| Ennis By-Pass: Brief Public Art Commission
Per Cent for Art Scheme N18 Ennis By-Pass Scheme & Ennis Town Water Supply Augmentation Scheme BRIEF
for ARTISTS Commission Value €90,000
Brief Funding for this commission relates to two major capital construction projects – the N18 Ennis Bypass and the Ennis Town Water Supply Augmentation Scheme. Context Artists are invited to respond to aspects of the roads and / or water scheme, its location or other locations or aspects of Clare county which interest them, contemporary or historical, whether geographical, historical, physical, political, scientific, spatial, sociological – as well as aesthetic. The commissioners welcome proposals from individual artists or from visual artists who wish to collaborate with visual artists or artist/s working in another artform. Specifications Budget
The successful artist(s) will be required to provide Clare County Council
with a tax clearance certificate and evidence of public liability insurance
to a specified amount prior to signing of contracts.
Locations Selection
Procedure & Selection Panel Clare County Council reserves the right not to commission work, if none of the proposals received are deemed to be suitable. In this instance, Clare County Council reserves the right to pursue a different procurement process.
Stage One
Please ensure that all submitted materials are clearly marked with the artist’s name and contact number. A stamped addressed envelope should be included to guarantee safe return of proposals. The Arts Office takes no responsibility for proposals submitted without an S.A.E. Criteria for selection:
Timetable Short listed artists will be informed the week of Monday, September 25th, 2006. after which artists will be informed of the deadline for stage two submissions. Stage
Two A fee of will be paid to artists to develop their proposals. This fee will cover all expenses including travel if required.
Site Visit It is imperative that artists wishing to attend the site visit register in advance with the Arts Office no later than Friday, August 4th, 2006. It will not be possible to accommodate those not registered on the site visit. Artists are requested to gather at: Main Car Park, The Auburn Lodge Hotel, Galway Road, Ennis, Co. Clare at 12 noon. It is envisaged that the Site Visit will be completed by 2 p.m. at the latest. Only artists can be accommodated on the site visit. Additional
Information In order to facilitate public engagement and awareness of its public art programme Clare County Council at intervals arranges public presentation, discussions and/or workshops on new public art commissions. The selected artist may be required to present her/his proposal to the selected groups including local area committees or an SPC [Strategic Policy Committee]. This is in order to provide the public and elected representatives with ongoing information about the public art programme in the county. An additional fee towards the cost of this activity be agreed with the artist in advance, if required. Completed
submissions should be returned to Clare County Council no later
than Friday, September 8th, 2006 to: Further
queries should be addressed to: Detailed photographs of the proposed site locations are available by clicking here.
Background Information on Context and Site for the Public Art Commission: Ennis, with an urban population of over 20,000 people is situated on the banks of the River Fergus. It is the capital of County Clare and the centre of administration and commerce. Ennis is 37km. from Limerick and 67km. from Galway. Shannon International Airport is 24km. south of Ennis. The town takes its name from "Inis", meaning an island which was formed between two streams of the River Fergus and on which the foundations of the Franciscan Abbey were laid. The history of Ennis is intimately linked with that of the O'Brien family, descendants of Brian Boru. During the 12th century the O'Brien's, Kings of Thomond, left their seat of power in Limerick and settled at Clonroad where they built a royal residence. In 1240 King Donnchadh O'Brien commenced the building of an extensive church which he later entrusted to the newly arrived followers of St. Francis. The centuries which followed witnessed scenes of great activity. The Friars residence was extended and students came in large numbers to study at the theological school. The Friars who were free to move about met the spiritual needs of the townspeople. When Clare became a county under Elizabeth I, Ennis was chosen as its capital by reason of its central position. Ennis received a grant to hold fairs and markets in 1610 and continued to expand in the following centuries in a slow but steady fashion, mainly as a market town and later as a manufacturing and distributing centre. Ennis is associated with some of the great political leaders of the past including Daniel O'Connell, Charles Stewart Parnell, and Eamon de Valera who has a long association with the town and county. Ennis is Ireland’s ‘Tidy Town’ winner, which represents the huge community spirit in the town. Ennis, with its narrow streets and lanes, represents a pleasant blend of the historic past and the active present. It is a tourist centre of major importance and the importance of sport and culture in the town is evident throughout. Clare is noted in particular for traditional music and Ennis is home to Glor Irish Music Centre. Hurling and Gaelic Football are hugely popular in the county. Today, Ennis has well developed shopping, business, commercial, educational, community and amenity facilities. In 1997 Ennis became Irelands "Information Age Town" by winning the prestigious national Telecom Eireann competition. It is one of Irelands fastest growing towns. There are a large number of nationalities now living in the town giving a cosmopolitan feel to the town and reflecting the diversity which exists within it. More information on Ennis is available here. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Clare County Council Ennis By-Pass – Site Visit – Issues Arising Q.
Artists were interested in finding out the names of local townlands
near the road. Names which were mentioned by the Roads staff included:
Ballyduff and Ballymacahil. Q.
Is there power available at the selected sites? The Roads staff answered
this question by saying that a source can be diverted and brought to
the sites. This led to two further questions – Which sites have
electricity at present and if it has to be diverted to a site who will
cover the costs? Q.
Artists are interested in knowing about confirmed sites for road signage
in order to ascertain possible visual clashes. Q.
Location and information on side roads and underpasses was requested.
Information was requested at site 3 & 4 about a local access road
which apparently runs the distance of the by-pass. Q.
Information on crash barriers was requested including height, distance
from road and required distance from artworks. Q.
Artists are interested in receiving information on the local topography
and geography such as rock type, which may influence the proposed type
of foundation. Note to Siobhan: one artists asked about cross sections
of the site in term of rock types and it was felt that this information
may be more pertinent for stage 2 proposals. Q.
Information on planned landscaping was requested and also if the landscaping
plan in flexible to accommodate artworks so as not to, as in one artists
experience, over plant the site and conceal the artwork. Q.
In terms of background landscaping for artworks the Roads staff stated
that the ownership of land for the road runs from fence-to-fence only.
Therefore mature trees or other natural or man made features, such as
poles or pylons, may not be in the ownership of the local authority
and would need to remain. For examples, at sites 3 & 4 there are
pylons in the background which obscure views. Q.
Is it ok for artists to submit a number of proposals for a number of
sites? Q.
Artists expressed and interest in an additional site with stone facing
just after the bridge beyond the interchange. The Roads staff pointed
out that this area will not remain like this when the road is finished
as it will be quarried back further. Q.
There was a query about the width of the bypass at points 5 and 6 approx.
Also the height of the landmass banks at each side approx. General
Observations |
||||||||
| << Public Art Commissions: Ennis By-Pass | ||||||||
