Ephemeral Art Program Description

What is Ephemeral Art? It is art created intentionally to be non-permanent. Unlike more traditional art, which might be preserved forever in a museum or private collection, it is brief, fleeting. It typically uses natural materials taken from the environment at hand – leaves, sticks, rocks, earth. It invites the audience to not only see it and appreciate the space it occupies, but to also reflect on what its transient nature means within the context of the space it temporarily inhabits.

The Rappahannock Association for Arts and Community (RAAC) Ephemeral Art Program is offering Rappahannock-based artists the opportunity to create their own ephemeral art installations that will occupy temporarily a place of the artist’s choosing in one of several designated areas in the County. For spring of 2023, we are focusing on the Rappahannock County Park and are joined by two co-sponsors: the Rappahannock County Recreational Facilities Authority (RCRFA) and the Rappahannock League for Environmental Protection (RLEP).

Interested artists should submit applications to a joint committee, which will select an initial group of artists. This small group will form the cohort of ephemeral artists whose work will appear during the spring and be removed by a date still to be determined. Each selected artist will be granted an award of $300.

Each selected artist will:

1. Select the specific area on the Rappahannock County Park trails where their art will be installed. The selected area must be on one of the designated areas of the trail as indicated on the Rappahannock County Park Trail Map. Art may be installed along the upper perimeter of the park’s wooded edge as well as on any existing trails but may not be installed along any borders with residential property.
2. Fully install their art by the required start date (to be announced). Neither RAAC nor its co-sponsors will assist in the installation of any art exhibit.
3. Completely remove their art by no later than the required end date. Neither RAAC nor its co-sponsors will assist in the dismantling of any art exhibit.
4. Be responsible for all maintenance required to ensure that the installation is durable enough to last for the duration of the Ephemeral Art exhibit.
5. Credit RAAC and its co-sponsors in all public statements regarding their Ephemeral Art installation.
6. Participate in media efforts sponsored or initiated by RAAC related to the Ephemeral Art Program.

The deadline for artist applications for the spring exhibit is May 26, 2023.

If my ephemeral art proposal is selected, I understand that I will be required to sign the following statement:

As a participating artist in the spring phase of the RAAC Ephemeral Art Program, I understand that my art installation must be fully in place by no later than [date]. I will ensure that it remains in place, including the performance of any required maintenance as necessary, through [date] and will remove it within 10 business days following that date. I agree to indemnify and hold harmless RAAC, RCRFA, and RLEP for any injury or damage related to the installation, maintenance, and/or removal of my art installation, and I agree to restore the property as closely as possible to its condition prior to my art installation upon its removal. I further agree to be available for photographs, interviews, and other media efforts if requested by RAAC in order to promote the Ephemeral Art Program to the community, and to credit RAAC and co-sponsors RCRFA and RLEP in any public statements regarding my art installation specifically or the Ephemeral Art Program in general.

Name:                                 Date:

This is an aerial view of the Rappahannock County Park where the projects will be installed.

© 2023 Rappahannock Association for Arts and Community.
The images, artwork, and contents of this website may not be copied or collected for personal or
professional use without the prior written permission of the Rappahannock Association for Arts and Community.