Minneapolis Convention Center announces call for entries for 2014 Creative City Challenge

Second annual competition for Minnesota artists, architects and designers open now

Minneapolis (Oct. 9, 2013) - The Minneapolis Convention Center (MCC), The Office of Arts, Culture and Creative Economy of the City of Minneapolis and Meet Minneapolis, Convention & Visitors Association, in collaboration with Northern Lights.mn announce the second annual Creative City Challenge. The Creative City Challenge is a competition for Minnesota-resident architects, landscape architects, urban designers, planners, engineers, scientists, artists, students and individuals of all backgrounds to create and install at the Minneapolis Convention Center Plaza a temporary, destination artwork, which acts as a sociable and participatory platform for summer-long onsite programming and encourages a sense of connectedness to the city as a whole and its rich cultural and natural offerings. The Plaza is a green roof that is located directly across from the MCC on Second Avenue South.

In its inaugural year, the Creative City Challenge selected the Minneapolis Interactive Macro Mood Installation (MIMMI) as the winner, which was installed on the MCC Plaza in June 2013, until it recently completed the installation period. The 2014 Creative City Challenge is an expansion and refinement of the 2013 program. Entrants will again submit proposals for a temporary structure on the MCC Plaza, which is a compelling destination project that reflects the city's commitment to sound ecological practices and serves as a platform for social and participatory interactions, planned and informal, throughout the summer. It is intended as a conceptual and physical portal for residents and visitors to the MCC and the City of Minneapolis.

Entries are accepted until 4:30 p.m. Central time, Nov. 18, 2013 (see entrant information below). On Oct. 15, Oct. 22 and Nov. 12, informational sessions will be conducted for entrants. A professional jury will select three finalists to develop their proposals by December 2013. Each finalist will receive a fee of $2,500 to prepare a final proposal. Public voting will occur in February 2014, and during that time, there will be a public presentation of the proposals. A winner will be announced March 3, 2014. The commission fee for the selected project is $75,000, inclusive of all artist fees, installation and de-installation costs. The winning project will be installed at the MCC Plaza in early June 2014 and remain on the Plaza throughout the summer.

Minneapolis is a city infused with creative energy. From internationally recognized theatre and world-class museums and music venues to community art projects that transform neighborhoods, the arts are a critical element of what makes Minneapolis, City by Nature, a destination of choice for convention goers and leisure travelers, alike. The 2013 Minneapolis Creative Index shows that Minneapolis creative vitality is roughly five times above the national average and the Twin Cities metropolitan area ranks sixth in the nation for creative spending, jobs and organizational revenue.

The Creative City Challenge will continue to highlight the cutting-edge work of local architecture, art and design communities for the visitors to the city, said Gulgun Kayim, director of Arts, Culture and Creative Economy, City of Minneapolis. It will also continue to raise the profile of the MCCs plaza area, which is underused as a gathering space. Having art there engages people, makes them aware of the plaza and leads them out to the rest of the city.

The MCC is a site of convergence for visitors to Minneapolis from around the country and the world, as well as being a part of the local neighborhood, and Minneapolis downtown.

The Minneapolis Convention Center is more than a meeting place, said Jeff Johnson, executive director, MCC. Its a building that is all about building relationships. Our goal is to connect with our community as an activity center while also acting as a gateway to Minneapolis for convention center visitors.

The winning Creative City Challenge project, as determined by the voting public, will be unveiled and featured at the opening event taking place in Minneapolis on June 14, 2014.

ENTRANT INFORMATION

Entries are due by 4:30 p.m. Central time on Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2013. Submission information can be found online at http://www.minneapolis.org/minneapolis-convention-center/ccc/creative-city-challenge-submissions.

If materials are needed in an alternative format, call Lance Knuckles at (612) 673-2919 or email Lance.Knuckles@Minneapolismn.gov. Deaf and hard of hearing persons may use a relay service to call Minneapolis 311 agents at (612) 673-3000. TTY users may call (612) 673-2157 or (612) 6730-2626.

Additional information is online at http://www.minneapolis.org/minneapolis-convention-center/ccc, including an overview, details and submission requirements. Email creativecitychallenge@northern.lights.mn with questions.

PHOTO ATTACHED - CUTLINE

The Minneapolis Interactive Macro Mood Installation (MIMMI), the 2013 Creative City Challenge winning project, hovered over the Minneapolis Convention Center Plaza reflecting the citys moods all summer long. Entries are being accepted for the 2014 Creative City Challenge now at www.minneapolisconventioncenter.com. Photo courtesy of Meet Minneapolis.

ABOUT MINNEAPOLIS CONVENTION CENTER

The Minneapolis Convention Center (MCC) is the largest indoor, contiguous, convention center in the Upper Midwest with over 1.5 million visitors annually, including 250,000 during the summer months. The MCC is more than a meeting place. It's more than a show space. It's a building all about building something elserelationships. A blend of form and function, the MCC provides aesthetically pleasing and innovative solutions for a variety of conferences, trade shows and events. With nearly 480,000 square feet of trade show space, 87 column-free conference meeting rooms, a 28,000-square-foot ballroom, and an auditorium with superb production and flexible technology options, the facility can handle any event from a small meeting to a large convention or trade show.

ABOUT THE OFFICE OF ARTS, CULTURE AND CREATIVE ECONOMY, CITY OF MINNEAPOLIS

The Arts, Culture and Creative Economy program is an initiative of the City Coordinator's office established August 2011 to leverage the creative sector towards strengthening social and economic growth in the City of Minneapolis. The goals of the program are to: promote and coordinate City resources to develop the arts as an economic generator in alignment the City Goal "art and artists are economic drivers in and of themselves, to stimulate cross-sector collaboration to strengthen the arts economy and community in Minneapolis and provide presence and visibility for the creative sector in the City of Minneapolis.

ABOUT MEET MINNEAPOLIS

Meet Minneapolis is a private, not-for-profit, member-based association. It actively promotes and sells the Minneapolis area as a destination for conventions and meetings, works to maximize the visitor experience and markets the city as a desirable tourist destination to maximize the economic benefit of the greater Minneapolis area.

Meet Minneapolis is accredited by the Destination Marketing Accreditation Program (DMAP) of the Destination Marketing Association International.

Online: www.minneapolis.org and http://go.minneapolis.org

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MEDIA CONTACT

Kristen Montag, media communication manager, 612.767.8038, kristenm@minneapolis.org, Minneapolis_PR on Twitter.