Guideline 1. Client
Issues to consider before commencing.
Click on a heading below for more information or scroll down the page to read the whole guideline.
Selection panel
The role of the selection panel is to consider the artists’ brief and evaluate artists' proposals.
It is often appropriate to invite a wide-ranging and representative group to interview shortlisted artists and consider designs.
A selection panel could include:
- clients
- staff
- project partners
- funders and potential
funders/sponsors - arts specialist
- local authority officers
- local councillors
- community
representative - engineer or structural advisor.
Steering group
The role of the steering group is to guide a commission through from the initial brief and selection to completion and aftercare.
The steering group is often drawn from the members of the selection panel and is responsible to the client. In addition technical advisors are often involved if the project has particular design challenges.
The steering group is tasked with keeping the project to schedule, ensuring the requirements of the contract and budget are met, supporting the artist and troubleshooting.
It is important for the steering group to meet regularly and for the artist to have a defined contact person. Notes or minutes of meetings should be kept and circulated.
The role of the steering group will depend on whether a project manager is engaged with the project.
Project management
Arts commissions can offer unique challenges and in most cases will need to be managed with a structured and creative approach to achieve successful completion.
Commissions are usually managed in one of three ways:
- the client manages the project directly
- the client instructs a third party such as an architect to take on the role of project manager
- a dedicated project manager is contracted to oversee the project.
In deciding on the best project management route to take a number of factors need to be evaluated:
- the complexity of the proposal
- the experience of the client/artist/fabricator
- and whether the commission is part of a complex project such as a new building
- budget and timetable.
Communication
It is important that the aims and ambitions of an arts commission are clearly articulated to staff, clients, the public and the press.
Communication is an ongoing process throughout a commission but may take different forms at different stages. It is advisable to describe the project’s general aims at the early stages and may be appropriate to show previous work of shortlisted artists. However, visualisations of selected proposals should not be shown until they are fully agreed, with costings and technical issues resolved.
Planning permission is often the point where a commission needs to become public and it is important that clear press statements are agreed in advance by the client and steering group.
Communication and consultation is vital when a commission is developed for a particular environment or group of people. Communities should be aware of why the project is happening and who is commissioning the project and offered opportunities to gain an understanding of the artist and their ideas.
Consultation
Commissions for local authorities, Health Trusts or other public bodies may require some level of public consultation.
This process can range from consultation about the brief or scope of the project, artists’ presentations about their work to the community and public exhibitions of designs.
In all cases it is advisable to agree a concise piece of text that clearly communicates the vision and context for the project.
