Washington/National TOD Gateway
Public Art Program
City of Culver City
Historical Report
September 2022
Copyright 2022
1 PROJECT OVERVIEW
Over the last decade, the City has
engaged in long-term planning for
repurposing and redeveloping former
industrial land around the Culver City
Metro Expo Line Station. The City and
the former Culver City Redevelopment
Agency identified and assembled land for
potential redevelopment sites, rezoned
the land to accommodate transit-
oriented development uses, and adopted
a TOD District Streetscape Plan to
improve walkability, biking and promote
sustainable development. Public art is to
be a visible part of this project.
In September of 2018 the CAC released
a Request for Proposal (RFP) for an
Art Consultant for the Washington &
National Gateway. On February 6, 2019,
the CAC Public Art Subcommittee
interviewed public art consultants. Dyson
& Womack were selected by the CAC
Public Art Subcommittee, recommended
by the Cultural Affairs Commission and
approved by the City Council to steer this
Public Art Program from development to
realization.
Dyson & Womack were inducted into
the project in April 2019 and began the
process of developing a Public Art Plan
for the Washington and National Blvds.
commission. Dyson & Womack met with
the project Art Panel and Committee
to develop the overall themes and
foundations for the commission. The
Washington & National Public Art Plan
outlined the commission opportunity
informing artists and the public of the
curatorial vision, selection procedures,
and processes for implementation. The
public art plan was approved in December
2019 by the Art Panel and Committee.
2PROJECT TIMELINE
Art Consultant Contract Execution
Culver City Panel & Committee Meeting 1 RFQual Artist Info Session Culver City Panel & Committee Meeting 2
Evaluation Training
RFQual Shortlist Artists Selected
RFP Selected Artists Invited
Culver City Panel & Committee Meeting 3
Selection Meeting & Artists Presentations
Commissioned Artist Selected: Charles Gaines
Proposal Revision 1
Commission Site Visit
Proposal Revision 2
Public Art Subcommittee Proposal Update Meeting
Final Proposal Submission
Project Delayed due to COVID-19
Mar - Nov 2020
Art Consultant Project Induction
Art Plan & RFQual Development
RFQual Open Call
RFQual Deadline
RFP Deadline
RFP Open Call Commissioned Artist Selected
Proposal Acceptance
Public Art Subcommittee Project Update Meeting
Art Plan & RFP Development
RFP Proposal Development
3 April 2019 Project Inductions
Contract executed August 21, 2019
Culver City Panel & Committee Meeting 1 December 4th 2019 from 12:30-2PM Art Plan and RFQual Development December 2019 - December 2020 Delayed due to COVID-19 Pandemic March - December 2019
Art Plan and RFQual LIVE December 17, 2020
Art Panel Member Changes (Marla, Y assi, Aurora) 2/2/21 Artist Info Session March 2, 2021
RFQual Closed March 11, 2021 - stats
Panel and Committee Evaluation T raining Meeting April 13, 2021 RFQual Shortlist shared April 27, 2021
RFP Shortlist Artists Invited May 26, 2021
RFP Development begin June 22, 2021
RFP Deadline August 9, 2021
Panel and Committee RFP Artist Selection Meeting August 18, 2021 Artist Selected August 26, 2021
Artist Studio Visit with City Staff September 2021
Initial Proposal Development November 2021
Artwork Revision 1 Submitted November 18, 2021
Site Visit Jan 26, 2022
Artwork Revision 2 Submitted Jan 28, 2022
Project Update Coordination Meeting (City, DW, Metro) March 8, 2022 Artwork Update Meeting May 10, 2022
Final Proposal Submission June 3, 2022
PROJECT DATES
4 PUBLIC ART
COMMITTEE & PANEL
On December 4th, 2019, the Washington & National Public Art Committee and Panel were convened for their first meeting. As a group, they were selected by the City of Culver City with input from Dyson & Womack.
Public Art Committee: The Public Art Committee was
composed of non-voting members. The committee provided
advice and guidance to the Art Panel and Art Consultant throughout the development of the Public Art Plan and the selection of artist(s) and artwork concept(s).
The Public Art Committee included stakeholders representing the adjacent properties and districts and the City of Culver City. • Susan Gray, Director of Arts and Design, LAMTA
• Joseph Miller, Runyon Group, Platform
• Gil Gonzalez, Greystar, Access Culver City
• T om Wulf, Lowe, Ivy Station
• Rob Kane, Lincoln Property Company, 8777 Washington Blvd. • Wally Marks, Walter N. Marks Realty, Helms Bakery District • Josetta Sbeglia, Fresh Paint Art Advisors, Culver City Arts District • Hope Parrish, President, Culver City Historical Society • Elaine Gerety-Warner, Economic Development Project Manager, City of Culver City
• Christine Byers, Cultural Affairs Manager, City of Culver City • Zoltan Pali, Cultural Affairs Commission Public Art Subcommittee, City of Culver City
• Brenda Williams, Cultural Affairs Commission Public Art Subcommittee, City of Culver City
Public Art Panel: The Public Art Panel was composed of three voting members. The panel provided leadership, guidance, and recommendations on all aspects of the Public Art Program.
Additionally, the Art Panel made a recommendation to the CAC Public Art Subcommittee with regard to selected artist(s), artwork concept(s) and the art allowance budget.
• Y assi Mazandi, Artist
• Aurora T ang, the Center for Land Use Interpretation
• Marla Koosed, Corporate Art Advisor and former Cultural Affairs Commissioner for the City of Culver City
Culver City Cultural Affairs Commission & City Council:
Based on the Art Panel’s recommendation, the CAC Public Art Subcommittee will make a recommendation to the
Culver City Cultural Affairs Commission who will then make a recommendation to the Culver City City Council. The City Council makes the final decision on selected artist(s) and artwork concept(s).
5 ART COMMITTEE & PANEL OVERVIEW
6 SELECTION PROCESS
Dyson & Womack proposed a two-stage
open call for commissioning a public artwork
that enriches Culver City’s civic space and
responds to the context of the Washington
National TOD Gateway. The commission
opportunity was presented to artists
through an initial Request for Qualifications
(RFQUal) that was released on December
17, 2020 and closed on March 11, 2021.
From that list, a shortlist of artists were
invited to participate in a funded Request
for Proposal (RFP). The RFP’s aim was to
encourage the proposal of world-class
public artwork that engages diverse voices,
challenges perspectives and improves civic
space while responding to the context of
the Washington/ National TOD District.
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7 OUTREACH
Additionally, the Art Consultant directly
invited select Artists and Artists T eams
to apply.
On T uesday, March 2nd, 2021 from
6:00 - 7:30 PM PST, an Artist Info
Session was held to introduce the
program and respond to the questions
received from Artists and Artist T eams
interested in applying.
The event was open to the public and
held online. A total of 66 attendees
registered for the artist info session and
49 of total registered attended.
The call for artists at the Green Open
Space at Washington & National
Blvds. sought to create world-class
public artwork, engage diverse voices,
challenge cultural perceptions, and
improve civic space.
The open call RFQual/RFP selection
process was a two-stage application and
selection process open to all qualifying
Artists or Artist T eams.
During this two-stage process, the Art
Consultant engaged with state, national,
and international art organizations and
communities inviting them to apply to
the open call and share the opportunity
within their communities.
Map of California Attendees by Zipcode
8 The Request for Qualifications (RFQual)
resulted in 147 total applications. The Art
Consultants evaluated these responses and
shortlisted a group of 16 Artists and Artist
T eams to present to the Art Committee and
Art Panel for selection.
The Art Consultants met with the Art
Committee and Panel on April 27th, 2021
to evaluate the shortlist Artists and Artist
T eams.
The Artists and Artist T eams selected to
progress to the Request for Proposals (RFP)
stage were: Blane de St. Croix, Charles Gaines,
Iris Hu, Susan Narduli, Matthew Mazzotta, and
Paul Cocksedge Studio.
The shortlist of Artists and Artist T eams
were invited to prepare their proposals over
the preceeding two months and offered the
opportunity to present their proposals to the
committee and panel on August 18th, 2021.
Each Artist and Artist T eam was allowed a
thirty minute presentation timeline. Following
this, the committee decided to look more
closely at three of the proposals presented:
Blane de St. Croix, Charles Gaines, Paul
Cocksedge Studio. After this additional
review, the final selection was made.
147
T otal Submissions
16 T otal Shortlist
24%
of submissions by
Artists of Color
55%
of applicants
from California
32%
of applicants
from Los Angeles
2%
of applicants
from Culver City
9 Commissioned Artist:
Charles Gaines
Panel Selection Feedback:
• The artist’s proposal concept strongly relates to
the commission art plan and the historic nature of
the site.
• A timeless and signature piece by the artist.
• The artwork creates a captivating frame for the
tree and brings new meaning to the site’s history.
• Artist’s merit and historical track record are highly noted.
• A notable addition to the City’s public art
collection.
A Frame for a T ree
The proposed artwork is a frame, a window, and an iconic locator. Situated in parallel to the Metro at the back edge of the proposal site at Washington Blvd and National Blvd, a large 62 by 84-foot rectangular metal grid structure frames the mature Ficus tree centered on the proposal site.
This proposal is a continuation of Charles Gaines’s critically acclaimed system-based works and his work with trees as the subject. Images of trees have figured prominently in Gaines’s practice since the mid- 1970s when he first began plotting their forms through a system of numbered grids in the series Walnut T ree Orchard (1975 - 2014).
Beginning with Walnut T ree Orchard, Gaines started creating and implementing his own logical systems.
In those works and works from the ongoing series Numbers and T rees (1986 - now), the tree-object is collapsed within a gridded numerical. The resulting work creates a tension between the organic outline of the tree and the numeric logic that manifests their image. 10 DESIGN
PHASE I
Following selection, Charles Gaines was asked to prepare a slightly updated rendering and initial design of the artwork that addressed some of the panel and committee’s feedback and showed the artist’s intent more clearly.
After several months of review with the project architect, engineers, etc. the following updated rendering was submitted. The updated rendering highlights the lightness of the frame and its relationship to the tree.
Dyson & Womack and the City of Culver City took the updated plans to both Metro and other City stakeholders for review prior to a second round of design where they were asked to review and provide any questions or feedback on areas of concern or requests for design phase 2. 11 Design phase 2 requires approval by the City of Culver City CAC Public Art Subcommittee, the Cultural Affairs
Commission, and the City Council. Along with feedback
from Metro and Culver City staff, Dyson & Womack
requested a cost proposal from Charles Gaines studio
for the second phase of design which included the
following scope of work.
Arborist submittal should include and incorporate:
A general review of the tree’s current health; root scan; and recommendations and consulting with project
team on maintaining the health of the tree with the
final artwork and foundation designs.
Engineering submittal should include and incorporate:
The potential movement in both the artwork and the
tree during high wind and storm events; seismic review; arborist recommendations on tree root disturbance
and related effects on the health of the tree; adequate tolerances for tree limb and root growth; complete
calculations and design for structural foundations; and complete calculations for structural supports.
Architectural submittal should include and incorporate:
The arborist‘s and engineer’s recommendations for
interaction with the tree limbs and related effects
on the health of the tree; complete set of design
drawings (100% DD); confirmed distance from Metro
line; final rendering of artwork for council approval; and confirmation of artwork materials and finishes.
Design submittal additional materials should include
and incorporate: Drawings and a method statement
for the installation approach; selection of a qualified fabricator; complete fabrication budget and schedule;
outline of maintenance procedures; response to
arborist’s recommendations on protecting the health
of the tree and the animal and plant life in the area;
artwork power requirements; and complete lighting
design drawings and visualization.
Landscape design submittal should include
and incorporate: A complete landscape design
including seating, grading, irrigation, and planting
schedules; artwork landscaping irrigation and
watering requirements; and outline of maintenance
requirements for any plantings.
The proposal for design phase 2 was presented to
the Public Art Subcommittee on June 13, 2022 and
subsequently to the Cultural Affairs Commission on
September 20th, 2022 and City Council on October
24th, 2022. We anticipate the second phase of
design development to commence in November of
2022.
DESIGN
PHASE II