021
APPLY HERE

Project Description

Norman Arts Council on behalf of Norman Regional Hospital HealthPlex is seeking an artist (or team of artists) to create a significant work of art on metal perforated panels on the exterior of the parking facility to be constructed adjacent to the HealthPlex located at Interstate 35 and Tecumseh Road, Norman, Oklahoma.

Norman Regional Health System (NRHS) is an independent, Oklahoma healthcare system that provides health and wellness services to our local communities. NRHS is operated by the Norman Regional Hospital Authority, a public trust, which serves the public interest.

Norman Regional Hospital, located on Porter Ave. in Norman, has a more than 74 year legacy of serving the community. It is licensed for 219 beds and offers a full range of services, which includes a 44- bed Emergency Department, Cancer Management Center, The Rehabilitation Center, medical-surgical nursing units, an intensive care unit, a stroke center, operating rooms, a behavioral medicine unit, outpatient laboratory and imaging services, an oncology clinic, infusion center, vascular access center and other healthcare services.

The Norman Regional HealthPlex campus is licensed for 168 beds. Built in 2009 this hospital features cardiovascular services, spine and orthopedic surgery, and women’s and children’s services. The HealthPlex is home to Norman Regional Kids, an inpatient Pediatric Hospitalist program that provides specialized care for children while in the hospital. The Obstetrical Emergency Department (OBED) physicians provide an elevated level of service for expectant patients presenting to the emergency department for evaluation. The OBED hospitalist provides consistent and experienced care for a patient and her unborn child.

Norman Regional Moore, a state-of-the-art healthcare facility, opened in June 2016 in Moore, Oklahoma. Norman Regional Moore houses physician offices, an emergency department that is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and community meeting space. Other services include diagnostic imaging, mammography, lab, outpatient counseling services, and physical therapy. Norman Regional has 16 primary care and more than 22 specialty care physician/ provider clinics in the communities of Norman, Moore, Blanchard, Newcastle, Noble, and south Oklahoma City.

The Artwork

The desired artwork on the exterior wall of the Norman Regional HealthPlex parking facility facing the roundabout and main entrance will create a monumental impression that patients, staff, and visitors will carry with them into the hospital complex. The custom architectural perforated metal panels covering a 52’ x 371’ area cladding this side of the parking facility will be the “canvas” for the design. It is imperative that the artwork creates feelings of health and wellness, reinforcing NRHS’s focus on establishing a sense of trust, community, and belonging through human connections. Please see attached diagram.

This large-scale artwork will also have an impact on the natural and built environment of the NRHS HealthPlex campus for many years so the artwork must be timeless and as relevant in 70 years as it is today continuing to address concepts related to wellness and that is easily read and universally felt.

Since the work of art is on the exterior of the facility, it should complement the natural site surrounding the complex and the architecture of the buildings. Visitors, patients, and staff should be able to interact with the artwork by observing it reacting to changes in light, seasons, or weather.

Project Details

- The metal panels vary by level with 2 width sizes, 22 ½” and 45” and panel lengths include 5’-0”, 6’-6”, and 11’-6”.

- The panels do not cover the ground floor. They screen levels 2-5.  Level 6 is the top of the parking facility.

- The interior side that faces the circle round-about at the entrance to the building features an area of distributed metal panels equaling 52’ tall x 371’ long.

Possibilities for the design on the panels include colorized panels, a light wash on the panels on the external side of the building, or perforated imagery on the panels. The selected artist is responsible for producing a design in electronic imaging files that are compatible with the fabrication software. The selected artist will be supplied with dimensions and other necessary information, images, and samples as needed for the creation and delivery of the artwork design. Fabrication, delivery, and installation are not the artist’s responsibilities.

A sample of the perforated metal can be seen at MAINSITE Contemporary Art, 122 East Main, Norman, Oklahoma 73069 during business hours of 10:00 am to 4:00 pm Tuesday through Saturday.

Budget

The total artist's fee for the project is $25,000. This amount must cover all design and costs for delivery of the design.

Artist Eligibility

Open to Oklahoma professional artists (or teams of artists) with experience working on public art projects of this scale and creating site-specific works are invited to submit a proposal for this project.

Timeline

RFP Deadline: Friday, September 10, 2021 at 12:00 pm (midnight)

The following dates are subject to change:
Selection of Semi-Finalists: By September 28, 2021
Interviews with Semi-Finalists: By October 19, 2021
Contact Artists: By October 25, 2021
Finalize Design: November 1, 2021 - January 15, 2022
Final Design Delivery:  February 1, 2022
Completion Date of NRH HealthPlex Parking Facility: Late 2023

Application Guidelines

Submissions for this project must contain the following materials:

• A description of the preliminary concept. Proposals should outline:

♦  Your interest and why you want to work on this project

♦  The theme or concept as it relates to the building and description of the desired artwork stated above

♦  Conceptual design drawings and/or sketches sufficient to communicate the artistic concept

♦  Color and surface quality

♦  A description of the mediums and process needed to affix the design to metal perforated panels

♦  The proposed location of the artwork

♦  The significance of the artwork relative to the hospital’s mission and architecture

♦  Included support material that brings clarity to the proposal, i.e. diagrammatic drawings, gestural renderings, color copies, etc. is optional

• Resume (not to exceed three pages)

• 10 to 15 digital high-resolution images of previous work you feel would support your ability to carry out this project

• Annotated image list in desired priority of viewing that corresponds with the names of the digital files and includes the following information:

♦  Artist’s name, Title of artwork, medium, size, date of artwork completion, location and project details (i.e. budget, commissioning agency, etc., if public art).

♦  The list should be sorted in desired priority of viewing.

• A list of three references with whom you have worked on a public art project, including current telephone number and/or email address.

Questions or for more information, contact:
Debby Williams, Norman Arts Council, Public Art Manager
405.517.7251
debby@normanarts.org

Committee and Selection Criteria

An artist will be selected based on the materials submitted---please see the Application Guidelines above. Selection for this project will be made by a panel including stakeholders, the project architect, and members of the arts community. The panel will be looking at the merit of the artist’s proposed concept, work, past experience at completing projects on time and within budget, and appropriateness and maintenance requirements of the proposed concept. The Panel will also consider artists who can demonstrate sensitivity to the site and surroundings. Artists must be able to commit and effectively work within the project timeline and collaborate with Norman Regional Hospital’s administration, HGA Milwaukee architectural firm, and Zahner, who will fabricate and install the perforated metal panels.

Selection Process

The Selection Panel will review applicants’ submissions. A shortlist of semi-finalists will then be selected. The semi-finalists will be invited to interview and submit a more in-depth proposal to the panel for a $250.00 honorarium. The honorarium will be applied toward the commission amount for the artist awarded the commission. Soon after being selected, the artist and Project Team will meet for an in-depth final design meeting.

Commissioning of artists is implemented without preference to racial or ethnic origins, sex, sexual orientation, religious affiliation, disability, or age.

The Norman Arts Council and Norman Regional Hospital reserve the right to modify this solicitation and to request additional information or proposals from any or all participating artists. The Norman Arts Council and Norman Regional Hospital also reserve the right to accept or reject, at any time prior to the commissioning of a work, any or all proposals when the acceptance, rejection, waiver, or advertisement would be in the best interest of the project. In addition, they may solicit proposals from artists not responding to this call and reserve the right to select an artist outside of the pool of artists responding to this call.

Norman Arts Council Accepting Fall 2021 Arts Education Scholarships for Norman Students

FALL 2021 ARTS EDUCATION SCHOLARSHIPS
DUE: SUNDAY, AUGUST 29 AT 11:59 P.M. CST

Scholarship Program Mission: The Norman Arts Council Arts Education Scholarships are intended to provide Norman children with the opportunity to attend arts programming that is offered outside of schools.

APPLICATION DEADLINE:

For FALL 2021 Programs – Applications are due by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, August 29, 2021

Note: Please read application guidelines thoroughly to ensure timely completion of all requirements!

ELIGIBILITY: The Norman Arts Council invites students in grades K-8 who live or go to school in Norman, Oklahoma to apply for a scholarship to offset the cost of an arts education experience provided by an established arts organization or educator.

APPLICATIONS: NAC guidelines and criteria should be followed carefully. Only Applications submitted through the on-line process will be considered for funding. Applications must be 100% completed for consideration. "I don't know" or "unsure" answers will deem an incomplete application.

SELECTION CRITERIA: The NAC is seeking applications for scholarships from students who:

• express a strong desire to enhance their arts education experience beyond what is offered at schools

• demonstrate a past commitment to visual or performing arts

• have the ability to commit to the completion of the program

• have a financial need that prevents them from funding the tuition themselves

• priority will be given to new applicants, low income applicants, and applicants seeking funds for visual arts programs

• $500 is the maximum award a single student will be granted

• Applications must be 100% completed

Applicants will not be turned down for not meeting ALL of the criteria. It is encouraged, however, to try to meet as many as possible and to address the criteria directly in the proposal.

AWARDS: Award notification will be by email. Due to limited funds, applicants may not receive the full funding requested and/or may not receive any funding at this time. Our requests far exceed out budget each semester.

DISBURSEMENT OF FUNDS: Upon award notification and receipt of the scholarship agreement, the Norman Arts Council will give the awarded funds directly to the organization or individual implementing the program applied for on behalf of the student. Should the program be cancelled for any reason by the organization or individual implementing, the funds will be returned to the Norman Arts Council’s scholarship program and may be applied for during the next cycle.

COMMITMENT TO PROGRAM: Upon award notification, the student’s parent or legal guardian will receive a scholarship agreement that states they will commit to ensuring the student’s regular attendance to the program. If the student fails to attend at least 75% of the program, the student will be asked to withdraw; any remaining funds will be returned to the Norman Arts Council’s scholarship program; and the student will not be eligible in the future.

AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS: The total amount of scholarship funds available may be awarded to one applicant or divided among multiple applicants. The Norman Arts Council reserves the right to not award any scholarships should there be a lack of qualified candidates or shortage of scholarship funds.

LIABILITY: Award recipients and their guardians agree to indemnify and hold harmless the NAC, its employees, its agents, and its Board of Directors, in connection with any action, claim, lawsuit, charge, or proceeding, including but not limited to any civil action in State or Federal Court, or before any State or Federal agency, which is made or brought against recipients, NAC, and/or any of NAC's employees, agents, or board members, by any person or entity, based upon and/or arising out of a recipient's use of the funds.

APPEALS: Any applicant who is denied a scholarship in whole or in part may only appeal directly to the NAC Education Committee on the following grounds: 1) discrimination against the applicant or its membership on the basis of: race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, or disability, which is shown to have materially and adversely affected the outcome of their application; 2) illegal activity on the part of the Education Committee or a member of the Education Committee, which is shown to have materially and adversely affected the outcome of their application.