Call for Proposal : A Landscape of Objects at Kilver Court, Somerset

We are inviting proposals from UK based artists working in any medium to create a site-specific contemporary artwork to be shown during Prospect: Somerset Art Weeks Festival 2017 (23 September – 8 October) at Kilver Court, Somerset.

Located in Shepton Mallet, Kilver Court includes a 3.5 acre gardens, as seen on BBC Gardeners’ World, and features a number of highlights including a millpond and ornamental boating lake created over 100 years ago; a reproduction of George Whitelegg’s Chelsea Gold Medal winning rockery and a formal parterre. The gardens sit in front of the historic Charlton Viaduct, providing an impressive backdrop to the surroundings. For more information www.kilvercourt.com/gardens

A Landscape of Objects is a multi-site project which will take place at Lytes Cary Manor, Hestercombe Gardens and Gallery, Forde Abbey and Kilver Court. Consisting of a series of site-specific commissions, residencies, bursaries and curated shows it will also include new work from local to international artists in a range of media. It is a major artistic programme by Somerset Art Works (SAW) to encourage research by artists into the spirit of the place, local identity and rural context in the making and presenting of contemporary arts and craft, investigating innovative and imaginative uses of these important man-made landscapes.

The programme also responds to ‘Prospect’, a curatorial focus for Somerset Art Works’ artistic programme between 2017-18. somersetartworks.org.uk/prospect We encourage artists to create new work that reflects the meaning behind Prospect concerning the artistic interest and practice, or/and the wider social and cultural landscapes within the county and beyond.

We are looking for an artist to create new work that will be primarily presented at the garden and with the possibility to show part of the work inside the Old Mill Buildings during Somerset Art Weeks Festival 2017. We are particularly interested in the following:

• Work that responds or relevance to the historical, social and cultural landscape of Kilver Court, the surrounding communities and areas.
• Contemporary visual arts production, i.e. installation, site-specific, sound, performance and multi-disciplinary.
• Audience focus: engaging, inspiring and original.
• We prefer new work which has not been previously shown. However, a proposal which re-contextualises previous work, presented in a new way, will be welcome.

Timetable

• April: Appointment of artist
• May/June: Project delivery plan and brief information to be provided to Festival programme
• June – August – Production
• 1 – 22 September: Installation (to be confirmed)
• 22 September:  Launch event (to be confirmed)
• 23 September- 8 October: Somerset Art Weeks Festival
• 9 – 13 October: De-install (to be confirmed with a possibility for extension)

Budget

£4,000 available to include artist fee, transportation, production and installation.
If necessary, we will support applicants to source additional funding and in-kind resources to ensure the realistic delivery of their project. Please indicate this in your proposal.

We support research-based practice; the budget includes site-visits if this is essential in developing your work. Please indicate this in your application if it is relevant to your approach.

We will provide in-kind support equivalent to £1,200 in curatorial, production, marketing and technical support in liaising with the site.

Submitting a proposal

Please send your proposal to Somerset Art Works [email protected] by Monday 27 March 5pm to include the following:

• Your professional CV, including your contact details and website address
• Outline your proposed work (max 2 pages) including any relevant information, i.e. approach, materials, dimensions, statements, technical requirements, budget, maintenance and display location.
• Images to illustrate your proposal, including drawings, visualisation or previous work. Please include all images in one single document no more than 5MB in file size in pdf format.

Shortlisted artists will be invited for a site visit and interview on the week commencing 17 April.

For informal discussion, please contact Zoe Li, Programme Associate via SAW Office on 01458 253800 or alternatively email [email protected]

Download the brief and submission details: A Landscape of Objects Kilver Court Brief

A Landscape of Objects at Kilver Court is funded by Arts Council England Lottery Programme in partnership with Kilver Court.