The Procedure

Got an idea? Would you like to initiate the building of a new artwork in the public space? Are you part of the local government and would you like to have a contemporary artwork in your neighborhood?

Idea/Topic→Intention→Balance/Study→Project/Realization

Idea

First, it’s necessary to think over the basic idea of the project. What’s the reason for you to seek a new contemporary artwork? What’s its purpose and nature? Should it be a free-form artwork, abstract and purely aesthetic, or specific and related to a topic, to commemorate an event or a person? Another important thing is the location. Why should the artwork be here, of all places? What’s its link to the location? What will be its context and relationship to the place? 

Intention 

Once the suitable location is picked out, it’s time to consider the integration of the artwork into the architectural and urban context and into broader surroundings. Detailed description of the relations between the artwork and the location is included in the plugin Works of Art in Public Spaces, which was published with the Prague Public Space Design Manual. This plugin is available for download from the website of the Prague Institute of Planning and Development, or here.

The program “ART FOR THE CITY” offers methodological and expert assistance to everyone at this stage. The assistance is provided by these institutions:

Prague Institute of Planning and Development (expert partner of the program) is the institution that can verify whether the selected location is suitable for the installation of the artwork. The Institute provides information on the general intention of the development of the selected area, on its owner and manager, and on the status of the area in the master plan. 

Prague City Gallery (expert guarantor of the program) is the institution that offers methodological assistance in defining the requirements for the artwork and theme of the art competition, and provides guidance in the world of the contemporary art. The Gallery is also the city curator of art in the public space of Prague.  

Then, the intention must be consulted with the owner/manager of the site – mostly the relevant city district, or the city of Prague. The intention has no chance to succeed without the awareness and consent of the owner and/or manager. 

Balance/Study 

Based on this information, the detailed preparation of the intention can begin, starting with the study that reveals further details (such as the estimated time schedule, estimated expenses for the whole process of artwork acquisition, incorporation of the project in the maps, suggested procedure of the artwork acquisition, etc.). The preferred way to select a specific artist and commission him/her to make the project is a public competition. 

It’s possible to use the program to fund open or called art, art-architectural, or architectural competitions resulting in the project for the realization of a permanent artwork or an intervention in the public space. The requests for funding of an open art or art-architectural competition must be submitted to the Committee for Art in the Public Space of the Prague City Council. To download the project sheet, click here.

Project/Realization 

If there’s already a project for the realization of a permanent artwork or intervention in the public space as a result of a public competition organized according to the principles outlined in the Prague Public Space Design Manual and the plugin Works of Art in Public Spaces, or according to the guidelines of the Czech Chamber of Architects, the applicant will submit a project sheet with this specific project to the Committee. 

The application process 

  1. Fill out the application (project sheet)
  2. Send the completed application to the e-mail address umenipromesto@ghmp.cz
  3. The deadline to submit the application is the 15th day of the month so the application can be presented on the Committee meeting the following month. 
  4. Once the application is submitted, a meeting with the work group follows to consult the intention, and/or add necessary attachments to the project sheets. 
  5. Then, the intention is presented on the day of the meeting of the Committee for Art in the Public Space. The duration of the presentation is limited to 10 minutes. The applicant should have the presentation ready in the electronic form, submitted preferably together with the project sheet, or no later than a week before the meeting of the Committee. 
  6. The Committee comments on the intention and issues the Statement. If the Committee approves to the intention, it will recommend the Prague City Council to provide funding for the competition for the artwork/realization. 
  7. The Committee can also request the intention to be amended or reworked, and invite the applicant for the following meeting.