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ABOUT CIVIC ART

In December 2004 the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors adopted the County's first formal Civic Art Policy. Since 2005 one percent of design and construction costs on new County capital projects has been allocated to a Civic Art Special Fund.

Civic art dollars are flexible and, in most cases, may be pooled. The policy is structured to allow for integrated permanent public art enhancements, temporary or portable visual art commissions, restoration of historic artworks, and the creation of cultural spaces or programming.

The Civic Art Program has implemented over 40 civic art projects for a variety of County facilities including libraries, courts, fire stations, parks, jails, and health clinics. Projects range in size from $30,000 to $300,000+ and are managed by a skilled staff dedicated to facilitating innovative projects and providing access to high-quality artistic experiences for the residents of Los Angeles County.

Artists are commissioned from a Resource List of Pre-Qualified Artists, which is compiled every two years after an open call. Open and invitational Request for Qualifications (RFQ) are also used depending on project needs, scope and timeline. Artists are encouraged to join the civic art opportunities email list under “Artist Opportunities.”

The program has also undertaken the first-ever comprehensive inventory of County-owned artwork in order to define the County’s Civic Art Collection. The County’s Collection is comprised of works that have been created both before and after the 2005 launch of the new Civic Art Program. The inventory process identifies artworks, creates initial condition assessments, and adds descriptions to this website. To date, the County’s Collection includes over 90 artworks, 6 of which have been fully restored.

The program is overseen by the Civic Art Committee, a sub-committee of the Los Angeles County Arts Commission. The Civic Art Committee reviews the annual Civic Art Plan, provides advice and guidance on policy matters, and participates in individual project Civic Art Project Coordinating Committees.

POLICIES & PROCEDURES

The County’s Civic Art Policy allocates 1% of the design and construction costs of County capital projects for civic art. Artworks are integrated into libraries, fire stations, health clinics, courthouses and numerous other County facilities. View Active Projects to see projects currently underway. Completed projects can be found in the County Collection.

The Policy was adopted in December 2004 by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors and revised on November 18, 2008.

Highlights of the Policy include:

• Civic art program goals and objectives;
• How projects are implemented;
• Which capital projects are eligible for the civic art allocation; and
• Allowable expenditures.

In addition to adding permanent visual artworks to County facilities, civic art funds can also be used for temporary works of art, workshops, art events, conservation and education. Capital projects which are exempt from the policy include projects which cost less than $500,000; streets; underground projects; flood control channels; and airport runways.

Originally a part of the Policy, the Civic Art Procedures were separated from the Policy in 2008 to allow for more flexibility in adapting procedures to current conditions. Included are procedures for:

• Artist selection;
• Financial management;
• Maintenance and conservation of artworks;
• Gifts and loans of artworks to the County; and
• Deaccessioning artworks from the County Collection.

The Civic Art Program is identifying and documenting all historic and contemporary County-owned public art for the first time. Visit the County Collection to see the wide array of artworks throughout the county or download a copy of the 2009 Los Angeles County's Civic Art Collection Report.

For more information about the Civic Art Program, please contact civicart@arts.lacounty.gov.