The Belfast Design Committee is looking for artists, painters, carpenters, welders, handy-doers and creative thinkers to submit their designs for this year’s “Please, Be Seated” street art project. Do-it-yourself or find a buddy, a family member or a team and put that pencil to paper by March 18th, and drop off or send your designs to: Our Town Belfast, 171 […]
Any submissions received after 4pm on March 18th will not be considered for this year’s installation.
Previous year’s “Please, Be Seated” structures ranged from a lobster buoy bench, to a human & wind-powered weathervane seat to a carved apple tree that resembled a diver doing a back dive with a twist.
As the overseers of the downtown streetscape, under the Our Town Belfast Main Street Program, the Design Committee has the task of determining what artistic theme fits our downtown district.
Who knows what this year’s seats will look like?! The Committee will be reinstalling many of the previous years’ creations at different sites, but there are plenty of locations for new, more fantastic ways to sit down.
If you are interested in submitting a design, visit https://ourtownbelfast.org/welcome/please-be-seated/ to download guidelines and a form, and prepare your seating concept design with as much detail as possible, including a description of materials to be used and overall dimensions. This year’s stipends are the same as last year’s: $250 for a single seat, $500 for a bench or multiple seat arrangement (no matter how many people work on it).
If you have any questions please email them to Our Town Belfast at bre@ourtownbelfast.org or call 207-218-1158.
The most important factor in a design is safety. Designs should not have small parts, protruding elements, trip factors, unstable or imbalanced designs and should hold up in all kinds of weather.
All designs will be reviewed by the Committee for artistic merit and appropriateness for display in the public forum. The creators, whose designs are chosen, will be expected to maintain their projects throughout the Summer if repairs or replacement is deemed necessary, even though they become the property of the City of Belfast for insurance purposes upon installation.
Our Town Belfast is a community-driven and nationally-accredited Main Street organization whose mission is to grow and sustain Belfast’s historic downtown, while celebrating its unique cultural heritage. As a 501©(3) nonprofit, any donations are tax-deductible.
OTB offices are located at 171 High St., Suite 6, Belfast. For more information visit http://www.ourtownbelfast.org.
When Winston Churchill was asked to cut arts funding in favor of the war effort, he simply replied, “then what are we fighting for?”
insightsliteraryartjournal.com 