Experiments in Public Art: Prioritizing Conversations

The goals of the call are to: 

• Use creativity to engage the public in assessing the pros and cons of prioritizing conversations, help community members express preferences (and the reasons behind), and to explain the results of the engagement process in both online and in-person formats.
• Provide an opportunity for audiences who have been historically excluded from planning conversations to participate in a new way, using creativity as a vehicle for expression and to help elevate and communicate their perspectives to others in this process. To support being  heard by other community members, staff and policymakers.
• Interpret and translate the different perspectives shared during the conversations and create opportunities for the community to experience art as part of the comprehensive plan process. The art should foster a deeper understanding of the different views raised during the conversations.

2025 Experiments in Public presents: Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan Prioritizing Conversations 

Summary 

Call Deadline: April 30, 2025 
Budget: $20,000 
Project Timeline: June - December, 2025 

Eligibility: This opportunity is open regionally (the Rocky Mountain west includes CO, WY, NM, AZ, UT, NE, KS, OK) although priority will be given to artists with connections to Boulder, Colorado. Artists working in a wide variety of media are encouraged to apply. Anticipated disciplines include poetry/spoken word, live painting, choreography/dance, film, oral history, cultural instigation/interruption, and education. Representatives from BIPOC, LGBTQAI+, multi-generational partnerships, multi-lingual, and other historically marginalized communities are highly sought after. 

Contact: cainr1@bouldercolorado.gov

Introduction 

Experiments in Public Art presents an ongoing series of temporary public projects which serves as a city-wide laboratory expanding the potential of public art. Unlike a traditional public art commission, Experiments in Public Art projects are as much an experiment for the community as they are opportunities for artists to work within unconventional parameters. Participating artists are selected, in part, by incorporating concepts and materials that extend beyond the notion of traditional public art.  

The Call

As part of the Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan, the City of Boulder is issuing a call for artists to design and implement a socially engaged project in spring-fall 2025. A socially engaged art project is one that includes members of the community in its creation through engagement, participation, or collaboration with the aim of social discourse or civic activation. It is focused more on people rather than the creation of an object.  

The city and a consultant group plan to host several in-person events to facilitate conversations around priorities, and the artist will work in tandem with this team at their events. The artist will develop a plan to engage the community members who participate in Prioritizing Conversations to infuse the process with creative perspective and an opportunity for expression beyond conversation. Please read the section below to learn more about the policy prioritizing conversations. 

This project has two main components, online and in-person. The online portion creates an opportunity for community members to contribute to the artwork both before and after the in-person events. The in-person component plans to engage around 300 community members at a minimum of three events hosted by the city June through September in Boulder.  

The goals of the call are to: 

• Use creativity to engage the public in assessing the pros and cons of prioritization conversations, help community members express preferences (and the reasons behind), and to explain the results of the engagement process in both online and in-person formats.  
• Provide an opportunity for audiences who have been historically excluded from planning conversations to participate in a new way, using creativity as a vehicle for expression and to help elevate and communicate their perspectives to others in this process. To support being  heard by other community members, staff and policymakers.  
• Interpret and translate the different perspectives shared during the conversations and create opportunities for the community to experience art as part of the comprehensive plan process. The art should foster a deeper understanding of the different views raised during the conversations. 

Ultimately, media and descriptive text about the community prioritization conversations consolidated/created by the artist will be posted on the city’s website and shared in presentations to City and County leadership and community members both in-person and in digital formats. The project outcomes should be appropriate for and accessible to people of all ages, cultural backgrounds, religious and political affiliations, and educational levels. 

Prioritizing Conversations 

The current plan includes more than 200 policies with a 20-year horizon touching on topics ranging from the built environment to transportation, community well-being, and climate action. These policies shape city projects, programs and funding allocation. For this update to the plan, the planning team is aiming to identify and propose a few ‘big moves’ or ‘big ideas’ that meaningfully respond to our community’s priorities and desired changes.  

The Big Ideas will be assessed to understand the range of potential positive and negative impacts; and our community members will be asked to engage in discussions about the choice and prioritization of new policies, or of maintaining the status quo. The Prioritizing Conversations, facilitated by staff and a team of professional community organizers, allow community members to engage in the complexity of policymaking. There are often several considerations to weigh and balance – including the true cost and benefit of different options and inevitable ‘give’ and ‘take’ in policy decisions. Community input is one important aspect of how these decisions are made. Following the prioritizing conversations phase of the plan, city and county staff will make policy recommendations to the four decision-making elected and appointed bodies – the Boulder City Council, Boulder County Commission, Boulder Planning Board and Boulder County Planning Commission. 

Example of how a Big Idea can be used to start a Prioritizing Conversation: 

Big Idea: Explore changes in housing diversity and density across the city. The goal being to provide a greater amount and range of housing options so more people from different backgrounds, including our workforce, can choose to live in Boulder.  

Prioritizing Conversation: More housing and more people over time can lead to more property tax and sales tax revenue and reduce the need for commuting for jobs. However, it might also lead to using more resources and the need for new or improved infrastructure (ie, water pipes, schools, roads, etc.). It may also require more land to be used for housing and other urban development. Is more tax revenue worth the investment in new infrastructure? Is a housing environment where a more diverse population can rent/own housing in Boulder and a reduction in car trips for in commuting worth additional investment in infrastructure that may be very expensive? Does an increase in overall housing diversity and density have an impact on our parks, open space, and other natural resources? 

The series of community Prioritizing Conversations in Boulder are being planned for June through September, 2025 with a diversity of community members. Exact dates are forthcoming and will be announced as soon as they are available.  

Expected Call Process 

• The deadline for this project will remain open until artists have been contracted for each opportunity.
• Artist selection will be made by a panel of representatives from the city’s planning, arts and culture, and community engagement offices using the criteria listed here.
• The City of Boulder will contract with one artist or artist team for each comprehensive plan opportunity, and they will be required to secure General liability insurance (a template Certificate of Insurance will be supplied by the city to facilitate this process). Deliverables, payment schedule, and privacy agreements will be set-up in the contract.
• Before engaging with the comprehensive plan process, a project plan will be finalized with the community engagement team.
• Project implementation and documentation
• Project completion

Please direct all questions about the project to Rachel Cain at cainr1@bouldercolorado.gov. 

Please read this section carefully. Incomplete applications will NOT be considered. The applicant’s name must appear on all materials submitted.

Project proposals are scored on the following criteria. Please address these in your letter of intent: 

• Connections to Boulder
• Artistic and socially-engaged experience
• Creative and methodological approach
• Clarity of the intended artistic output, usefulness for the process and impact on a 20 year community plan

Statement of Interest—Please submit a letter of interest outlining your proposed project scope and why it would be a good fit for this call (two-page maximum). This statement should include: 

• A response to the four points listed above on which your proposal will be scored
• Explanation of your project
• Any technical, venue, or staff support needs you have and what additional information you need for context and to prepare you for your project
• Brief summary of your artistic practice and process
• The expected artistic outcome of your project and the input it will create for the comprehensive plan

Digital Images—In order to be considered for this project, the applicant must submit four4 images or (links to) videos of previously completed projects. Please include important information to help contextualize the images/videos.

Résumé—Include a one to two-page current résumé that highlights your professional accomplishments as an artist. Please name your résumé file accordingly: Last name.First initial (i.e. Smith.J.pdf).   

Project Budget: Project proposals should include a simple budget not to exceed $20,000. The panel members will review each budget to ensure it seems reasonable. This budget should include all costs associated with the project including, but not limited to:  

• Artist’s fee
• Digital documentation fee (photography/videography)
• Material and consumable expenses
• Travel expenses
• Lodging in Boulder, if needed
• Per diem expenses
• Contingency to cover unexpected expenses
• And any other associated costs

Please direct all questions about the project to Rachel Cain at cainr1@bouldercolorado.gov.

This opportunity is open regionally (the Rocky Mountain west includes CO, WY, NM, AZ, UT, NE, KS, OK) although priority will be given to artists with connections to Boulder, Colorado. Artists working in a wide variety of media are encouraged to apply. Anticipated disciplines include poetry/spoken word, live painting, choreography/dance, film, oral history, cultural instigation/interruption, and education. Representatives from BIPOC, LGBTQAI+, multi-generational partnerships, multi-lingual, and other historically marginalized communities are highly sought after.

Please direct all questions about the project to Rachel Cain at cainr1@bouldercolorado.gov.