Visual Arts Committee - October 21, 2020 - Minutes

Meeting Date: 
October 21, 2020 - 3:00pm
Location: 
Remote meeting via video and teleconferencing

SAN FRANCISCO ARTS COMMISSION
VISUAL ARTS COMMITTEE

Wednesday, October 21, 2020
3 p.m.
Remote meeting via video and teleconferencing
________________________________________
Minutes

 

1. Call to Order, Roll Call, and Agenda Changes

Commissioners Present:

JD Beltran      
Suzie Ferras
Dorka Keehn, Chair
Nabiel Musleh
Abby Sadin Schnair
Janine Shiota
Debra Walker

Commissioner Keehn called the meeting to order at 3:02 pm.

Commissioner Beltran entered the meeting at 3:04 pm.

2. General Public Comment

Commissioner Keehn announced virtual meeting instructions. Program Associate Craig Corpora announced public comment instructions.

Commissioner Keehn called for public comment; there was none.

3. Director’s Report

Commissioner Keehn announced new Acting Director of Cultural Affairs Denise Bradley-Tyson. Mrs. Bradley-Tyson introduced herself, her professional background and gave an update on the Mayoral directive of the Monuments review process and the Dr. Maya Angelou Sculpture project. She reported that Arts Commission staff has drafted a project outline, a template defining seats for a Historic Monument Advisory Committee and an approach to selecting a committee; the process is currently being reviewed by the Human Rights Commission and Recreation & Parks Department.

Mrs. Bradley-Tyson stated that she and Civic Art Collection and Public Art Program Director Susan Pontious had met with the San Francisco Public Library’s Head Librarian Michael Lambert and their Communications Director, Kate Patterson, to discuss the status of the Dr. Maya Angelou Sculpture project. The Library Commission has requested an update on the project at their upcoming November 19th meeting.

Mrs. Bradley-Tyson then introduced Supervisor Catherine Stefani. Supervisor Stefani talked about the Maya Angelou Sculpture Project and issued an apology to artist Lava Thomas. Supervisor Stefani took responsibility for the hurt and anger caused by the actions of the 2019 RFQ process to Lava Thomas and the public. She stated that she had recently met with Ms. Thomas and Mayor Breed to discuss the project.

Ms. Thomas appreciated and accepted Supervisor Stefani’s taking responsibility and apology. She was grateful that this has been a learning opportunity for all involved and that Supervisor Stefani and Mayor Breed “have done the right thing” and that “justice has been served.” She thanked the circle of Black women, the larger community and everyone who stood by her and supported her through this arduous process. Ms. Thomas thanked the San Francisco Arts Commission and the City of San Francisco for the “courage to turn this around” and closed her statement with a quote from Dr. Maya Angelou.

Commissioner Keehn thanked Ms. Thomas for her words and stated that this item would be moved to full discussion at the November 2nd Commission meeting.

Public Comment:
Deborah Stein, professor at San Francisco State University and California College for the Arts, thanked Supervisor Stefani for responding to the community and being brave enough to apologize. She thanked Ms. Thomas for her courage, persistence and commitment and the See Black Womwn collective who supported Ms. Thomas. She is overjoyed that this monument will be put up in the City and looks forward to seeing it. It is important to her that women continue to stand with each other.

Dana King, See Black Womwn collective, wanted to underscore how important this moment is that an apology has been made to Ms. Thomas and the effort that it has taken, over a year, to get to this point. Ms. King underscored the need to stand with Black women and all women at this time. She is happy the sculpture will go up but questions how a payment by a wealthy donor looks when this is a public art piece and thinks this money obliterates the public aspect/process/equity and asks that the Commission revisit the idea of having wealthy people pay for sculptures.

Commissioner Keehn thanked the project sponsors, Supervisor Stefani, Ms. Thomas, the Arts Commission staff, and commissioners, who have spent an extended amount of time on this issue. She stated that she was pleased it is moving towards resolution.  As there are no existing resolutions made by the Commission regarding the artwork, the decision will be made at the November 2nd Full meeting on next steps to proceed.

4. Consent Calendar
 

  1. Motion to rescind RESOLUTION NO. 0914-20-136 which approves the temporary installation of an illuminated temple-like sculpture titled, The Shelter in Place Temple in Joseph Alioto Performing Arts Piazza by artists Laurence Renzo Verbeck and Syliva Lisse for a period of six months commencing late fall 2020 which is to be installed at no cost to the City, pending procurement of all necessary approvals and the funding required for the project in addition to arrangements for security night and day. The project team shall be responsible for the performance of maintenance of the sculpture as required for the duration of the installation. This installation may be extended upon approval of the Arts Commission and Recreation and Park Commission.
  2. Motion to rescind RESOLUTION NO. 0912-16-261: Motion to authorize the Director of Cultural Affairs to enter into contract with Suzanne Husky for an amount not to exceed $135,000 for an artwork at the International Terminal, Gate Rooms, San Francisco International Airport. 
     
  3. Motion to authorize the Director of Cultural Affairs to enter into contract with Suzanne Husky for an amount not to exceed $135,000 for an artwork at San Francisco International Airport: Harvey Milk Terminal 1 Meet and Greet Area.  
     
  4. Motion to accept into the Civic Art Collection the artwork titled Green Map, 2019, by Ellen Harvey. The hand-cut glass, stone mosaic celebrates the beautiful parks and open space that characterize the Bay Area by inverting the traditional idea of a map to highlight the region’s green space. The artwork was commissioned for the San Francisco International Airport: Grand Hyatt Hotel. The 28 ft. x 28 ft. mosaic spans the first and second floors of the hotel lobby main staircase.
     
  5. Motion to accept into the Civic Art Collection the artwork titled Ether, 2019 by Kohei Nawa. The painted aluminum sculpture stands 35 feet tall outside the main entrance to the Grand Hyatt Hotel in the form of a droplet of liquid falling from sky to earth creating a symmetrical and potentially infinite column created within a space of zero gravity. The artwork was commissioned for the San Francisco International Airport: Grand Hyatt Hotel.
     
  6. Motion to accept into the Civic Art Collection the artwork titled This Infinite Gateway of Time and Circumstance, 2019, by Jacob Hashimoto. The immersive sculpture floats between two floors of the building in an undulating, interwoven canopy composed of over 3,500 individual kite-like ellipses comprised of Paper, UV ink, resin, bamboo, Spectra, acrylic, stainless steel and is 9 ft. x 39 ft. x 9 ft. The artwork was commissioned for the San Francisco International Airport: Grand Hyatt Hotel and is installed on the fourth floor of the hotel.
     
  7. Motion to rescind RESOLUTION NO. 0803-20-114: Motion to authorize the Director of Cultural Affairs to enter into a contract with Carter-Lynch (Stacey Carter) for an amount not to exceed $133,333 for the design, engineering, fabrication, transportation and installation consultation of an artwork for the SFO C3C Secure Connector Wall project.
     
  8. Motion to authorize the Director of Cultural Affairs to enter into a contract with Carter-Lynch LLC (aka Carter-Lynch/Stacey Carter) for an amount not to exceed $133,333 for the design, engineering, fabrication, transportation and installation consultation of an artwork for the SFO C3C Secure Connector Wall project.

 

Motion: Motion to approve consent calendar items.
Moved:  Beltran/Ferras

There was no public comment.

The motion was unanimously approved
Ayes: Keehn, Beltran, Ferras, Musleh, Schnair, Shiota, Walker

Commissioner Keehn called item 5 but Civic Art Collection and Public Art Program Director Susan Pontious asked if item 6 could be taken first as Michael Degregorio of Recreation and Park Department, a co-presenter, had a time constraint. Commissioner Keehn made the agenda change.

6. Portsmouth Square Art Enrichment Funding Recommendation

Ms. Pontious presented the Portsmouth Square Improvement Project and the Public Art Program’s recommendation for use of the Art Enrichment funds associated with the project. The project has a small Art Enrichment budget of $104,000 that is either enough for the conservation of the four current artworks on the site or for a new commission of a mural on the exterior of the new building; but not for both options. Ms. Pontious gave an overview of the four artworks currently at the site, their history/significance and the conservation estimates for these pieces. Unfortunately, the Arts Commission does not have any additional funds to supplement the conservation of these artworks.

Michael Degregorio spoke on behalf of the client, Recreation and Parks Department, and stated that due to the current effect of the pandemic on the economy that the budget for this project is set at 2%; there are no additional funds. Therefore, they are in agreement with the recommendation to use the funds for conservation of the existing artworks instead of commissioning a new artwork.

Commissioners Schnair, Walker and Keehn expressed disappointment that there was not more money available for this project to include a new artwork but all agree to conserving existing artworks that are significant to the community.

Public Comment:
Erika Gee, Senior Planner at Chinatown Community Center, stated that while the community would love to add a new artwork to the new construction they understand the constraints of the budget and would prefer to maintain the existing artworks; particularly the Goddess of Democracy and the Zodiac artworks. They support the recommendation for the conservation of the artworks and hope new funding sources may be found to support new artwork in the future.

Motion: to approve use of Art Enrichment funds generated by the Portsmouth Square Improvement Project for use on the conservation of the existing artworks on the site;  
1897.2 Robert Louis Stevenson monument by Bruce Porter,
1990.9 Goddess of Democracy statue by Thomas Marsh,
1985.14.1-6 Tiger, Ram, Serpent, Monkey, Rabbit, Dragon by Mary Fuller McChesney and 1999.19.1-15 Bench supports/Serpent Wall/Lion statues by Mary Fuller McChesney. 
Moved: Beltran/Schnair

The motion was unanimously approved
Ayes:
Keehn, Beltran, Ferras, Musleh, Schnair, Shiota, Walker

5. Artist Selection Policy and Procedures

Ms. Pontious discussed the roll of public comment and community engagement and how that carries over to the committee’s work. Currently, the Arts Commission staff joins the client’s public meetings with the community about the project and uses the community’s wishes/desires to inform the RFQ project description. The staff would like to work with the client to get involved with these meetings earlier in the process. The revised scoring criteria has been expanded to include “appropriateness to the site.” In this section, panelists will be asked to specifically consider the proposal as appropriate for its intended display location in terms of scale, media, imagery or design, relevant in the context of the surrounding community and appropriate for the mission/operations of the client department. The supplementary information provided to the panel will include the public comment received during the proposal display, client department comment and architectural team comment. The staff is looking for ways to make the proposals more accessible to the public and to streamline the questionnaire in the hopes of increasing the amount of public comment received.

There was no public comment.

7. Central Subway: Fourth and Brannan – Moto Ohtake

Senior Program Manager Mary Chou presented Microcosmic, 2020, by Bay Area artist Moto Ohtake at the Fourth and Brannan Platform for the new Central Subway extension. It is a wind activated kinetic metal sculpture with 31 rotating points. This is the first of several permanent artworks that are planned for central subway that is visible to the public.

There was no public comment.

Motion: Motion to approve as installed Microcosmic, 2020 by Moto Ohtake at the Fourth and Brannan Platform for the new Central Subway.  
Moved: Shiota/Beltran

The motion was unanimously approved
Ayes:
Keehn, Beltran, Ferras, Musleh, Schnair, Shiota, Walker

8. 2021 Art on Market Street Kiosk Poster Program

Program Associate Craig Corpora presented the selected artists for the 2021 Art on Market Poster Series; ABD/Skywatchers, Kimberley Arteche, and Katie Dorame. The panel reviewed the conceptual proposals of 6 artist finalists and chose 3 for next year’s series, themed “Imaginary Monuments for the Future.”

ABD/Skywatchers’ project monumentalizes individuals who are often overlooked, focusing largely on un-housed individuals or those living in supportive housing in the Tenderloin and South of Market neighborhoods. Kimberley Arteche, It Wasn’t Only A Hotel, project focuses on Manilatown and the I-Hotel, it will be a monument to the spaces that held, raised, and grew the Filipinx community in San Francisco. Katie Dorame’s project, We are, We Were, & Will Be, conflates time and fights the erasure of Indigenous history. 

Commissioner Musleh commented that there were multiple great submissions but these stood out and appreciated being part of the panel.

Commissioner Schnair stated that this is a good selection and good food for thought as we embark on the Monument Review Process.

There was no public comment.

Motion: Motion to approve artists ABD/Skywatchers (Anne Bluethenthal & Dancers), Kimberley Arteche, and Katherine Dorame and their conceptual proposals for the 2021 Art on Market Street Kiosk Poster Series, as recommended by the artist review panel.

Motion: Motion to authorize the Director of Cultural Affairs to enter into contracts with ABD/Skywatchers (Anne Bluethenthal & Dancers), Kimberley Arteche, and Katherine Dorame for an amount not exceed $12,000 each for the 2021 Art on Market Street Kiosk Poster Series.
Moved: Musleh/Schnair

The motion was unanimously approved
Ayes: Keehn, Beltran, Ferras, Musleh, Schnair, Shiota, Walker

9. San Francisco Arts Commission on DataSF

Program Associate Tara Peterson presented two recent projects completed in collaboration with DataSF; mapping of the StreetSmArts program and mapping of the Civic Art Collection artworks that are publically accessible. On the datasf.org website, the public can access datasets of both projects that also include an interactive map. The map shows the location of each artwork with an overlay of the Cultural Districts and can by filtered by Supervisor District, zip code and Cultural District. These datasets are free to the general public and other city agencies to view, sort and download/export. Ms. Peterson stated that this is an ongoing project; staff will continue to update information and add new features as they become available. The DataSF website will be linked from the San Francisco Arts Commission website in the near future.

The Commissioners were excited by these new resources and happy that the public and other agencies will have access to these materials and hoped the link to the site would be widely shared.

There was no public comment.

10. Mayor Ed Lee Plaque

Project Manager Aleta Lee presented the updated design of the Plaque honoring Mayor Ed Lee for SFO International Terminal Departures Hall. Design changes included adding Mayor Ed Lee’s name in Chinese characters and changing the font of the English language text. The artist is currently working on a final mock up that will add more dimensionality/depth of field to the plaque as suggested by the panel and has met with Mayor Ed Lee’s family for their review.

There was no public comment.

11. San Francisco International Airport: Harvey Milk Terminal 1

Project Manager Zoë Taleporos presented the completed tile mosaic artwork Four Corners by Emily Fromm installed at San Francisco International Airport: Harvey Milk Terminal 1 in the post security passenger corridor. Each panel is 8ft by 8ft and depicts a different San Francisco neighborhood; the Mission, Bay Bridge, Chinatown, and the Castro.

There was no public comment.

Motion: Motion to approve as installed the tile mosaic artwork Four Corners by Emily Fromm at San Francisco International Airport: Harvey Milk Terminal 1.
Moved: Beltran/Schnair

The motion was unanimously approved
Ayes: Keehn, Beltran, Ferras, Musleh, Schnair, Shiota, Walker

12. Animal Care Facility

Project Manager Jackie von Treskow presented the Design Phase and Construction Document Phase deliverables (final design, structural engineering drawings) for an additional, exterior artwork by Favianna Rodriguez for the Animal Care Facility at 1419 Bryant Street. After reviewing all the final estimates for the existing art plan there were enough funds to support an additional artwork. A wall facing Bryant Street near the entrance of the facility, which encloses an emergency generator, has been selected for the new exterior artwork. The artwork will measure approximately 3ft. by 9ft., be made of layers of tempered laminated low-iron architectural glass (including both a hand painted layer and digitally printed layer) and depict a red-eared slider turtle, a commonly treated animal at the facility.

There was no public comment.

Motion: Motion to approve Design Phase and Construction Document Phase deliverables (final design, structural engineering drawings) for an additional, exterior artwork by Favianna Rodriguez for the Animal Care Facility.
Moved: Shiota/Schnair

The motion was unanimously approved
Ayes: Keehn, Beltran, Ferras, Musleh, Schnair, Shiota, Walker

Commissioner Musleh left the meeting at 4:40 pm.

13. New Business and Announcements

Commissioner Keehn stated that artist Hank Willis Thomas with Nina Chanel Abney and Nathaniel Quinn are on the front cover of the upcoming Vanity Fair art issue.

Commissioner Beltran encouraged people to participate in the Litquake Festival 2020 currently in progress and to visit local museums that have recently re-opened.

Commissioners Schnair and Beltran encouraged people to visit the Isaac Julien artwork currently on display at the McEvoy Foundation.

There was no public comment.

14. Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 4:51 pm.

TP 10/30/2020 2:44 pm 
Approved 11/2/2020

Notices          

Translated written materials and interpretation services are available to you at no cost.
For assistance, please notify Tara Peterson, tara.peterson@sfgov.org, 415-252-2219.

我們將為閣下提供免費的書面翻譯資料和口譯服務。
如需協助Tara Peterson, tara.peterson@sfgov.org, 415-252-2219.

Materiales traducidos y servicios de interpretación están disponibles para usted de manera gratuita. Para asistencia, notifique a Tara Peterson, tara.peterson@sfgov.org, 415-252-2219.