Public Art Project Manager job code 1842 San Francisco Arts Commission

Job Description

Under the direction of the Public Art Program Director, the Public Art Project Manager (PAPM) assists with the implementation of the City’s public art program and stewardship of the City’s Civic Art Collection. Under the supervision of the Senior Public Art Program Manager, the PAPM will manage approximately 15-20 permanent and temporary public art projects in various stages of development. Project budgets range from $50,000 to over $1 million. Client departments include San Francisco International Airport, San Francisco Fire Department, Municipal Transportation Agency, Recreation and Parks Department, San Francisco Health Dept. and the Public Utilities Commission. The PAPM may also manage art maintenance and conservation projects for monuments, public sculpture and other artworks in the City’s Collection under the supervision of the Senior Registrar.

Reporting to the Senior Program Manager, essential duties of the Project Manager includes:

1. PROJECT PLANNING: Identify and meet with project stakeholders. Develop project objectives and parameters, including location and approach, and qualifications for artists. Establish project budgets and schedule.

2. PROJECT APPROVALS: Coordinate interface of art project with host agency and its consultants and contractors; represent the project to host agency and other city and governmental agencies for approvals as necessary, facilitate interface with Arts Commission and Visual Arts Commission (VAC) at important project junctures.

3. COMMUNITY OUTREACH: Develop and implement community outreach and involvement plans for project; work with agency Public Relations Officer to develop public relations efforts and orchestrate events related to project promotion. Represent and present the project to community organizations and the general public.

4. ARTIST SELECTION PROCESS: Conduct the artist selection process, including establishing a pool of qualified panelists, writing and issuing Request for Qualifications, developing and implementing an outreach plan to inform artists of the opportunity, researching and recruiting qualified artists, scheduling and conducting the artist selection panel in accordance with PAP protocols.

5. CONTRACTING: Write, negotiate and administer all project contracts, ensuring that all artist/contractor responsibilities, deliverables, and milestones are met.

6. DESIGN DEVELOPMENT: Oversee development and implementation of artist’s proposal, ensuring that the artist’s design intent (as approved by the Commission) is met. Exercise aesthetic judgment as necessary.

7. PROJECT INTERFACE AND PROBLEM SOLVING: Coordinate the design and execution of the artist’s work with other city contractors, design team members as necessary. Assist the artist in finding qualified subcontractors as necessary. Anticipate and address possible problems or issues that may arise in course of the project to prevent future complications, and to use initiative, creativity and diplomacy to address and resolve any problems and conflicts that arise in the course of the project, either technical issues, or disagreements between the parties, problems with the interface between the project and the community to name a few.

8. CONSTRUCTION DOCUMENTS AND CODE COMPLIANCE: Ensure the artist’s project is documented in all project design and construction documents; review all bid documents and specifications for full and correct documentation of the artwork into the construction documents and specifications; when necessary, consult with experts to ensure that artwork as designed fabricated and installed complies with building and fire codes and ADA requirements; is properly engineered, fabricated and installed by qualified licensed contractors.

9. BUDGETS AND FINANCIAL: Manage project budgets; approve all payments, track expenditures. Monitor discrepancies between the budget and actual expenditures and be responsible for the financial management to ensure the project is completed within the budget.

10. ARTWORK DURABILITY: Ensure long-term maintainability of projects through careful review of fabrication materials and techniques by conferring with the Senior Registrar and seeking outside conservators’ opinions as necessary.

11. MANAGEMENT: Oversee and manage the work of artists, fabricators, installers, conservators, and other contractors in the implementation of each public art project.

12. PROGRAM POLICIES: Assist in developing, reviewing and implementing program policies and guidelines.

13. DEPARTMENT GOALS: Participate and support agency’s mission and goals, including its commitment to racial equity, as reflected in the SFAC Racial Equity Statement and as detailed in the Racial Equity Work Plan.

Job requires attendance at some night and/or weekend meetings, events or workshops. It also requires site visits to construction sites, fabrication shops, and artists’ studios to monitor the progress of fabrication and installation.

Qualifications:

Education: Possession of a Baccalaureate Degree from an accredited college or university.

Experience: One (1) year full-time equivalent experience performing professional-level administrative duties in functional areas such as: program/office/operations management, budget development and/or administration, development and administration of contractual agreements and/or grants, or other closely related functional areas.

License and Certification: Substitution: Additional qualifying experience performing professional-level administrative duties in functional areas such as: program/office/operations management, budget development and/or administration, or contract/grant administration may substitute for the required education on a year-for-year basis. One (1) year (2000 hours) of additional qualifying experience will be considered equivalent to thirty (30) semester units or forty-five (45) quarter units.

Desired Qualifications:

• 2-3 years of full-time equivalent experience in project management, including the ability to work on multiple tasks simultaneously, to work with a diverse group of people, and to be proactive in problem-solving.
• 2-3 years of full-time equivalent experience working in the visual arts such as arts administration, studio art, art history, or museum studies, or related fields such as design, architecture or landscape architecture.
• Commitment to racial equity and supporting agency’s goals in racial equity.
• Computer competency, in particular Microsoft Office Suite.

If you have any questions regarding this recruitment or application process, please contact Lauren Rowe at lauren.rowe@sfgov.org.

Hybrid work culture:
We work in a hybrid environment, and you will be expected to work in the office up to 3 days per week.