Call to Visual Artists | Call to Performing Artists

CALL TO VISUAL ARTISTS
First Night® Martinez 2008

First Night® Martinez official New Year's Eve observance, is a celebration of the arts which takes place in downtown Martinez. Coming up on its sixth year, the festival regularly attracts approximately 5,000-8,000 people to performances and activities both indoors and outdoors.

Project opportunities

First Night®Martinez 2008 is seeking proposals from artists. Proposals will be reviewed for artistic merit, feasibility and appropriateness to the event, as well as our ability to meet the budget needs of the project. Proposals may be collaborative. We will award commissions and/or fees to artists whose proposals are accepted. Opportunities include, but are not limited to:

1. Visual, sound or environmental projects.
2. Works that encourage public participation and ritual for the New Year.
3. Works that include community participation in their initiation, implementation and/or evolution.
4. Sculpture or installations that inspire a sense of renewal and incorporate or respond to the public's hopes, wishes and resolutions for the New Year.
5. Works that have a multicultural dimension or emphasize an aspect of the community's diversity.
6. Representational and abstract works that are constructed on site (such as ice sculpture, light sculpture, building blocks, etc.).
7. Ritual pieces that can be carried in the opening procession, such as oversized figures, elements of light, sound, or general celebration.
8. Installations or sculpture that are interactive and geared toward children.

Specific projects desired for 2007 include:

1. Grand Opening Procession: Creation of individualized items to be carried by their makers in the grand opening procession: e.g. masks, banners, puppets, capes, shields, etc. A prototype of the items would be made by the artist, who would then teach volunteers to help others create their own item to carry in the procession. It is likely that this activity would involve families with children and would involve several workshops during the months of October and November.

2. Resolution Activity: Design and creation of a sculpture or central area to invite and incorporate participants' New Year’s resolutions. This would be a participatory activity during the evening of First Night, located outside. Possible locations are the creek plaza area on Main Street, the fountain/courtyard at City Hall, and Suzanna Street Park. It is not expected that the project will be a permanent fixture.

3. Interactive game: Design and creation of an interactive game or project that will involve First Night participants during the evening. May be located either indoors or outdoors but must incorporate the arts in some way. Should be suitable for families with children as well as for adults. Project may be designed in such as way as to involve groups of volunteers or children in creating parts of the activity prior to First Night itself.


Proposal Guidelines

Proposals must include:

1. The name of the project.
2. Your name, address and phone number.
3. Your resume.
4. Detailed description of proposed project or work.
5. Space or site requirements.
6. Support materials, such as drawings, renderings, models, photos or slides.
7. Requested funding with itemized budget.
8. List of technical requirements.
9. List of volunteer needs if appropriate.

Requirement
You must commit to overseeing the set-up, implementation and breakdown of your project on New Year's Eve, Saturday, December 31, 2005. Any costs associated with this must be included in your project budget.

Budget
Projects between $100 and $1000 are sought. Additional funding may be requested for unusual circumstances.

Send submission to:
First Night‚ Martinez
PO Box 230
Martinez, CA 94553
(925) 372-8295
firstnightmartinez@yahoo.com