$5,000 Grand Prize to Produce the Winning Project!

What: The City of Charlottesville and the Piedmont Council for the Arts are partnering to stage the “Energize!Charlottesville Pitch Night: The Power of Energy in Our Lives“. At this event, 10 artists will pitch ideas for installations, and one will leave with a $5,000 grant to realize his or her project. This year, artists will bring their best ideas to convey concepts, values, and opportunities around energy efficiency through art and creativity.

Themes: As part of the Georgetown University Energy Prize competition and in pursuit of our community greenhouse gas emission reduction goals, Charlottesville is competing as a community to win a $5 Million grand prize by reducing home energy use. Energy is ubiquitously used in our lives to such an extent that many people forget about its presence and our ability to impact its use. We  are commissioning  a public art project to bring people’s attention to the energy around them; remind/comment on people’s ability to influence or control how energy – and how much energy – is used; and to create a lasting impression that will resurface and motivate people to continue to be aware of when energy is in use and to appreciate it (not waste it). We wish to bring an element of surprise to around something that is part of our daily life.

Why:  We need to reach a wide audience of our local residents on this topic and YOU, artists, can do that in unique and effective way.

Key Dates

• Wed. November 11, Midnight: Pitch Night Proposals Due
• Fri. November 13, Midnight: Notify Artists Invited to Pitch (email)
• Mon. November 16: Public Announcement of Artists and Judges Panel
• Thurs. November 19: Energize!Charlottesville Pitch Night: The Power of Energy in Our Lives

Pitch Night Proposals

Artist Guidelines – Each project should demonstrate:

• Ability to reach  ~5,000 people in Charlottesville over the 6-month period Mar-Sept 2016.
• Ability to be displayed or performed in multiple public settings with varying space constraints/available street furniture. The artist needs to be able to provide own lighting/sound support if piece requires such equipment.  Needs to be doable in different conditions (inside, outside, schools).  If a folly or art piece, it needs to be durable and able to be moved to different locations and to be displayed indoors and outdoors. Must be durable enough to withstand some human interaction/contact while on display. If piece must be monitored, the project proposal must include a plan for such. If these requirements cannot be met exactly, please provide an alternative proposal for meeting the target audience members and performance period.
• If it is a time-based art piece, running time should be 15-30 minutes.
• Artist must grant Energize!Charlottesville (the City of Charlottesville and Piedmont Council for the Arts) permission to display the art via different platforms (embedded video, pictures, etc.) through 2017 with credit and recognition given to the artist(s).
• We expect a minimum of 3 different display locations or performance events for the winning piece.
• Artist must be flexible and prepared to work with Energize!Charlottesville team on delivery logistics (rules or limitations associated with the location/venue).

How to apply:  Between October 5th and midnight on November 11, artists must submit a proposal via online form or by e-mail to [email protected] with the subject heading, Energize!Charlottesville Pitch Night.

All proposals should include:

• Brief Project Description and how it will serve the mission of Energize!Charlottesville (maximum 500 words)
• Artist CV, list of representative works, or link to the artist(s)’s website
• Links to up to 5 video, photographs, or other representations of your work

We will notify up to 10 artists who are selected to participate in the Pitch Night by midnight on Friday, November 13th. ***

Who can apply?   Artists must be 18. Collaborative groups are welcome. There are more eligibility requirements listed in the Artist Guidelines (listed above).

Pitch Night

What should a pitch presentation include?

If you’re one of the ten artists selected to present, you’ll have three short minutes to present your proposal. Be entertaining and informative. Your job will be to convince the judges that your project is the best for Charlottesville and that the $5,000 grant will make it possible.

Format of the Pitch Itself:

• Seeking up to 10 Pitches for presentation
• Each pitch will have a 3-minute presentation slot
• Presenter(s) must use the full time
• Presentation must be visually compelling
• There will be a 1 minute warning buzzer and a final bell
• There will be a 1-2 minute transition between pitches

Artists will receive:

• Local exposure and project funding for the grand prize winner from Pitch Night through remainder of the Energize!Charlottesville campaign (2017)
• Promotion of the top 5 artists on the  Energize!Charlottesville website and the Piedmont Council for the Arts blog
• Recognition of all participants on Energize!Charlottesville website and the Piedmont Council for the Arts blog
• … and for the winning submission, $5,000 prize towards executing their project! (Note:  $4,000 will be awarded as initial funding for the project with $1,000 awarded upon completion.)

Event Locations & Times:

7:00 – 9:00pm at Milli Joe, 400 Preston Ave
6:30pm (Doors)  &   7:00pm (Start)