PERCENT FOR ART
GUIDELINES
1. Preliminary
A. In 1983, the Minnesota State Legislature enacted the law forming the basis for the Minnesota
Percent for Art in Public Places program. This legislation states in part that for any building for
which the appropriation is greater than $500,000 “an appropriation for the construction or
alteration of any state building may contain an amount not to one percent of the total appropriation
for the building for the acquisition of works of art, ...” (Minnesota Statute 16B.35)
B. The Minnesota State Colleges and Universities supports the Percent for Art program. Projects
funded by the legislature for new buildings or major renovation / remodeling will normally include
funds up to one percent of the budgeted construction contract amount.
C. Under the Joint Powers Agreement between the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU)
and the Minnesota State Arts Board (Arts Board), a college / university (C/U) may request to
manage the art acquisition process rather than the Arts Board. The request to use this procedure
must be coordinated with the MnSCU System Office, Facilities Division prior to beginning any work.
Under this agreement, the college / university is responsible for soliciting, selecting and contracting
for Art under the Minnesota Percent for Art program and in conjunction with MnSCU’s board
policies, procedures and contract requirements. Art for a building on a public college or university
campus shall be selected by the campus, in consultation with the Arts Board. Consideration of the
artwork of faculty and students on that campus is encouraged.
D. Percent for Art funds must be used only for art to be exhibited in areas of a building or its grounds
accessible, on a regular basis, to members of the public. None of the funds may be expended by
MnSCU or the campus on administrative expenses. Individual campuses managing these projects
will pay for administrative expenses from college or university funds and will not use any portion of
the legislative appropriation for the acquisition of art to pay for administrative expenses.
E. A C/U which desires to proceed with selecting and acquiring Art
under this agreement must arrange a consultation meeting with representatives from
the campus and the Minnesota Arts Board to review:
1. Factors to consider in selecting a location for art,
2. Factors inherent in providing open process for selection of art,
(Note: The Arts Board has its own rules for selection of art and solicitation of proposals; those
rules do not apply to MnSCU institutions),
3. Factors to consider in selecting art genre for a particular location,
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4.
5.
6.
7.
Ways to select art which possess timeless quality,
C/U responsibilities after art installation,
Contract issues regarding the Visual Artists Rights Act of 1990, and
List of previous Percent for Art projects on MnSCU campuses.
F. The Arts Board shall provide an electronic list of artists including contact information and artistic
medium, but shall not provide access to its slide registry except to the extent a representative
from the individual C/U comes to the office of the Arts Board in St. Paul to view the registry and
the Arts Board has sufficient staff and resources to accommodate the request.
II. Procedures for selecting an artist
A. Decide upon proposed site and the type of artwork C/U desires:
1. Consider reviewing Arts Board’s registry for ideas about different artistic genres,
potential artists, etc. Registry is available for viewing upon request at the Arts
Board’s St. Paul office, subject to sufficient staffing and resources.
2. Conduct artist selection process in accordance with competitive solicitation
statutes and Board Policies and Procedures.
B. Solicitation Process
There are three main solicitation processes for acquiring Art:
1. Purchases of Existing Artwork: The solicitation and purchasing process in Board
Policy 5.14 and Procedure 5.14.5 apply.
2. Commissioning only: Board Policy 5.14 and Procedure 5.14.2 apply as described
above for Design and Commission contracts.
3. Design and Commissioning: Board Policy 5.14 and Procedure 5.14.2 require the
C/U to give public notice of Request for Proposals (RFP) if the total contract for an artist or
artwork will exceed $50,000.
a. A C/U may directly notify potential artists and solicit a response to the
RFP no later than seven days before the RFP submission due date.
b. The Arts Board has an electronic list of artists with contact information and
artistic medium.
III. Contracting with artist
A.
Contracting authority for acquiring artwork associated with a building project is typically included
with the delegation of authority from the Vice Chancellor – Chief Financial Officer to the campus
president to complete the project.
B. Contract forms:
1. If purchasing pre-existing art, use Art Purchase contract form.
a. Ensure that the C/U creates and installs appropriate plaque or public notice to document the
use of Percent for Art funding to acquire the artwork.
2. If accepting a pre-developed design, including a design that was submitted in response to an
RFP, with no need for further design review or oversight, use Art Commission contract form +
Budget/Timeline Worksheet (include as Exhibit A).
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3. If entering into a contract for design and commissioning, use Art Design and Commission
contract form + Artwork Statement Form (include as Exhibit A) + Budget/Timeline Worksheet
(include as Exhibit B).
a. Note: a C/U may execute more than one Design and Commission contract for
the same project if it chooses to pay more than one artist to submit a design
even though only one artist will be selected to proceed to Phase Two, the
commission, portion of the agreement. All design fees and eventual
commission fees are subject to the total Percent for Art budget for the
project.
A. The C/U is responsible to schedule and organize any lectures, public meetings,
dedication ceremonies or other events associated with the project or artwork. Art contract forms
do not include provisions requiring Artist to participate in any such events. Accordingly, a separate
contract may be required.
B. Send final acceptance letter to the Artist within 45 calendar days after (1) satisfactory completion and
installation of the artwork, AND (2) the Artist has submitted all required documentation as set
forth in Documentation and Records and Public Notice sections of the contract.
Note: For purchases of pre-existing artwork, no final acceptance letter is required.
C. Send final payment to the artist within 30 calendar days after final acceptance letter or final invoice from
the Artist, whichever is later.
IV.
Note: For purchases of pre-existing artwork, send final payment within 30 calendar days after
satisfactory delivery and installation of the artwork and receipt of final invoice from the Artist/
Vendor.
PREVAILING HOURS OF LABOR AND PREVAILING WAGES
Contractor and the Artist all of its Subcontractor(s) shall comply with the Labor Standards and Wages
requirements of Minnesota Statutes Chapter 177 as applicable. Minnesota Statutes Section 177.43,
Subd. 3, requires the collection of payroll information, as further described below, for all Contracts or
work under a work authorization, unless:
• the estimated total cost of completing the project is less than $2,500 and only one trade or
occupation is required to complete it, or
• the estimated total cost of completing the project is less than $25,000 and more than one trade
or occupation is required to complete it.
The College/University shall incorporate into its proposals and all contracts the applicable wage
determinations for the contract along with contract language provided by the commissioner of labor
and industry to notify the contractor and all subcontractors of the applicability of sections 177.41 to
177.44. Failure to incorporate the determination or provided contract language into the contracts
shall make the College/University liable for making whole the contractor or subcontractor for any
increases in the wages paid, including employment taxes and reasonable administrative costs based
on the appropriate prevailing wage due to the laborers or mechanics working on the project. The
contract must also provide that the contracting agency shall demand, and the contractor and
subcontractor shall furnish to the contracting agency, copies of any or all payrolls not more than 14 days
after the end of each pay period. The payrolls must contain all the data required by section 177.30.
• The College/University shall review the applicable Prevailing Wage Rate Requirements to
determine the applicable prevailing wage rates, prevailing hours of labor, and hourly basic rates
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of pay that are applicable to this project contract. A copy of the applicable Prevailing Wage Rate
Determination Schedule, as published by Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry, can be
found at the DOLI website for commercial construction at
www.dli.mn.gov/LS/PrevWageComm.asp
Colleges/Universities and the System Office may choose to collect payroll information strictly in an
electronic format or give contractors the option of paper or other media. Colleges/Universities and
the System Office should consider their capacity to handle records in both forms, and the anticipated
ability of contractors to comply with an electronic record requirement.
• Incomplete Data. Colleges/Universities and the System Office who are aware of missing, late or
incomplete forms should contact the contractor (preferably in writing) and request follow-up by
a specified date.
The College/University shall maintain prevailing wage payroll information for a minimum of three years
after final payment has been made on the project, or longer if required by your institution’s records
retention schedule.
V. AFTER CONTRACT COMPLETED
A. Final Accession Report: Within three months of completion of the contract, send a Final Accession
Report to the Arts Board and a copy to the MnSCU System Office, Facilities Division which includes:
1. Copy of final acceptance letter to artist,
2. Completed Documentation Worksheet form including a written technical description
of the Work, any blueprints regarding installation, any special installation
instructions such as suspension or foundation requirements, maintenance
instructions or recommendations, and other related information,
3. Artist’s updated resume,
4. Plaque information including explanation of artwork if provided,
5. Copy of contract with artist,
6. Visual depiction of final installed artwork
Note: for purchases of pre-existing artwork, send as much information as is available.
B. Visual Artists Rights Act (VARA): Artists have certain lifelong rights in any visual
works of art, including pre-existing artwork, that fall within the scope of the Visual Artists Rights Act
of 1990, 17 USC § 101, et seq.:
1. Visual artwork covered by VARA:
a. Paintings, drawings, prints, or sculpture existing in a single copy or in a limited edition of 200
or fewer copies that are signed and consecutively numbered by the artist. Enumerates
certain rights for visual artists.
b. Photographs if produced for exhibition purposes only and exist in a single
copy signed by the author or in a limited edition of 200 or fewer copies that are signed and
consecutively numbered by the artist.
2. Artwork, materials or items not covered by VARA:
a. Posters, maps, globes, charts, technical drawings, diagrams, models, motion
pictures or other audiovisual works, books, magazines, newspapers, periodicals, data bases,
etc.
b. Merchandising items or advertising, promotional, descriptive, covering or
packing materials or containers,
c. Applied art, which is generally defined as two- or three-dimensional
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3.
4.
5.
6.
decoration or ornamentation that is affixed to otherwise utilitarian objects (e.g., door
handles, faucets, staircase railings),
d. Unsigned or unnumbered copies or limited editions in excess of 200 copies.
Rights given to artists under VARA:
a. To claim authorship of the work,
b. To prevent the use of the artist’s name as the author of any artwork that he/she
did not create,
c. To prevent the use of the artist’s name as the author of any work if it has been
distorted, mutilated, or otherwise modified in a way that would prejudice his/her honor or
reputation,
d. To prevent intentional distortion, mutilation or other modification of the work
that would prejudice the artist’s honor or reputation, and
e. To prevent any destruction of a work of recognized stature.
Certain changes to artwork are not considered mutilation, distortion or other
modifications under VARA:
a. Modifications of an artwork resulting from the passage of time or the inherent
nature of the materials,
b. Modifications resulting from conservation efforts,
c. Modifications resulting from the public presentation, including lighting and
placement, and
d. Reproductions, depictions, portrayals, etc.
Artist’s rights last for life of Artist, which could extend beyond the term of
contract.
Artist’s rights cannot be transferred, but can be waived in limited situations:
a. Any waiver must be in writing and signed by artist,
b. General, anticipatory or broad waivers might be considered unenforceable or
invalid.
C. Maintenance and Repair of Artwork: The C/U is responsible for maintaining the artwork, including
providing security against damage, theft or loss, and repairing it as necessary and practical.
Note: Please contact the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office or MnSCU’s Office of General Counsel
before taking non-emergency actions to repair artwork.
D. Reproductions: The C/U can reproduce artwork for educational or publicity purposes. The C/U is
responsible for making reasonable efforts to ensure that any reproductions that prominently
feature the artwork contain a credit to the artist.
E. Destruction, Damage or Modification of Art or Plaque: The C/U cannot intentionally destroy,
damage, alter, modify or change the artwork or plaque without Arts Board’s consent. Also, see
contract language for notice requirements to Artist and ability of Artist to request that his/her name
no longer be identified with damaged, destroyed or modified artwork.
Note: Please contact the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office or MnSCU’s Office of General Counsel
before deciding to destroy, dispose of, damage, alter, modify, change or relocate artwork or the
associated plaque or public notice.
Note: Please contact the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office or MnSCU’s Office of General Counsel if
the artwork or associated plaque or public notice suffers any intentional or unintentional destruction,
damage, alteration, modification, vandalism, or change.
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F. Use of Artwork by Other Agencies: The C/U may make artwork available for temporary loan to other
agencies or public institutions for purpose of exhibition to the public on its own initiative or upon
request of the Arts Board.
H. Art as Capital Asset:
1. Board Procedure 7.3.6, Part 3, paragraph 9 states that artwork generally has to be capitalized at
its historical cost whether it is held as an individual item or in a collection.
2. Board Procedure 7.36, Part 5, C.8. contains other capital asset and depreciation
procedures pertaining to works of art.
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