Open Call for “Park THIS!” Parking Space Interventions
Waterloo Arts Fest
This public Open Call invites artists, designers, activists, organizers, and community members to propose and stage the transformation of a 10’ x 20’ parking space along Waterloo Road during the Waterloo Arts Fest on August 27th, 2022. The goal of the project is to demonstrate how our urban space could better favor social interaction, recreation, and artistic expression over auto traffic. Individuals and teams may register. The space is not intended for commercial or nonprofit promotion, and there are to be no sales of any kind. Each accepted proposal will receive a $500 stipend to offset the individual or team’s production and labor expenses.
Accepted participants must be available to setup and install their parklet on Saturday, August 27 between 9-11am. Participants are responsible for transporting their materials to and from their designated site.
BACKGROUND:
Park THIS! is inspired by PARK(ing) Day, a holiday initiated by a California-based art and design studio called Rebar, in which participants pay to occupy metered parking spaces with anything but a car. Rebar cites some of the creative uses of PARK(ing) spaces in their PARK(ing) Day Manual as: an outdoor classroom, a miniature game show stage, a free bicycle repair shop, a site to play croquet, a public kiddie pool, a free head and neck massage, a public reading room, and more.
Though the international holiday takes place in active, open streets on the third Friday of September, Waterloo Arts hopes to nod to PARK(ing) Day’s core principles during the Waterloo Arts Fest in this creative demonstration of openly-accessible and resident-generated urban design prototypes.
SELECTION:
The Park THIS! selection committee will prioritize proposals: 1) that demonstrate innovative and responsive thinking about our use of public space, and 2) whose content creates an opportunity for the public to engage with, linger in, and revisit the site over the duration of the Fest.
Applicants are encouraged to consider what elements contribute to a space people want to be in— shade, seating, ground cover, social activity, and/or friendly interaction— as well as their contribution to a circular economy. Plan to borrow and repurpose materials when possible, and if you do expect to purchase new items, think about how those items may be reused, donated or recycled after the event. Thank you!
>>To submit your idea for consideration, please submit it via this link.<<
EXTENDED Deadline: July 1st, 2022
Applicants will be notified of their acceptance or rejection by July 8th.
Accepted participants will have between July 8th – August 27th to develop their intervention, with support and feedback from Waterloo Arts’ Gallery Manager.
Detailed setup instructions will be emailed to accepted participants on August 12th.
Installation must take place between 9-11am on August 27th.
Please direct any questions/concerns to kayli@waterlooarts.org
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To submit an application via email:
Send the following information to kayli@waterlooarts.org with the subject line “Open Call Application”. Single .pdf preferred!
– Your Name, Email, and Phone Number
– Names of Participating Artists/Designers/Collaborators
– City and State of Residence
– Project Proposal (250 words max) – What will your 10’ x 20’ space look like? What themes are you challenging or highlighting? How might a visitor navigate or engage with your space?
– Indicate whether the proposed project or an iteration of the project has been exhibited in the past.
– Link to Portfolio/Website, if available
– Up to 7 images of sketches, mockups, material studies, project renderings, or images of previous works. If applicable, indicate materials and dimensions for the project shown, and whether or not the project in the image may be the exact work installed at the Fest.
