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County seeks a gatekeeper to public-art treasures

Job requires recording works, locations and artists

Utah Symphony’s Robert Bosworth plays one of seven art pianos that are part of the public arts collection owned by Summit County. The Summit County Public Art Advisory Board seeks a service provider who will keep a record of these works of art and make them digitally accessible to the public.
Park Record file photo

The Summit County Public Art Advisory Board’s mission statement is to “celebrate and unite Summit County residents through public art.”

That mission has become more challenging in the coronavirus pandemic because of social distancing protocols. So the board wants to take advantage of these circumstances to create a digital platform where the public can have access to the more than 20 works of art that are owned by the county and spread throughout the area, said Leslie Chavez, who is the board administrator as well as the content and marketing manager for Arts Council of Park City and Summit County.

To do that, the board seeks a service provider to establish and maintain a comprehensive written and visual record of county-owned arts assets, she said.



Some of the art includes the Summit County Library’s Bookmobile, painted by Minnesota-based illustrator Sarah Holden, and playable pianos that have been refurbished and painted by a handful of Utah-based visual artists, according to Chavez.

“We also have more standard paintings, sculptures that are installed throughout the county, and public murals,” Chavez said.



Metal strips are laid out by artist Kevin Arhofer on his 'How We Move' public-art installation at the Kimball Junction transit center. The installation is one of 20 public works of art that are owned by Summit County.

In addition to these outdoor and public-area installations, the collection includes the county’s Traveling Exhibit Fine Art Collection comprising approximately 80 pieces of fine art housed in the County Courthouse, she said.

That collection itself produces four traveling exhibits throughout the year, according to Chavez.

“These exhibits travel to different county-owned buildings including the Summit County Library Kimball Junction Branch and Kamas Valley Branch so the community can see them,” Chavez said. “But since these buildings are closed because of the pandemic, we want to fix that to ensure the ability for people to access them online.”

The service provider will be required to research all the works and document the art, artists, mediums and installation locations, she said.

“I’ve been going through and looking at the different works that have been developed in the past,” Chavez said. “It was interesting for me to write up the call, because I’m fairly new to Summit County. I didn’t realize the amount of public art that was in the collection. I’m also interested in learning more about the backgrounds of these works and the artists who created them, and I think some members of the community are curious, too.”

Service-provider proposals are due at 5 p.m. on Jan. 29, and directions on how to submit are available by visiting pcscarts.org/opportunities and summitcounty.org.

A background in art is helpful, but not required, Chavez said.

“There is a wide variety of backgrounds that fit this position,” she said. “It’s very research based and it will require someone who is detail oriented and who has great organizational skills.”

The finalists will also be evaluated on their flexibility, creativity and how they incorporate creative aspects into the job, Chavez said.

“They will also be evaluated on their ability to work with project stakeholders and the capacity to create a well-integrated solution for this online database,” she said. “I think this would be a great tool for the community and for the Public Art Board’s staff.”

For information about Summit County Public Art Advisory Board’s service provider proposals, visit pcscarts.org/opportunities and summitcounty.org.


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