CALL FOR INTERVENTIONS from artists, designers, architects, researchers, students, writers and community members

Release Date: Tuesday April 30, 2013
Submission Deadline: Friday June 14, 2013, 4 PM
Announcement of Selected Projects: Friday June 28, 2013

Musagetes is an international organization that strives to make the arts a more central and meaningful reality in peoples’ lives, in our communities and societies. Guelph is our home—this is where we live and work. Musagetes established its offices here in 2009 because the city has rich and nuanced cultural and socio-political conditions that make it an exciting location for cultural experimentation. We are also actively working in Rijeka on the coast of Croatia, Lecce in the south of Italy, and Sudbury, in northern Ontario to demonstrate how art can be participatory and socially engaged, to establish a greater sense of belonging in communities.
Musagetes invites proposals from the Guelph community for new artistic interventions in St. George’s Square in September and October 2013. Selected artistic interventions will receive a fee of $1500 and production budget of $3500, as well as promotion and production support from Musagetes.

The interventions in St. George’s Square might be re-situations, reminders or recognitions of this heart of the city at a time when the centre of social activities in Guelph’s downtown has recently moved to the nearby Market Square. The buses are now close to the VIA Rail/GO Transit station, and there is a new ice rink and splash pad in front of City Hall. People who previously used St. George’s Square as their favorite outdoor meeting place are attracted to these new downtown features. Is St. George’s Square still a public space for gathering or has it become just another traffic artery through the centre of the city? What makes public space useable or defunct? At its most productive, public space is democratic: a place where multiple groups, perspectives, and voices converge, discuss, disagree and learn from each other. We encourage interventions that foster conversations and critical thinking about the conflicting perspectives of public space—in Guelph in particular, and as an idea in general. Applicants are encouraged to consider experimental forms of and approaches to working in public space including but not limited to: live performance, dance, music, public debate, participatory practice and temporary sculpture.

YOUR APPLICATION SHOULD INCLUDE:

1. 5 images, video, audio of your previous work or 3 writing samples following these guidelines:

Digital images:
– Must be in .jpg format
– Maximum of 1MB file size
– Maximum resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels
– RGB or greyscale colour mode only

Video:
– Must be in .mov, .mp4 or .avi format
– Maximum 1GB file size
– Maximum resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels
Writing:

– Maximum 3 pages total

Songs or audio files:
– Maximum 10 MB file size
– Must be in .mp3 format

2. Name, Mailing Address, Telephone, Email, Website, Project Title, proposal of no more than 750 words describing what you intend to do. Please keep in mind that artistic interventions should be conceptually and physically related to the specific context of St. George’s Square.

3. Curriculum Vitae (no more than 2 pages)

4. Technical Description (250 words max): Please describe all technical requirements including electricity, lighting, equipment, services, maintenance and materials necessary for installation within St. George’s Square.

5. A budget describing all production and installation costs of your project including materials and transportation.

Unless otherwise specified, files must be submitted in .pdf format.

All submitted content must be compressed into one folder titled FirstNameLastName.zip and emailed info@musagetes.ca/musagetes-old. Alternatively, the folder can be saved to a public file share service (i.e. Dropbox, MediaFire) with the link sent to the above address.

All applications must be received by 4 PM on Friday June 14, 2013. Incomplete or late applications may not be considered. Selected individuals will be notified on Friday, June 28, 2013.