Closing Date: May 18, 2020 5:00 PM EST
Public Art Management, on behalf of One Toronto Gaming, are excited to announce this Request for Credentials (RFC) to all emerging and artists from equity-seeking communities as part of the Casino Expansion Project at the Woodbine Racetrack (Woodbine Casino Expansion Project) in Toronto, Canada.
While this RFC is associated with the overall Woodbine Casino Expansion Project public art program, this RFC relates specifically to the Location 5 art location (noted in the included site plan image) and is only open to emerging artists (meaning: artists who have not completed a permanent public art project) and artists from equity-seeking communities. As defined by the Canada Council for the Arts:
“Equity-seeking groups are communities that face significant collective challenges in participating in society. This marginalization could be created by attitudinal, historic, social and environmental barriers based on age, ethnicity, disability, economic status, gender, nationality, race, sexual orientation and transgender status, etc. Equity-seeking groups are those that identify barriers to equal access, opportunities and resources due to disadvantage and discrimination and actively seek social justice and reparation.”
We are inviting interested professional artists to submit their credentials for consideration as part of the first stage of a two-stage public art process to select candidates to be considered for this multi-use development. The project is part of the major overall expansion of the existing Woodbine Racetrack, which will remain open for the duration of the project.
The Woodbine Casino Expansion Project will be comprised of commercial, entertainment, and a hotel connected by publicly-accessible landscaped spaces and pedestrian mews’.
Located in the Rexdale area of northwest Toronto, the site will be bounded by Rexdale Blvd to the north, Highway 27 to the east, Queens Plate Boulevard to the west, and the existing Woodbine Racetrack to the south. The development site is situated immediately north of Woodbine Racetrack.
The overall Woodbine Casino Expansion development will be home to a performance venue at the northwest of the site, casino at the southwest portion, a planned hotel to the east of the casino as well as a 6 storey above-grade parking garage to the east that is bookended by a future parkette site. The central and north portion of the site will have access for parking as well as the hotel drop-off and entrance, but will predominantly be geared towards pedestrians with landscaped spaces throughout.
The project is currently under construction and scheduled for completion by the fall of 2022.
The total Public Art budget for the project is $750,000 CAD. The total Public Art Budget includes; artist design fees, administration, travel, engineering, design and supply of structural/foundation elements, fastening and attachment provisions, materials supply and fabrication, insurance, delivery, and installation and maintenance of artwork(s). The goal is to commission art that is iconic, impactful, durable, and requiring minimal maintenance.
The submission deadline is: 5:00PM EST, May 18, 2020. We regret that only advancing artists will be contacted.
Public Art Management (PAM) will be managing this stage of the project on behalf of the Owner, Ontario Gaming GTA LP. Questions must be submitted in writing via email only at the address noted below.
Evaluation Criteria
Each candidate may be evaluated on the basis of the following:
- Aesthetic evaluation: original thinker: strong, contemporary, innovative and original work
- A demonstrated strong commitment to making art and making it competently, as exhibited through past work
- An interest in and amenability to create permanent, durable, maintainable, and sustainable artwork
- Confirmation of ability to work within a team environment, with a generosity of spirit, patience, and ability to compromise
Professional standing by peer or art expert references will be taken into consideration as well.
RFC Submission Requirements:
For this Stage, we are inviting artists to submit a single document in pdf format.
This document must be labeled with the name of the artist or artist team and must include:
- A current CV (or one for each member of the team, if applicable);
- Images of up to a maximum of ten (10) past projects/installations/
artworks (up to a maximum of 3 images for each project, if necessary) noting the materials, location, and commissioning body; - The names and contact information of two references (preferably related to projects completed within the past 10 years)
Please do not submit concept proposals at this stage.
The deadline for this RFC is May 18, 2020 5:00PM EST.
All inquiries for this RFC must be sent via email to: publicartoronto@gmail.com
Only emailed communications to this address will be accepted. No telephone inquiries are permitted. If the file size exceeds 25MB, email via a file transfer service (preferably Wetransfer or Google Drive).
On the subject line clearly mark: “Woodbine Casino Expansion Project Emerging Public Art Stage 1 and [name of the artist/artist team]”.
Artists are responsible for the timely submission of their entries. Incomplete submissions will be subject to disqualification. All submission materials will be retained by Public Art Management and Ontario Gaming GTA LP.
We thank all respondents for their submissions but regret that only advancing proponents will be contacted. Beyond formal notification to finalists, Public Art Management and/or One Toronto Gaming will not enter into any correspondence regarding the artist selection process nor the decision concerning advancing candidates.