Central Connecticut State University - New Britain, Connecticut
New Academic Building
Deadline August 30, 2010
Budget: $200,000
University of Connecticut - Storrs, Connecticut
Social Sciences & Classroom Buildings
Deadline: September 1, 2010
Budget: $525,000
Central Connecticut State University – New Britain, Connecticut
New Academic Building
Deadline: August 30, 2010
Budget: $200,000
Site Description:
Central Connecticut State University (CCSU), located in New Britain, is one of four state universities within the Connecticut State University System. CCSU is a community of learners dedicated to teaching and scholarship. The university encourages the development and application of knowledge and ideas through research and outreach activities and prepares students to be thoughtful, responsible and successful citizens. Over 12,000 students are enrolled at CCSU which is a comprehensive public university dedicated to learning in the liberal arts and sciences with teaching as a primary focus.
The new 75,042 gross square-foot academic building, centrally located on campus, will be home to the Departments of Anthropology, History, Political Science, Sociology, and Geography. A fundamental planning objective is to integrate the new academic building seamlessly within the existing CCSU campus. The building design has a brick exterior with precast accents and a sloped copper roof to complement and align with the buildings in the immediate surrounding and wider campus context.
The interior of the new building will include a gathering space which will be central to the main circulation path on the first floor. A two-story framed opening adjacent to this lounge allows a visual connection to the second floor while an expanse of curtain wall to the exterior provides views to the outside patio space.
Project Description:
The committee is interested in interior artwork(s) for the new academic building and may commission one or more artists to create site-specific work for the space. Several locations for art have been identified – a primary and secondary location, as well as several opportunities for wall mounted works of art.
The committee has expressed that these artworks should be exciting, thought provoking, provocative and something students can get lost in. The artwork(s) should consider the identities of the academic departments that utilize the building on a daily basis and the art should be timeless in quality when reflecting those departments.
Locations:
1) The primary location is an interior 2-story space which is visible on both the 1st and 2nd floors. At the second level, a clear glass panel railing surrounds the open space which looks down to the first floor. The railing may be included in the overall design of the artwork. This space provides an opportunity for either a suspended or wall mounted sculptural piece or a two-dimensional work of art.
2) The secondary location(s) are at three department entry points. The entrance to the History department is on the 2nd floor; the entrance to the Political Science and Sociology departments is on the 3rd floor; and the entrance to the Geography and Anthropology departments is on the 4th floor. Glass panels surround each entrance door which offers an opportunity for an artist to create custom glass panels which speak to the identity of the departments. The committee is open to other mediums but space is limited at these locations. The egress can not be affected; therefore, wall and/or glass two-dimensional works in these spaces are preferred. Artworks may touch and/or attach to the floor and/or ceiling but may not limit the flow of movement in the space.
(3) Other opportunities for two-dimensional wall mounted works exist throughout the first floor of this building. Spaces are available on various wall surfaces in and around the student lounge area and ‘alcoves’ at the west end of corridors (including some exterior glass surfaces).
Submission Requirements:
Artists interested in this project should submit their registration form and images to the Art in Public Spaces Image Bank by Monday, August 30, 2010. Artists registered in the Image Bank will automatically be reviewed for public art projects that fall within their discipline area. Artists may update their portfolios at any time by submitting a new registration form. For questions contact Tamara Dimitri at (860) 256-2720 or by email at tamara.dimitri@ct.gov.
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University of Connecticut - Storrs, Connecticut
Social Sciences & Classroom Buildings
Deadline: September 1, 2010
Budget: $525,000
Site Description:
The University of Connecticut (UConn), the largest public university in Connecticut, is committed to academics, research and outreach. More than 100 research centers and institutes serve UConn’s teaching, research, diversity, and outreach missions. The faculty are both scholars and teachers and their research informs and enhances the education of the students.
Two new buildings centrally located on the Storrs campus of the University of Connecticut will become a vital component of the campus master plan. The new Social Sciences and Humanities Building (East Building), currently under construction, will provide a new home to the five social sciences and humanities departments (Economics, Political Science, Linguistics, Modern & Classical Languages and Journalism). The Classroom Building (West Building), part of a later construction phase, will house 40 new general purpose classrooms. Both buildings will be Leed silver certified.
Virtually every student at UConn will participate in a class within these two structures at some point during his or her academic experience. Charged with student activity, these two new buildings will be an integral part of campus life.
Project Description:
The committee is interested in interior artwork for both buildings that will engage the architecture of the space. The artwork proposed for each building should have a direct relationship to one another just as the two buildings are visually connected through the use of similar materials and design characteristics.
The artwork should provoke thought, be timeless and engage the students, staff and campus visitors. The artwork must be durable and should require little maintenance. All costs associated with the fabrication and installation of the artwork will be the responsibility of the artist and contained in the budget for art, including all electrical needs for lighting.
Project Locations:
The committee has determined two possible interior locations for artwork within each building.
West Building
The West Building, comprised primarily of classrooms, will include a 400 seat lecture hall. Below are two possible locations for art.
1) The interior lobby wall on the first floor, 40’ in length and 11’ in height, is entirely visible from the exterior at pedestrian level. An artwork in this location should consider the use of light allowing it to become highly visible from the exterior during the evening hours or on overcast days. The artwork could be glass, light, or wall mounted. The artist may consider illuminating the art and/or using interactive lighting to engage the space.
2) Along the main corridor of the 1st floor atrium is an opportunity for an interior suspended sculpture or luminous art installation. The ceiling in this space is 50 feet in height.
East Building
The East Building, comprised of two separate buildings connected by a pedestrian bridge, will include classrooms on the 1st floor with the upper floors consisting of the five departments, faculty offices and additional classrooms. Below are two possible locations for art.
1) The East Building offers an interior lobby wall visible from the exterior on the first floor at pedestrian level. The artwork should reflect the same criteria as described above for the West Building.
2) The East Building offers an interior suspended sculpture or luminous art installation opportunity similar to the West Building as described above. However, the volume is half the size with an overall ceiling height of 23 feet.
Submission Requirements:
Artists interested in this project should submit their registration form and images to the Art in Public Spaces Image Bank by Wednesday, September 1st, 2010. Artists registered in the Image Bank will automatically be reviewed for public art projects that fall within their discipline area. Artists may update their portfolios at any time by submitting a new registration form. For questions contact Tamara Dimitri at (860) 256-2720 or by email at tamara.dimitri@ct.gov.
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