Title
A Resolution of the City Commission approving the concept and commissioning of a work of public art by R & R Studios in conjunction with The Village development project, encompassing the city block bordered by: Segovia Street, Malaga Avenue, Hernando Street, and Santander Avenue, in fulfillment of the Art in Public Places requirement for public art in private development (unanimously recommended by the Arts Advisory Panel approval/denial vote: 6 to 0; unanimously recommended by the Cultural Development Board approval/denial vote: 4 to 0).
Lobbyist: N/A
Body
MG Developer (the “Developer”) is constructing The Village development project, encompassing the city block bordered by: Segovia Street, Malaga Avenue, Hernando Street, and Santander Avenue (the “Project”). The Developer has chosen the option of petitioning for a waiver of the Art in Public Places Fee requirement by commissioning and installing artwork as specified in the Zoning Code, Article 9, Section 9-103 B.
The development team worked collaboratively with DLGV Architects & Urbanists to select an artist to design artwork. Other Artists were considered, and a final selection was made to commission a work by Roberto Behar and Rosario Marquardt of R & R Studios (the “Artist”) to proceed with a concept design proposal for the artwork Coral Light Way.
Behar and Marquardt received their Diplomas in Architecture from the Universidad Nacional de Rosario in Argentina. Behar has been a visiting artist at the Getty Research Center in Los Angeles and received a Visual Arts Fellowship from the American Academy in Rome. He has been a visiting professor at Harvard University, Cornell, the University of Maryland, and is an Associate Professor at the University of Miami's School of Architecture. R & R Studios has created award winning landmark projects in Miami, Denver, Austin, and Phoenix, among others, and their work has received numerous awards including recognition by Americans for the Arts as one of the best public art projects of 2007 and 2013.
From the Artist’s proposal:
Coral Light Way embraces the exceptional architecture of The Village by DLGV Architects & Urbanists and MG Developer with a unique series of 22 light sculptures (lamps) to create a distinctive and subtle dreamscape within the City of Coral Gables. The project offers residents and visitors a memorable walking experience weaving together public art and everyday life and art, architecture, and the City of Coral Gables.
The artwork itself is the complete series of 22 (twenty-two) custom lamps. Taken as a whole, the artwork surrounds one designated block only, with no further lamps produced or installed. Each individual lamp is constructed of custom coral-colored, painted stainless steel approximately 13 (thirteen) feet tall with five glass globes at the top. Each lamp is rotated slightly to enhance the feeling of movement as one walks along the street.
The concept proposal and information about R & R Studios is attached as Exhibit A to the proposed Resolution.
The cost of the proposed art piece and installation is estimated to be over $400,000 (four hundred thousand dollars). Funds toward the artwork should not replace expenses toward already established lighting requirements for the project as stated in The Village development agreement. The artwork and all related expenses for the art will be the responsibility of the Developer.
Furthermore, Developer is required to provide for the perpetual maintenance of the artwork in accordance with the City of Coral Gables Art in Public Places: Funding, Goals, and Implementation Guidelines which will be memorialized in a covenant for encroachment into the Right-of-Way to run with the land.
Approval of this request is contingent upon the appropriate execution of a covenant acceptable to the City Attorney’s Office, including documented coordination with Florida Power and Light (FPL) and a signed agreement detailing responsibility for ongoing maintenance.
The Arts Advisory Panel and the Cultural Development Board voted unanimously to recommend the proposed artwork by the artist team R & R Studios at their respective meetings on July 5, 2023 and July 18, 2023.
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