Virginia Beach Convention Center Video Art Wall

Letter of Introduction
The City of Virginia Beach seeks to commission a work of video or new media art for display at the new Virginia Beach Convention Center (VBCC) designed by the architecture firm Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, LLP. The work will be showcased on a continuous span of four screens measuring 90 feet by 9 feet (total of 360 feet wide by 9 feet high) in the expansive lobby of this sleek public building. The Convention Center and the video wall within it are part of the City’s successful plan to foster green design and add to the growing dialogue about contemporary art locally, nationally and internationally. Situated in close proximity to the celebrated Contemporary Art Center of Virginia, the VBCC attracts a diverse audience of 450,000visitors annually.
The video art wall commands the attention of all who enter the Convention Center due to its impressive size, which presents a unique chance for artists to work in an unusual format and scale. The unique display ratio for the screens is accomplished through the use of software, compatible with well-known image editing programs, that sequences and animates the files. 32, 10,000 lumen LCD projectors display the digital information supplied by a network of computers.
As Guest Curator for this project, on behalf of our advisory committee and the City of Virginia Beach, I invite artists and artist teams to submit proposals for this mutually beneficial opportunity. The individual(s) chosen for the video art project will help continue the definition of a path towards the study and popular support of public new media art in this area. The display of the selected work will be accompanied by a didactic essay that contextualizes the work within the traditions of its art historical precedents, contemporary counterparts and serves as an interpretive entry point for audiences. The work and the artist will receive the attention of media, collectors and academics. The Purchase Award is $10,000 and offers up to $2,500 for travel expenses.
I look forward to discussing the project with you and answering any questions about the process.
Sincerely,

Natalie Bray, Guest Curator
Office of Cultural Affairs
City of Virginia Beach
201 Market Street
Virginia Beach, VA 23462
[email protected]

Selection
The City of Virginia Beach has contracted Guest Curator, Natalie Bray for the purposes of coordinating, organizing and supporting the artist(s) and project. An Advisory Committee consisting of representatives from the Virginia Beach Arts and Humanities Commission’s Public Art Committee, the Contemporary Art Center of Virginia, Old Dominion University, Artists, and City staff will serve to guide the selection of new work for the Video Art Wall. The selected piece will embody the following characteristics:
▪ Appealing visual aesthetic
▪ Sophisticated and compelling use of the medium (video, animation, inter-active, new media)
▪ Upholds community standards in a way that is conceptually interesting and accessible for a mass audience
▪ Concepts addressing site-specificity and ideas related to congregation, inter-personal discourse and local ecology and geography are encouraged
▪ The work should have strong contrast and be bright enough to be seen from inside and outside the facility in strong ambient lighting conditions
Adaptations of existing work and new work will be considered equally. Artists will be selected directly from the application submissions. Please refer to the requested application materials listing at the end of this document for more information.
The project is open to all artists, regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, military status, sexual orientation, marital status, or physical or mental disability. For applicants age 17 and under, legal guardians must be willing to consent on terms of display rights and submittal.

Technical Specifics of the Video Wall

Screens
The Video Art Wall consists of four screens, each 90’ x 9’ with a 40’ gap between each section. The entire 360’ wide wall can be treated as a single display, though it is not practically viewed at this width; or content can be dedicated for each panel. Each of the four screens have mobile panels at each end that are at times collapsed making the screen 60’ wide rather than 90’. The work should also take this into consideration.

Projectors
All LCD projectors are ceiling mounted in front of permanent screens. Eight projectors display images on each 90’ x 9’ screen; there are a total of 32 projectors. The effective resolution of each section is 7,682 x 768 pixels, and the entire installation has a total of 30,728 x 768 pixels. Each image overlaps the next by 12 pixels.

Audio
If used, audio should be mono, and will not always be in use, depending on the events scheduled for the building. The rights to use any audio shall convey with the subject work.

Software
The Convention Center uses Dataton’s WATCHOUT application, a master computer, and a series of playback computers to synchronize the projection of the work on the video wall. The artist(s) will build their graphics, animations and videos with software such as Adobe Creative Suite programs, AVID, Final Cut Pro, Cleaner, Maya and other editors. WATCHOUT software is then used to program, sequence and animate the visual elements made in these programs, across multiple displays simultaneously. Artists can download the most current version of the application at no cost. Images developed on a Mac platform must be imported to the application on a PC. For more information about the software, visit: www.dataton.com. The artist is responsible for delivering the final works on a portable hard drive or other media that quickly and easily transfers the final product to the City’s servers.

Purchase Award and Budget
The artwork will be commissioned and purchased by the City of Virginia Beach. The artist’s award of $10,000 includes all costs associated with the project including, but not limited to: the purchase of hardware and/or engineering services for interactive art, artist’s design fee, fabrication and material costs, documentation, rights to use the works in perpetuity, and transportation of the work on portable hard drives. The selected artist(s) are encouraged to format the work in Dataton’s WATCHOUT themselves, as contracted post-production costs will accumulate at the rate of $100/hour as needed, and be the responsibility of the artist. In addition to the $10,000 artist’s award, the City of Virginia Beach will provide reasonable travel expenses, for the artist’s initial visit, installation and the opening of the exhibition , not to exceed $2,500.

Application Materials
To be considered for the Virginia Beach Convention Center Video Art Wall project, artists must submit all of the following materials:
1. One hard copy of the following information for the contact person involved in this proposal: name, address, telephone number, e-mail address and fax number.
2. One CD-R or DVD with:
a. Current resume or CV for (each) artist. These documents should include the artist’s name, telephone number and e-mail address.
b. One project proposal document outlining the applicant’s interest in and approach to this project.
c. A budget proposal document detailing any hardware and/or post-production needs and costs.
d. Three digital selections from past publicity such as critical reviews, news articles or other related information.
3. A Quicktime-formatted DVD containing 2-5 representative samples of past work. Each sample must be chapter marked with a cue page listing the artist’s name, the work’s title, year of completion, medium, and total run-time. Each sample must be edited for 5 minutes of viewing time. Note: Please submit 2-5 samples per application NOT per artist. The DVD must be clearly labeled with the contact person’s name, phone number and e-mail address.
4. A self-addressed stamped envelope with sufficient postage for the return of DVD’s.

Timeline
April 9, 2010 Application Deadline
April 30, 2010 Notification of Award
June 11, 2010 Artwork due to the City
Fall 2010 Opening of the exhibition

Please direct questions and send applications to:
Natalie Bray, Guest Curator
Office of Cultural Affairs
City of Virginia Beach
201 Market Street
Virginia Beach, VA 23462
[email protected]

Rules and Guidelines
The City of Virginia Beach reserves the right, as its best interests may appear, to reject any or all submissions, to reject any finalist, to waive informalities in applications or proposal, to terminate the selection process for any project without prior notice. Application to any project advertised by the City of Virginia Beach constitutes agreement to all applicable rules and guidelines.
Please do not staple or bind your application materials. Please do not submit any materials other than those requested. The City of Virginia Beach will retain the resumes submitted with each application. Every effort will be made to ensure the safe handling of submitted materials. However, the City of Virginia Beach will not be responsible for any loss or damage.