Artwork Information

Artwork Qualities

The City of Coral Springs has established definitions and qualities of public artworks eligible to satisfy the requirements of the Public Art Ordinance.

Eligible Media and Forms of Public Art

The public art ordinance identifies the following artwork media and forms. All eligible artworks should be unique artworks that exist only in Coral Springs. Paintings, sculptures, engravings, carvings, frescos, stained glass, mosaics, mobiles, tapestries, murals, photographs, video projections, digital images, bas-relief, high relief, fountains, kinetics, collages, drawings, monuments erected to commemorate a person or an event, functional furnishings, such as artist designed seating and pavers, architectural elements designed by an artist, and artist designed landforms or landscape elements are all examples of eligible forms of Public Art.

Ineligible Objects

The following do NOT satisfy the public art ordinance

  • artworks too closely resembling a business logo or sign;
  • reproductions or unlimited copies of original artwork;
  • art objects which are mass produced unless approved by the City Commission; and
  • works that are decorative, ornamental, or functional elements of the architecture or landscape design, except when commissioned from an artist as an integral aspect of a structure or site.

The guidelines strongly encourage

  • selection of one of the prioritized artwork types;
  • unique works of art made specifically for the owner’s property in Coral Springs through direct contracts with the artist(s)
  • artworks fabricated in the United States of America.

The guidelines strongly encourage the following themes for public art

  • Family, children and ethnic diversity
  • Nature and the environment
  • Water
  • Sense of place through Coral Springs’ unique history and culture
  • Color

The guidelines strongly encourage public art that has the following attributes

  • Appropriate art for the site with careful consideration of placement, landscaping and other surrounding elements
  • Surprising and unexpected art
  • Artworks that engage the pedestrian through scale, touch, content, interaction and photography
  • Artworks developed or selected with the participation of people in the local neighborhood
  • Durable with low ongoing maintenance costs.
  • Color splashes in the green landscaping;
  • A powerful impact on city through size, prominent location, image, and/or multiple artworks;
  • Museum quality public art that is of high quality, approachable and inspiring;
  • Artworks fabricated in the United States of America; 
  • Historical and environmental designs

Prioritized Artwork Types

The guidelines strongly encourage the following artwork types. More detail on each type is provided in the Appendix.

Interactive Artworks

Contemporary art and technology make it possible for adults and children to truly interact with the artworks by touching, climbing or playing. Electronic sensors can be triggered and then generate a sound or a movement of light or water. An artist-shaped earth berm can be a perfect place for a rest or conversation. Lights can simulate motion on the building façade or sidewalk.

Urban Furnishings

For centuries, artist created and embellished the common furnishings and elements of outdoor spaces. Today, artists design and/or fabricate all elements of our urban places. Examples include seating, railings, gates, bike racks, pedestrian light poles and fences.

Contemporary Design-Integrated Public Art

Artist(s) that work directly with architects, engineers and landscape architects to enhance the qualities of the building, spaces or even infrastructures. The actual physical results are not known until the artist and other design professional work together.

Sculpture

In both traditional and modern planning, sculpture attracts the eye as a focal point in public spaces and landscapes. The sculpture requires the correct size and color to provide the necessary civic, architectural or intimate impact on its space.

Fountains and Water Features

The movement, sound, temperature and reflectivity of water are a natural element to enhance the outdoors of public places in Coral Springs. Fountains, pools, retention ponds, and other water features encourage outdoor gathering in the hot climate and highlight the importance of water in South Florida’s natural environment. Artists can design the entire water feature or create specific art elements such sculptures or tiles. 

Artwork Budget

The budget will be presented three times during the public art process. A schematic budget should be developed in conjunction with site plan review. A detailed budget should be presented with the artwork proposals for review by the Public Art Committee. A final budget will be submitted with the completion of the work.

The selection, design, fabrication and installation have many budgetary elements. Below is a list of allowable expenses that can be charged against the required art budget under the public art ordinance.

  • Direct professional artist costs in the design and/or fabrication of artworks including artist fees, materials, fabricators, insurance, sales taxes and travel.
  • Art consultant or art dealer’s fees up to 15% of the budget
  • Delivery and installation of the artwork.
  • Structures or foundations supporting the artwork up to 15% of the budget
  • Acknowledgment plaque identifying the artist, artwork, year and sponsor.

Special Budget Category: Artist Designed Elements of Building, Plaza or Landscape

In this category, the budget should show an artist design fee and a remaining budget for implementation of the artist ideas. In general, the public art dollars will be used for the additional cost created by implementing the artist’s visual design ideas.

For example:

  • On plazas, only the decorative brick or terrazzo topping
  • For fountains, only the special fountain elements, not the plumbing, computers or basic pool if not designed by the artist.

Maintenance

Future costs for the operation, conservation and maintenance of the artwork cannot be reserved from the original budget. 

Professional Artist Qualifications

The qualifications of the artist(s) are the first priority. These qualifications will under go significant examination, and therefore the City recommends the owner hire an art consultant to assist in the selection. The qualifications are quoted from the ordinance with additional explanation.

  • “Practitioner in the visual arts, generally recognized by critics and peers as a professional of serious intent and ability, income realized through the sole commission of artwork and frequent or consistent art exhibitions.” In general, these elements should reveal a consistent practice as a VISUAL artist over the years. The critics need to be recognized art critics from art publications. Exhibitions should be in quality galleries and museums specializing in the visual arts.
  • “Placement of artwork in public institutions or museums.” Other similar artworks in public art collections of merit, sculpture parks of merit and/or museums of state, regional or national respect.
  • “Receipt of honors and awards.” Fellowships from the National Endowment from the Arts, national art agency, state arts agency, major metropolitan area arts council and prominent art foundations.
  • “Training in the arts.” Bachelor and/or Masters of Fine Art

Other criteria established by these guidelines include the Public Art Committee’s determination of:

  • Compatibility with the aesthetic quality and community standards of Coral Springs
  • High quality of the artist’s recent public work
  • Comparative quality of the recommended artist in relation to other known talented artists

Public Artwork on Private Property Proposal and Criteria

The owner shall prepare a public art proposal for approval by Public Art Committee. The proposal should include the following:

  1. Detailed drawings or photographs of the proposed artwork.
  2. Description of artwork including overall length, width and height, materials and method of construction.
  3. A statement of selection of artwork type and artwork’s satisfaction of artwork themes and qualities established in the guidelines.
  4. Detailed drawings of the specific public art site showing a. Location of artwork(s) b. Location of lighting for artwork(s) c. Location of plaque for artwork.
  5. Resubmittal of Site Plan with artwork(s) plus the landscaping, parking, building and view corridors from the public sidewalk and/or public space.
  6. Statement on maintenance requirements.
  7. Final budget.

Review Criteria

As per the Public Art Ordinance, the proposal will be evaluated on the following assuming the artist was approved at an earlier date. If not, the artist will be reviewed first, and then the artwork proposal.

  • Appropriateness of the artwork to the site and site environmental conditions;
  • Maximum visual accessibility to pedestrian or vehicular traffic;
  • Quality of the artwork;
  • Maintenance requirements; and
  • Whether the artwork too closely resembles a business logo or sign and should, therefore, be rejected. Additional evaluation established by these guidelines include:
    • Compatibility with the Public Art Master Plan for Coral Springs; and
    • Maximizing the public art budget to achieve a maximum amount of quality artwork.

Final Artwork on Private Property Installation and Approval

The owner should contact the Development Services staff and Public Art Consultant upon the installation of the public art on the owner’s property and to submit final documentation of artwork, plaque and maintenance plan.

The documentation should include the completed “ARTWORK INFORMATION FORM” that includes the maintenance requirements and three high-definition color photographs of the artwork on paper and digital format. The maintenance plan should be a statement from the artist explaining the maintenance needs of the artwork. The maintenance plan will be utilized for code compliance in the future.

After on-site review of artwork by representatives of the Public Art Committee, the Committee will evaluate if the finished work matches the approved public art proposal. With a majority positive vote of the PAC members, the public art is approved and the process is complete. 

After Artwork Installation on Private Property

Removal of the Artwork

In the event that the owner wishes to remove the artwork in the future for any reason and still be in compliance with the ordinance, he/she must secure the Public Art Committee approval for:

1. A new location on the property with good visibility.

2. Donate the artwork to the City for placement elsewhere and cover all costs of the installation.

3. Transfer the artwork to another Coral Spring property owner for public display in a location with comparable or better public visibility. (The new property owner cannot use this artwork to meet the requirement of the public art ordinance and must assume permanent responsibility.)

4. Contribute funds to the Public Art Fund equal to the original required amount that has been annually adjusted as per the Consumer Price Index. 5. Purchase a new replacement artwork equal in value to the original required amount that has been annually adjusted as per the Consumer Price Index. This new artwork should be approved by the Public Art Committee.

Maintenance of the Artwork

On an annual basis, the Public Art Program staff will examine the artwork for general condition and comparison with original photographs. Any failure to maintain the artwork may result in a citation for code compliance violation.

Transfer of Property Ownership

In the event of the transfer of the property ownership, the artwork will be transferred to the new owner and remain on the property unless approved by the Public Art Committee under the removal of artwork section above. If the past owner removes the artwork without permission, the current owner will be required to replace the artwork or contribute to the Public Art Fund as per the Removal of Artwork.

Continual Damage

In the event that the approved artwork is continually damaged by humans or weather and despite the owner’s good efforts, the artwork is always in disrepair, then the owner may ask the PAC to permit the removal. In this one case, the owner is not responsible for creating new artwork. The owner should be aware of Visual Artist Rights Act (VARA).

Redevelopment of the Property

At some time in the future, the property may be redeveloped. If the artwork is integrated with the building or site elements to be demolished and the Public Art Committee agrees the artwork cannot be safely removed, then the artwork may be demolished. (See VARA below). If the artwork can be removed without injury to the work of art, then the city recommends the re-use of the artwork on the site. The new development must still comply with the ordinance at that time, as the older artwork will not satisfy the ordinance requirement.

Visual Artist Rights Act (VARA)

The owner should be aware of VARA, a section of the Federal Copyright Legislation. Among other things, this law forbids the willful destruction of a work of visual art. See United States Code Annotated, Title 17. Copyrights, Chapter 1 – Subject Matter and Scope of Copyright, Current through P.L. 105-153, approved 12-17-97.