Artists' visit

When the six artists arrived in Port Townsend on Nov. 19 to look at the streetscape revitalization area and receive information to develop models of their proposals, Mother Nature also made an appearance.

"Our site is windswept, occasionally waterlogged and quite dramatic," Morris told them. This was fully realized when the artists stepped outside to experience a particularly nasty day on the waterfront while touring the streetscape project site with Sepler, selection panel members and Tom Miller, the city's project manager for the streetscape construction.

All stopped to look at the Tidal Clock, the recently deaccessioned piece of public art constructed during the 1980s that will be transformed into a performance plaza during the project. Some of the visiting artists were aware of the Tidal Clock's story prior to applying for the commission, said Rubin. He emphasized that the new piece of art is not a replacement for the Tidal Clock.

"I don't think we viewed [the selection process] as correcting anything," he said in an earlier interview. "But we viewed it as wanting to do something right."

As the artists were led around the perimeter of the site, one of them asked if a proposal could be one big piece or a set of smaller pieces.

"That's the $70,000 question," answered Annette Huenke, referring to the amount of money budgeted for the art. Compared to the Tidal Clock, which cost $250,000 only to fail to be constructed as proposed, $70,000 isn't much money, acknowledged Rubin.

The budget has been allocated under the City of Port Townsend Percent for the Arts program. It requires that 1 percent of the budget for eligible city-funded construction projects be spent on artwork for city facilities.

Contract concerns

Once the group reconvened in City Hall, artist Tsutakawa asked if sales tax and site preparation was included in the $70,000 budget. Sometimes site preparation can cost more than the budget itself, he pointed out, especially when a site-engineering stamp is required.

One artist also asked city officials to write a process for changes to the design, should that happen, so the artist would be notified.

Tsutakawa was also concerned about intellectual property rights and the work's copyright, especially where derivative work is concerned. Derivative work includes postcards and miniature models that the city might create for profit.

According to a draft contract sent to the artists, the city would own the rights to the piece. But Carolyn Law said that would be in conflict with the Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990. According to that legislation, works of art that meet certain requirements afford their authors additional rights in the works regardless of any subsequent physical ownership of the work itself or regardless of who holds the copyright to the work.

City Attorney John Watts assured the artists that their rights would be protected and emphasized that the contract was still in the draft stage.

"This is not something the city enters into on a regular basis," he said.

Each finalist will receive a stipend of $1,000 to prepare a model, photos and narrative of his or her proposed project. All of the art projects will be available for public review on Jan. 14. Prior to the public presentation, it is possible to see examples of the finalists' work at the city website, www.cityofpt.us/callforartists.

The panel hopes to make the final selection by the City Council's first or second February meeting.