01 Jul Call for Artists: Mobile, AL, Hall of Fame RFQ Open
Call for Artists: Mobile, AL, Hall of Fame RFQ Open
The City of Mobile is in the process of reinvigorating its riverfront. The crown jewel of this renaissance is the Hall of Fame Courtyard which will connect the currently empty southwest corner area of the Mobile Convention Center with Cooper Park. The Hall of Fame Courtyard will serve to honor Mobile’s contributions to America’s pastime. Mobile has contributed more individuals to the Baseball Hall of Fame than any other city on a per capita basis. Recognizing the achievements of these athletes will serve as an attractant to draw more people to the City’s riverfront renaissance while serving as a springboard to recognize Mobilian athletes who have excelled in other sports.
Mobile’s Football Hall of Fame inductee, Robert Brazile, will serve as an accessory to the five baseball players in the Hank Aaron Hall of Fame Courtyard – eventually leading to the inclusion of other athletes from Mobile’s Sports Hall of Fame. This addition to the courtyard will be marked with Brazile’s figure and a blank pedestal representative of more statues to come. Proposals can place Brazile’s statue and the empty pedestal anywhere in front of or adjacent to the Convention Center (on Water Street between Dauphin Street and Government Street).
HALL OF FAME ATHLETES
Six, nine-foot-tall bronze statues will be created, with pedestals, depicting the following hall of fame athletes:
1. “Hammerin’” Hank Aaron
2. Leroy Robert “Satchel” Paige
3. Willie Lee McCovey
4. Osborne Earl “Ozzie” Smith
5. Billy Leo Williams
6. Robert Lorenzo Brazile Jr.
SCOPE OF PROJECT
Design, create, deliver, and install statues of each of Mobile’s five Major League Baseball hall of fame members and Mobile’s National Football League hall of fame member in the area delineated below. The City wants a ‘hall of fame courtyard’ which highlights Mobile’s baseball heritage. The 9’ statues on their pedestals will display the larger-than-life nature of these hometown heroes. Equally important to the statue design is the landscape design and placement of the statues on their pedestals.
The goal is to have a remarkable, dignified statuary honoring Mobile’s sports heroes that is accessible, interactive, and cohesive with the City’s goals of reinvigorating the riverfront.
QUALIFICATIONS
The RFQ will only consider artists and artists teams with the following qualifications:
1. Must be 18 years or older.
2. Have at least five years of experience as a professional artist.
3. Have experience with projects of the proposed scale and resources available for completing the project.
4. Carry personal liability insurance for the duration of the project until installation is complete and accepted.
5. Meet all contractual obligations and adhere to the timeline provided.
6. If selected, be prepared to present their concept to a selection committee.
Selections will be made regardless of race, sex, color, religion, gender, age, physical or mental ability, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, creed, culture, or ancestry. Artist/artists teams residing in Alabama with strong connections to the area will be given additional consideration.
TIMELINE
The following schedule is provided for planning purposes based on current information. However, all dates are subject to revision, including RFQ and RFP deadlines.
June 18 – July 23, 2021: RFQ Open
July 26 -30, 2021: Committee meets to choose RFP applicants
August 1 – 31, 2021: RFP open to select applicants
September 2021: Artists to present design proposals to the committee
October 2021: Award announced
Early 2022: Installation of first statue (Hank Aaron)