THE BRITISH COLUMBIA DRAGOONS
CENTENNIAL 2011

Call for Artists-
Paid Commission Proposals Sought for
BCD Centennial Mural Project

This Call to Artists is open to all artists of the North, Central and South Okanagan for proposals for a Paid Commission mural project depicting the first century of service of the British Columbia Dragoons Regiment.

Background Information –

There has been an organized military presence in the Okanagan Valley since 1908, when 'B" Independent Squadron, Canadian Mounted Rifles was established in Vernon. This lead to the creation of the British Columbia Horse Regiment in 1911, and the 2 Canadian Mounted Rifles, the ancestral unit of the British Columbia Dragoons(BCD). The BCD and their ancestral Mounted Horse units in the Okanagan have continuously served our communities both in Canada and overseas. From the battlefields of the First and Second World Wars and Afghanistan, to United Nations Peacekeeping; from serving on North Atlantic Treaty Organization duties during the Cold War in Northern Europe, to fighting the 2003 Forest Fire threat to the Okanagan, the Dragoons have been in the front lines meeting their motto of "Always First". 2011 will mark the Centennial anniversary of the Dragoon’s service. As a lasting reminder of the soldiers who served in the Regiment, a mural will be added to the side of the Okanagan Military Museum (OMM) located in the Memorial Arena building in Kelowna, celebrating the story of one hundred proud years of the BCD. The BCD Whizzbang Association is made up of former members of the regiment and their partners, as well as other friends and supporters of the Regimental family. The Whizzbangs are pleased to be the principal sponsor the Mural project, along with support from the Okanagan Military Museum Society and Kelowna Museums and the City of Kelowna.

Technical Information-

This Call for Artists is for the creation of a 16 ft x 15 ft mural, featuring a detailed visual representation of the first 100 years of the BCD, including but not limited to, the following elements:

a. 100 years of BCD history, including images of BCD’s and equipment from various eras
c. Depiction of the Regimental Victoria Cross or its recipient;
d. Okanagan Mountain Park Fire of 2003,
e. BCD and predecessor Unit badges, ceremonial motifs and regalia,
f. Noteable BCD members;
g. Locales of the Regiment’s presence in the Okanagan,
h. Battles/Battle Honours; and
i. Members of the Regiments Whizzbang Association and/or former serving members.

Each proposal must meet the following requirements:

a. Product must be supplied on either canvas, plywood board or other appropriate support material which will be mounted to the wall, not on the cement wall itself.
b. Must provide a firm estimate as to the final cost,
c. Must provide a general concept image, 10"x9" full colour scaled drawing representative of the final product,
d. Must provide a written description of the work, including a few short paragraphs describing the process and rationale.
e. Must provide firm a start date and schedule of work,
f. Must acknowledgment of commitment to the final delivery date of April 15, 2011,
g. Must provide a biography and curriculum vitae of the artist(s), with a high resolution portrait image,
h. Must provide photos and descriptions (with location) of at least 2 previous murals, and
j. Must provide a description of the physical characteristics and durability of the finished product, and its expected longevity,
k. Must maintain historical accuracy in any image created subject to the approval of the OMM.
l. Must guarantees of work and materials.
m. The manner of portrayal and composition of images depicting veterans and former members of the Regiment is subject to the approval of the BCD Whizzbang Association.

Note: AS THIS IS A PAID COMMISSION PROJECT - ARTISTS MUST INCLUDE A COST ESTIMATE IN THEIR PROPOSALS

The painting below is provided as an example of the visual content described above -

British Columbia Dragoons - Century of Service by Paul Seguna

The site for the mural may be viewed at 1424 Ellis Street (Memorial
Arena bldg) at the corner of Ellis and Doyle. It is the south wall
facing the Okanagan Heritage Museum.

The deadline for submission of proposals is the close of business on August 31st 2010.

Proposals must be delivered to:

“Centennial Mural Project”
Okanagan Military Museum
P.O. Box 24079, RPO Towne Centre
Kelowna, BC V1Y 9H2

The jury will rate the submissions based on creativity, composition, colour, and the proposal requirements. Artists will be notified of the jury results on Sep 18, 2010 during the Regimental Mess Dinner that evening. By participating in this process, artists agree to release all copyrights and reproduction rights to the final image to the Okanagan Military Museum and the Kelowna Museum
Society.

The chosen mural design will receive an honorarium of $500, with the other two shortlisted applicants receiving $250. In addition to this honorarium for being shortlisted, the selected final artist(s) will receive a paid commission from the BC Dragoons to create their mural design in celebration of the hundred year anniversary.

Incomplete submissions will not be considered.