REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS

Research Project: Civic Center Park Public Artworks and Monuments
Budget: $50,000 USD
Eligibility: Researchers and research teams residing in the United States
DEADLINE: Monday, October 14, 2024, 11:59 P.M. MST

Introduction

Denver Public Art seeks to work with an individual, organization or team of art historians, researchers, public historians, or community archivists to research the historical background and untold stories of approximately 20 public artworks and monuments in Civic Center Park. The researcher or research team will conduct the research including potential interviews with people connected to the artworks or monuments and produce a report. The allocated total budget is approximately USD $50,000.00.

Denver Public Art will host a virtual pre-application meeting on Wednesday, September 25th, 5:30-6:30 p.m. for interested applicants. The meeting will cover project background and goals, and the application process for this Request for Qualifications (RFQ). This event will be hosted on Zoom. Interested applicants are asked to register to get information on how to join prior to the event. If you cannot attend, a recording will be available on the Denver Arts & Venues Vimeo channel.

https://vimeo.com/denverartsandvenues.

Project Background

In June 2020, during the racial reckoning occurring in Denver and nationwide, former Mayor Michael B. Hancock appointed a Renaming Commission. This commission was tasked with reviewing the names of city assets, including city-owned properties, parks, buildings, and landmarks. This body recommended certain assets to be considered for renaming, particularly assets that were associated with racist groups or ideologies. The body recommended reframing other assets (publicly sharing historical context) and recommended leaving other assets as they are.

At the same time, Denver Arts & Venues (DAV) was also in the process of reviewing city assets in the Denver Public Art Collection, focusing on artworks within the City and County of Denver’s Civic Center Park and surrounding area. These works include the sculpture currently titled “Christopher Columbus” and the sculpture on top of the Pioneer Monument representing “Kit Carson”

Launched in 2020, The Monuments Project is a multi-year, $500 million commitment from the Mellon Foundation aimed at transforming the nation’s commemorative landscape to ensure our collective histories are more completely and accurately represented. In May of 2023, Denver Arts & Venues (DAV) and Denver Parks & Recreation (DPR) were awarded a joint grant from the Mellon Foundation’s Monuments Project to further the City and County of Denver’s investigations of monuments and commemorative spaces in Denver’s Civic Center Park.  For DAV, this funding provides resources to conduct rigorous research of artworks and monuments in Civic Center Park and surrounding area.

Deliverables

The selected researcher and research team will be expected to:

  • Conduct comprehensive research on roughly 20 monuments and artworks in the Civic Center Park area.
  • Analyze research for major themes and trends while identifying gaps, including those related to underrepresented communities, themes and narratives.
  • Meet monthly with Denver Arts & Venues staff for the duration of the research project at agreed on dates and times.
  • Provide summary reports for monthly meetings; a public-facing executive summary document; a fully designed and comprehensive final research report, including cumulative data requested by DAV; and a highly graphic, user-friendly online story to be hosted on the DAV website.

Research Priorities

  • Biographies of artists, creators, models, and other critical parties used for artworks and monuments
  • Demographic information of the individuals the monuments represent, including their race, ethnicity, age and gender
  • Information available through artwork plaques
  • Names of benefactors and donors and their connection to Denver
  • Materials used in all elements of the works
  • Artworks’ provenance, commission and donation timelines
  • Who the funding bodies were and how monuments were funded
  • Monument or artwork themes such as historical figures, social change, industry, colonialism, leaders, conflict, identity, culture, history, flora/fauna, etc.
  • Social, cultural and historical impact of Civic Center artworks and monuments within a contemporary context
  • Gaps in the stories or representations missing from the monuments in Civic Center Park area.
  • Research sources should include scholarly publications and academic journals, popular sources like news and magazines, professional and trade sources, books, conference proceedings, government documents, theses and dissertations, electronic sources, and interviews with individuals connected to the works or monuments. If interviews are conducted, those should be videotaped.

Site:

All artworks and monuments are located in Civic Center Park in Denver. Selected finalists will have the opportunity to visit the site.

Artworks and monuments:

Below is an approximate list of Denver Arts & Venues and City & County of Denver assets that researchers will investigate and provide additional context to. Applicants may visit Denver Public Art’s website to preview information on some of the works. Selected researchers will have full access to Denver Arts & Venues and City & County of Denver records where available.

Who May Apply

This project is open to researchers or research teams residing in the United States. Denver Arts & Venues encourages applicants from historically marginalized and underrepresented communities including researchers who identify as Black, Indigenous, Latino/x, People of Color (BILPOC), people with disabilities, and members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersexual, asexual, Two-Spirit+ (LGBTQIA2S+) communities. Denver Arts & Venues also encourages applicants at various stages in their career and applicants practicing a variety of research disciplines.

Can a team apply?

Applicants may apply as a single researcher or multi-person collaborative group. If applying as a team, please submit one résumé for the team, with no more than one page per team member.

Applying for these opportunities

In response to this RFQ, applicants will be asked to submit the following items via Submittable™.

  1. Statement of interest no longer than 2,000 characters
  2. Three examples of past research work
  3. Résumé

From these applications, three to five finalists will be selected to create proposals and be interviewed in person or virtually. Researchers will be paid an honorarium for this work. Researchers/teams selected as finalists will be required to submit a Diversity & Inclusiveness Form for their proposals to be considered, which will be provided upon notification. As directed by Executive Order 101, this form must be submitted for all city solicitations of proposals. Denver Arts & Venues Public Art Program staff can guide you in filling out this form.

Based on the interview and proposal, a researcher or research team will be selected for this project. The selected researcher or research team will work with Denver Public Art staff when finalizing their research plan.

Diversity and Inclusiveness

Denver Executive Order No. 101 establishes strategies between the City and private industry to use diversity and inclusiveness to promote economic development in the City and County of Denver and to encourage more businesses to compete for City contracts and procurements. The Executive Order requires, among other things, the collection of certain information regarding the practices of the City’s contractors and consultants toward diversity and inclusiveness and encourages/requires City agencies to include diversity and inclusiveness policies in selection criteria in solicitations for City services or goods when legally permitted. Diversity and Inclusiveness means inviting values, perspectives and contributions of people from diverse backgrounds, and integrating diversity into hiring and retention policies, training opportunities and business development methods to provide an equal opportunity for each person to participate, contribute and succeed within the organization’s workplace. “Diversity” encompasses a wide variety of human differences, including differences such as race, age, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, ethnicity, physical disabilities, appearance, and historically underutilized and disadvantaged persons, as well as social identities such as religion, marital status, socio-economic status, lifestyle, education, parental status, geographic background, language ability, and veteran status.

Budget

The budget for this project is approximately USD $50,000.00 which will be allocated to the researcher/team selected. These funds come from the Mellon Foundation Monuments Project grant. This contract amount is inclusive of all costs associated with the project including, but not limited to the researcher’s fee, other consultation fees such as with special topic area experts, insurance (including Colorado Workers Compensation), materials, travel to and from the site, per diem expenses, project documentation, contingency to cover unexpected expenses, and any other costs. For all work performed on city property, prevailing wage requirements will be applied.

Timeline

(Except for the online application deadline, the timeline is subject to adjustments). The timeline of the research project is estimated to be between 7 and 9 months.

October 4, 2024 11:59 pm MST                                  Deadline for entry (Submittable™)
October 2024                                                                 Finalist Selection
October 2024                                                                 Selected Researcher or Research Team Notification
TBD (Expected 7 –9 months)                                       Research Project Implementation

Selection Process

  1. Three to five researchers/research teams will be selected as finalists. Those selected will receive more specific information regarding the project and have the opportunity to meet with Denver Public Art Program staff. The finalists will receive an honorarium to prepare their research proposal and present it in person or virtually.
  2. The jury will review the proposals, interview the finalists, and recommend a researcher/research team for the project.

*All decisions of the City and County of Denver are final.

Materials to be Submitted

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

All materials must be submitted online, via Submittable™. There is no application fee.

Statement of Interest—Please submit a brief statement (2,000-character maximum) outlining the following:

  • Your interest in the Civic Center Park Artworks and Monuments Research project.
  • Your research experience
  • Your relationship to or experience with public art and/or monuments.
  • Your general approach to this project.
  • Please also include information on your experience working with diverse communities and stakeholders.

Research Examples —To be considered for this project, the applicant must electronically submit three examples of previously completed work through Submittable™. Examples of materials can include research papers, articles, and other academic studies. Examples should demonstrate the applicant’s skill in research and writing.

If a researcher does not have access to a computer, s/he/they may call 720-865-5576 to make arrangements to use a computer at Denver Arts & Venues.

To request this RFQ in an alternate format (such as Braille, large print, or accessible electronic format) please contact DisabilityAccess@denvergov.org. To request this RFQ in a different language, please contact meg.pursell@denvergov.org.

Résumé—Submit a one to two-page current résumé via Submittable™ that highlights your professional accomplishments as a researcher. Please name your résumé file accordingly: Last name. First initial (i.e. Smith.J.pdf).  Résumés that are more than two pages will not be downloaded. If applying as a team, please submit one résumé with no more than one page per team member.

Survey – Applicants will also be required to fill out a short demographic survey that will be included in the Submittable™ application.

References – Applicants who are selected to be finalists will be required to provide three professional references.

Please direct all questions about the project to:
Meg Pursell, Public Art Program Administrator, meg.pursell@denvergov.org, 720-865-5576.

Denver Arts & Venues complies with applicable Federal civil rights laws and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, gender, or language. It is your right to request oral or written language assistance services in your primary language, if needed. Please contact Denver Arts & Venues at DAVLanguageAccess@denvergov.org and these services will be provided to you free of charge.

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