The Philomath Public Art Committee met Thursday evening at City Hall to evaluate artist submissions for the city’s new downtown temporary sculpture pilot program, narrowing a field of nine entries down to five finalists that will be forwarded to the City Council for approval.
Nine submissions remained under consideration after 11 total responses to the city’s January call for artists — two were withdrawn before the committee convened. Members scored each submission across six categories — artistic merit, community and thematic alignment, site compatibility, durability and maintainability, installation feasibility, and artist experience and capacity.
After a 15-minute recess to tabulate scores, the committee eliminated the four lowest-ranking submissions and focused its discussion on the top contenders. The five finalists identified by the committee were “The Valley in Spring” by Peter Nichols, “Mary” by Vicki Wilson, “Mobalisk” by Kyle Ocean, “Ascending Descent” by Jennifer Kapnek and “Glowing Crested Jay” by Rick True.
Assistant City Manager Chelsea Starner said she wanted to identify up to five projects to ensure options in case any fall through or the council takes a different direction. She indicated that the budget would allow for three sculptures to be displayed.
Mayor Christopher McMorran, who serves as a participating member of the committee, expressed enthusiasm about the quality of submissions.
“I was thrilled going through this with the quality of the submissions and the interests,” McMorran said. “With these new types of programs that the city’s doing, I always sort of wait with bated breath to see if anyone is going to be interested or think it’s a good idea. And lately we’ve been on a good roll of getting some good responses and having some good energy.”
The committee expressed a preference for local artists and weighed factors such as how each piece fits within the broader community context during its discussions.
“I’m really excited by this and I want to thank everyone who took the time to enter,” McMorran said. “I think any of these would be a great addition to the downtown.”
The recommendations will go before the City Council at its April 13 meeting. If approved, Starner will notify the selected artists and begin negotiating lease agreements, with a goal of having pieces installed by July 30. The city has several concrete plinths in the downtown area, with six sites under consideration for the first sculptures.
Each participating artist will receive a $1,500 honorarium. The city will also provide promotional support, interpretive signage and photography. Artists will have the option of listing their work for sale during the exhibition period.
The committee also discussed the possibility of an art reveal event this summer, potentially timed to coincide with the Philomath Area Chamber of Commerce’s Sip and Stroll event on July 18. Starner received the go-ahead to continue discussions with the chamber.
The committee plans to meet again on May 28.
