Campus Public Art

Campus Public Art (Public Art) creates, maintains, and enhances an enduring cultural legacy for the University and the State. It is a form of knowledge that advances the University’s educational mission and contributes to the climate of the campus. It includes art in all forms that is physically or visually accessible to the public through permanent or temporary installation that contributes to the experience of the natural or built public spaces, both indoors and outdoors, on University real estate. This policy does not cover the acceptance of small commemorative plaques in buildings or works of art included in museum collections, gallery exhibitions, personal workspaces, reception areas, or meeting rooms.

In accordance with Board of Regents Policy, this administrative policy applies to commissioning, siting, and installing works of art funded by the State of Minnesota in connection with major campus construction projects that are governed by Minnesota Statutes: 16b.35 Art in State Buildings. It also serves as a framework of best practices for art that is similar in installation or intent.

Funding

Consistent with Minnesota Statute, a portion of the project budget must be allocated to Public Art for State-bond–funded projects. The following thresholds and Public Art budgets are established:

• For projects $35 million or less: up to 1% of the project budget.
• For projects larger than $35 million: up to $350,000.

Selection Process

The process for choosing and creating Public Art is one of consultation or collaboration with the University’s publics or communities. While the entire University community (students, faculty, staff, and visitors) are beneficiaries of Public Art, a Campus Public Art Selection Committee (CPASC) is assembled for individual projects.

A CPASC will balance institutional and project stakeholders, with attention to equitable, diverse, and inclusive representation, including representation from or recommended by:

• building users and primary tenants, including faculty, staff, and students
• disciplinary experts in the visual arts (art, art history) and design (architecture, landscape architecture, interior design)
• campus community at large
• Office of Equity and Diversity
• University Architect (ex officio)
• CPM Project Manager (ex officio)
• Project Architect (ex officio)
• Campus Public Art Lead (ex officio, facilitator)

A CPASC is tasked to:

• review and understand training materials on implicit bias;
• define the primary community or specific public to be engaged;
• understand the communities’ priorities and define criteria for the project;
• engage local or regional public arts community members as appropriate;
• develop an inclusive selection process based on the best approach for an individual project and the process that will yield a diverse pool of artists; 
• recommend the artist and engage with them throughout the development of the art project;
• consult with various campus communities throughout the process; and
• if applicable, and in collaboration with the artist, develop any plans as necessary to address potential controversy, transition to another collection, or decommissioning.

Artists selected to create campus public art:

• must seek to understand the University's broad, diverse, and engaged communities;
• should be able to define their (the artist’s) process, values, and interests, including how those align with the priorities and criteria defined by CPASC and the campus;
• must have the ability to work with the CPASC, the University community, and engage these constituencies in development of their art.

Public Art commissioned or purchased:

• responds to the values, priorities, and criteria established by the CPASC;
• reflects the diverse audiences within the campus community and its broader publics;
• responds to the history and future of the physical site in which it is placed, including building design and landscape architecture as well as the human and environmental history of the land;
• grows out of the artist’s own creative research and artistic concerns while also considering the work’s physical place within the campus environment, university values, and its community now and in the future;
• advances the public’s understanding of the values of the building’s community and the University.

Siting of Campus Public Art

Board of Regents Policy: Campus Public Art provides for indoor or outdoor installation. In determining where to site a Public Art installation, the selection committee will consider:

• compliance with adopted campus master plans, including campus planning’s identified strategic locations;
• impact of location on achieving artist’s intent/message;
• public accessibility;
• impact of siting on artwork, such as durability and maintenance over time.

Installing and Maintaining Campus Public Art

Capital Project Management is responsible for coordinating the installation of Public Art. The commissioning process and installation must not be restricted or limited by a specific project’s construction schedule, though it is desirable that they align whenever possible. Once installed, responsibility for maintenance is assigned to:

• Crookston: Facilities Management
• Duluth: Tweed Museum
• Morris: Facilities Management
• Rochester: Facilities and Operations
• Twin Cities: Weisman Art Museum

Exclusions

This policy does not regulate commissioning, purchasing or installing a work of art that is not Public Art, including the acceptance of small commemorative plaques in buildings, works of art included in museum collections, gallery exhibitions, or murals or other works displayed in personal workspaces, reception areas, or meeting rooms. 

This policy does not govern instances where the subject of the Public Art is being broadly challenged. In situations where this is the case, the Provost or the Chancellor of the applicable campus will define a process for how the topic will be addressed. In situations where a recommendation is made to uninstall or decommission a work, the President will make a recommendation to the Board of Regents, which has reserved authority for uninstalling or decommissioning Public Art.

This policy does not govern commemorative statues of or memorials/monuments to a person or people. Review and approval of commemorative statues, memorials, and monuments is the purview of the All-University Honors Committee and the Board of Regents.