Public Art Guidelines & Policies

1. Architect’s original design for campus buildings may be affected by artwork. Consider their design and try to integrate your artwork into the composition. Some buildings/structures may not be suitable for artwork.
2. A community consultation process may be required, as buildings/structures serve many different people/groups in the community.
3. Types of materials used in artwork projects should be given careful consideration.

Submit your completed Outdoor Art Proposal Form to aesthetics@pitzer.edu. You will be asked to include the following:

• Contact Information
• Specific Location for Installation
• Objectives/Goals
• Concept Sketch & Description
• List of Materials to be Used
• Installation Schedule
• Maintenance Plan*

*A maintenance plan will allocate responsibility for monitoring
the condition of the art/mural project on a regular basis, for
decision-making related to repair and removal.

Committee Review & Decision takes place in the following order:

1. The committee will review proposals forms upon submission.
2. Individual/group will be asked to attend an upcoming committee meeting to present your proposal in person and answer any questions from the committee.
3. The committee will vote & grant, deny, or make recommendations to proposal.

Artwork installation for approved proposals may begin according to the approved timeline.

There are many sources of funding for art on campus. If you’d like the current contact information for any of these groups, you may contact the Student Senate Secretary.

• Art Collective
• Campus Life Committee
• PAct
• Hall Councils
• Student Senate
• Office of Student Affairs
• President’s Office
• Fellow Students

The Campus Aesthetics Committee (CAC) has established the following procedures for determining the duration of the installation of approved artwork, with due regard to issues of ownership, maintenance, and storage, and others that may arise.

Maintenance of Installed Artwork

The length of time that an art/mural project will last largely depends in part on the exposure and the materials used. The Campus Aesthetics Committee (CAC) does not maintain artwork but will always try to contact the artist if artwork needs to be attended to, removed, or relocated. The committee may remove or relocate any approved artwork if the wall or area on which it is installed is taken down or is needed for another reason.

Damage by Weather or Graffiti: If an art/mural project receives graffiti and needs to be cleaned, this is the responsibility of the artist. If the artist is unable to continue to maintain it, the committee may vote to remove it. If the graffiti is racist, sexist, or hate-biased it will be documented and removed immediately by Campus Facilities. If the art/mural project is damaged in any way by such graffiti/removal of such graffiti, CAC will try to contact the artist to make the appropriate corrections to the art/mural project. If the artist cannot be contacted or does not wish to maintain the artwork, the artwork may be recommended for repairs or voted to be removed.

Five Year Review Process

Five years after installation of approved artwork, typically in the fall semester, a review of the condition and continued relevance of the artwork will take place which may result in the removal of the artwork.

• The voting process is described in the Artwork Grievances section.
• The committee will initiate artist contact when the artwork is up for review, and the artist may attend a committee meeting to advocate for their artwork.
• Artwork voted to remain will be reviewed again in five years, and this process will continue until the mural is voted to be removed.
• Artwork voted to remove will be removed by Facilities the summer following the vote, unless urgent circumstances are present.

The Campus Aesthetics Committee (CAC) values community voice. As such, we have a process in place so that the voice of the community can be heard and allow for an open dialogue.

1) Initial Grievance

When a grievance is voiced regarding approved artwork, the committee will try to contact the artist(s) and address the grievance of their art/mural project. The committee will work with the artist to try to conceptualize, design modifications, or select an alternative site for their artwork. If artist cannot be contacted, the committee will make recommendations for the artwork.

2) Contacting the Artist

If artist is contacted, the committee will work with the artist to try to conceptualize, design modifications, or select an alternative site for their artwork.

If artist cannot be contacted or does not wish to be involved, the committee will make recommendations for the artwork.

3) Working with the Community

If there is still dissent with an art/mural project or the artist and CAC cannot come to a consensus, the grievance should be brought to the attention of the community.

• In such a case, the grievance at hand and the time of a meeting must be effectively published more than a week before any voting takes place. Effective publishing may be done through, but is not limited to mails, flyers, table tents, and/or campus mail.
• If quorum, as described in section 13.1 of the Faculty Handbook, is present at this meeting the issue will then be voted on by the Committee.

All proposals must go through the CAC first. CAC will then send over the approved proposal to the Residence Hall Council (RHC) for a secondary review and final approval. All residence hall murals need to get approval from both bodies before moving forward. 

• Financial responsibility for the original art lies in the hands of the artist, and costs incurred during any removal of art (should it be deemed necessary by the CAC & RHC) will be absorbed by the associated hall governance body, if Facilities is unwilling to do so. Artists must therefore be prepared to pay for this process themselves or to locate another source of funds. 
• All art will therefore remain up indefinitely in its entirety unless questioned by the community through the following appropriate measures.
• If any art is at any time found offensive by any member of the community, they may bring a grievance to the CAC and suggest that it be painted over in its entirety. The CAC will notify RHC of this grievance. RHC will work with this community member to schedule a meeting time for voting to take place. In such case, the issue at hand and the time of the meeting must be effectively publicized more than a week before any voting takes place. This may be done through appropriate communications including, but not limited to, emails, flyers, table tents, and campus mail. If the piece in question is on one of the exterior non-courtyard walls of the residence halls, anyone attending the RHC meeting – including non-residents – will have a vote. If, on the other hand, it is not, the issue will be voted on by residents of the hall only.

**If there is no RHC in place, CAC will communicate with Residence Life Professional Staff to get involved in the approvals of residence hall murals and any grievance processes, seeking student input/voice in the process. 

UPDATED SPRING 2020

The Public Art Policy can be found in the Pitzer College Student Handbook.