Synchronicity of Color - Margo Sawyer

Civic Art + Design

Through the Civic Art + Design Program, HAA manages, grows and maintains the City of Houston's Art Collection. The City's "percent for art ordinance" is municipal policy that identifies a percent of the construction budget developed in the annual Capitol Improvement Plan (CIP), for the aesthetic enhancement of public facilities and civic space and conservation of new and heritage art objects. The ordinance, adopted in 1999, allocates 1.75 percent of certain above ground construction and remodeling costs be set in dedicated coffers for the aesthetic and cultural enhancement of municipal facilities.

Commissions

The Civic Art + Design program staff leads a team comprised of City department staff, professional artists and other design professions to enhance public spaces in civic facilities. Our commissioning partnerships have included the:

• Convention and Entertainment Facilities Department
• Houston Airport System
• General Services Departments including: Fire, Library, Health and Housing Service, Police and Public Works and Engineering.
• Downtown Houston Partnership
• Tax Increment Reinvestment Zones (TIRZ)

The Civic Art + Design Program contributed the City's first civic art Capitol Improvement Plan, incorporated into the 2008 - 2013 budget. In Fiscal Year 2009, Civic Art + Design staff will begin work on $5,000,000 of City art commissions and smaller private projects.

Conservation

The Civic Art + Design Program manages the City Art Collection through annual review of the City's art assets and conservation, restoration and specialty cleaning of art works. Conservation projects require specialized care and planning to properly care for artworks placed in diverse outdoor, interior and industrial locales. Civic Art + Design staff identifies and prioritizes art conservation needs in the City collection and develops an annual maintenance plan, hiring professional art conservators to clean, repair and restore our works in bronze, granite, marble, oil paint, and diverse contemporary art materials. In 2009 Civic Art + Design staff will begin work on $200,000 worth of conservation projects.

The City of Houston has a rich heritage of placement of art in shared public spaces. Many outdoor sculptures in our community have been created by private entities including individual donations, corporate largesse and the creative spirit of Houstonians. The Civic Art + Design Program welcomes initiatives, proposals and questions from the public to enhance the public conversation about our shared experience of Houston.

Printed Thursday, March 11, 2010