1/4/2023 - Meeting Minutes ERIN MENDENHALL to ir.' LORENA RIFFO-JENSON
MAYOR DIRECTOR
DEPARTMENT of ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Salt Lake City Art Design Board Meeting
January 4,2023
5:00—7:00 pm
Webex Online&Finch Lane Gallery
MINUTES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE PENDING APPROVAL
PRESENT: Alejandro Moya Tiffini Porter
Michael Mcjia Colour Maisch
Staff Members
Renato Olmedo-Gonzalez,Public Art Program Manager
Felicia Baca,Arts Council Director
Brenda Alavez, Public Art Program Coordinator
EXCUSED: Jen Lopez Meggie Troili Angela Dean
AGENDA
1. Call to Order and Welcome
Mr. Renato Olmedo-Gonzalez called the meeting to order.
11. 2023-2025 Pre-Qualified Artist Pool
A.) Project Background& Selection Criteria:
Ms. Brenda Alavez explained how the review of artists who submitted qualifications would be
organized. Applicants were ranked according to a total number of points received by the Art Design
Board and then grouped into Low,Mid, and High scores for further review.
Mr. Olmedo-Gonzalez reviewed the selection criteria and project background. The Pre-Qualified Artist
Pool is open to all artists and artist-led teams residing in Utah and applicants would be considered
according to the criteria outlined in the original Request for Qualifications. This selection criteria is for
both new applicants and"re-applicants"(applicants who were previously in the 2020-2022 Artist Pool
who would like to remain in the new Artist Pool).
Ms. Felicia Baca related the goals of the Salt Lake City Arts Council to the Board. She encouraged
Board members present that it is not possible for all artists on the Pool to receive commissions for the
City, so decisions on who is accepted or not should take on a generous outlook of their potential and
ability to handle big projects.Ultimately,the Pool is meant to be as much a resource to the community
as it is to the Public Art Program. The Pool should reflect a range of skillsets and support emerging
artists as much as established artists.
Mr. Alejandro Moya had concerns over differences in how artists were scored originally versus how
the Board would be reviewing artists for final selection,keeping in mind the goals that Ms. Baca
outlined. Ms. Baca encouraged the Board to balance personal preference for aesthetics with a more
holistic view of each applicant's submission—the goal being to select artists based on whether they
could take on commissions by other entities,not just the Salt Lake City Arts Council.
B.) Re-applications from artists currently represented in the 2020-2022 Pool:
Mr. Moya expressed the need to re-consider the process of re-applicants in future iterations of the Pool
by examining the need for limits on how many times an artist can be accepted into the Pool
consecutively. Ms. Baca mentioned that since the Salt Lake City Public Art scene is still very young
and emerging,this will not be necessary today but is something that can be considered in a future date
if the number of artists being considered became overwhelming.
Ms. Tiffini Porter opined that since none of the re-applicants had lower scores and there seemed to be
no issues encountered with working with any of them,it would be most efficient and sensible to allow
all re-applicants to be included in the Pool. The Board agreed that unless there were any extenuating
circumstances or incidents of artist re-applicants not meeting expectations; all re-applicants would be
selected for inclusion into the 2023—2025 Pool.
C.) New applications to the 2023-2025 Pool:
Ms. Alavez briefly showcased applications who received no scores or only one point total. Ms. Porter
pointed out that since there was a consensus among the Board that these applicants did not meet the
selection criteria, detailed review and consideration of these applicants would only be done if the
Board felt the finalists were lacking in showcasing a range of mediums and styles.
Ms. Alavez showcased the applications that received low scores. All applicants were reviewed with
only a handful of applicants that stood out for further deliberation. Board members discussed the
merits and demerits of these applicants who all received mixed scores. Mr. Olmedo-Gonzalez
suggested looking over the high scores and to come back to the applicants the Board was on the fence
about at the end before making a definitive decision.
Ms. Alavez showcased applications that had received the highest scores. The Board agreed that all of
the high scores clearly exhibited high quality work and should be included in the 2023—2025 Pool.
Ms. Porter noted that looking at the high scores provided a much clearer juxtaposition of good quality
work to compare other candidates to.
Finally,Ms. Alavez showcased applications that had received mixed scores—or that had ranked in the
middle of the spectrum in between the low and high scores. Mr. Moya and Ms. Porter emphasized that
there should be a consistency in judging these applicants.Ms. Baca also clarified that there was not a
specific quote of applicants that needed to be represented in the Pool. The Board agreed it best to
review each applicant and eliminate any applicants,Board members did not feel strongly about with an
emphasis on selecting applicants that would diversify the mediums and/or styles currently represented
in the Pool.
D.) 2023-2025 Pool Selection:
Mr. Olmedo- Gonzalez reviewed the list of finalists that included the 11 artists who had high scores,
the 20 re-applicants from the previous year's artist Pool, 15 of the mid-ranked scores,and one artist
from the lower scores.
The artists selected for inclusion into the 2023-2025 Prequalified Artist Pool(in alphabetical order by
last name) are as follows:
Kevin Arthofer
Chuck Berrett
Alexander Billany
Liberty Blake
Trent Call
Elizabeth Carrington
Shu Ann Chen
Day Christensen
Humberto Sanchez Conejo
Fred Conlon
Traci O'very Covey
Trevor Dahl
Cara Despain
Mason Fetzer
Karl Hale
Cara Jean Hall
Isaac Hastings
Jann Haworth
Paul Heath
Myles Howell
Michael Hirshon
Lindsay Huss
In Theory Art Collective
Valerie Jar
Sarinda Jones
Lenka Konopasek
Chuck Landvatter
Jiyoun Lee-Lodge
Jason Manley
Matt Monsoon
Michael M. Murdock
Evan Jed Memmott
Moonlyon Arts
Caroline Nilsson
Emily Plewe
Gregory Ragland
Andrew Rice
Horacio Rodriguez
Roots Art Kollective
Heath Satow
Josh Scheuerman
Smock&Roll
Ashley Kinser
Joseph Toney
Kalani Tonga Tukuafu
Jerrin Wagstaff
Sri Whipple
Ms. Maisch motioned to approve this selection of 47 artists and artist-led teams. Mr. Moya seconded
the motion. All others voted in favor.
III. Approval of December 7th,2022 Minutes
Ms. Maisch motioned to approve the minutes as written. Ms. Porter seconded the motion. All others voted in
favor.
IV. Public Comment
None
V. Other Business/Adjourn
Ms. Maisch motioned to close the meeting. Ms. Porter seconded the motion. All other voted in favor.