Jewish Museum of Maryland

Request for Proposal – Exhibit Design

Project:Just Married! Wedding Stories from Jewish Maryland

An exhibition in the Feldman Gallery, Jewish Museum of Maryland

June 18 – September 4, 2017

Contact:Joanna Church

Collections Manager

443-873-5176

Deadline:July 15, 2016

Summary and Background

The Jewish Museum of Maryland, Inc. (JMM) is currently accepting proposals for exhibit design.

On June 18th, 2017, the JMM will open Just Married! Wedding Stories from Jewish Maryland, an original exhibition that will explore the many different ways our community has expressed Jewish identity through the wedding ceremony, from the 19th century through today.

The purpose of this Request for Proposal (RFP) is to solicit proposals from various candidates, conduct a fair and extensive evaluation based on criteria listed herein, and select the candidate whose quality and value best represent the Museum.

The Jewish Museum of Maryland, at 15 Lloyd Street, Baltimore, MD, 21202 is America’s leading museum of regional Jewish history, culture and community, located in downtown Baltimore. At the JMM, visitors can uncover the roots of Jewish history in changing exhibitions and landmark historic sites – the Lloyd Street Synagogue, built in 1845, now the nation’s third oldest standing synagogue, and B’nai Israel Synagogue, built in 1876 and home to a vibrant congregation. The JMM is an agency of The Associated: Jewish Community Federation of Baltimore.

For more on our mission and vision, and to see examples of our exhibits and programs, please visit our website at

Proposal Guidelines

This Request for Proposal represents the requirements for an open and competitive process.

Please return your proposal by close of business on July 15, 2016. Proposals will be reviewed and the project will be awarded August 1, 2016.

Please itemize all costs to include an explanation of all fees and costs.

Contract terms and conditions will be negotiated upon selection of the winning bidder for this RFP.

Project Purpose and Description

This exhibition is part of our ongoing schedule of temporary exhibits, making use of the Feldman Gallery in our main museum. The exhibit will be open to all JMM visitors, including school and camp groups.Exhibit-based educational programs are designed to meet state social studies standards and Common Core learning objectives. JMM exhibits follow ADA guidelines for accessibility.

Just Married! will be more than simply a series of wedding gowns, or a recreation of a ‘typical’ Jewish wedding. Instead, we plan to use many different elements – both familiar and unfamiliar, expected and unexpected – to tell individual stories that embrace the wide variety of weddings experienced by Jewish Marylanders over the past 200+ years. The JMM collections include a large number of artifacts, images, documents, and first-person accountsrelating to Maryland weddings.We will make use of ketubahs, photo albums, invitations, gifts, speeches, chuppahs, souvenirs, memoirs, oral histories, congregational records, store catalogs, and more. That being said, we do plan to include as many examples of textiles (wedding dresses and other attire) as we can in the 1,835 square foot gallery.

In addition to material from our own collection, we will be soliciting donations and loans from the statewide Jewish community. Our goal is to encompass wedding stories from the distant past through the present day, and to include a wide variety of denominations, cultural and ethnic backgrounds, orientations, and lifestyles.

Project Scope

The scope of this project includes the overall aesthetic of the exhibition, graphic design, and space planning.

The JMM will provide the exhibit content, including artifacts, images, written and audio quotes, hands-on activities and interactive elements, and interpretive text. The winning bidder will provide:

  • gallery floorplan, incorporating wall cases, floor cases, and display platforms as necessary
  • colors, fonts, and graphic elements to be used in exhibit panels, titles, website, brochures, and other related material
  • design of exhibit panels (with text and images provided by JMM) in a printer-ready format

The proposal should assume collaboration with the JMM’s Collections Manager and Project Manager, including submission of drafts for comment as noted on the Project Timeline, as well as consultation with the JMM fabrication team.

The JMM fabrication team will construct the necessary display furniture, prep the gallery, and work with JMM staff on installation; we expect the designer to be available for consultation during the creation of shop drawings, and the installation process.

Request for Proposal and Project Timeline

  • All proposals in response to this RFP are due no later than 5pm EST July 15, 2016.
  • Evaluation of proposals will be conducted from July 18 through July 29, 2016.
  • If additional information or discussion is needed with any bidders during this window, the bidder(s) will be notified.
  • All bidders will be notified of the results of the selection process no later than August 1, 2016.
  • Upon notification, the contract negotiation with the winning bidder will begin immediately. Contract negotiations will be completed by August 8, 2016.

Project Timeline:

On or about August 15, 2016: First meeting with JMM staff and winning bidder

August 19-September 2, 2016: Designer and JMM staff back and forth on floor plan (specific

dates for draft submissions to be determined as needed)

September 9, 2016: Completion of preliminary/working floorplan

October 31, 2016: Script finalized (by JMM) and provided to designer

February 20, 2017: Artifact list finalized (by JMM) and provided to designer

February 28, 2017: First draft of panel designs submitted by designer

April 14, 2017: Panel designs are finalized and ready to send to printer

Budget

This is a $75,000 project, and our allotted design budget is between $8,000 and $10,000. Please provide a total project estimate for the scope, as described in this document.

Bidder Qualifications

The winning bidder will:

  • demonstratea history of quality graphic design projects, especially those integrating text and images. To that end:
  • Please provide at least three samples of previous work that you believe relevant to the scope of this project.
  • Please provide contact information for 2-3 references, preferably clients with whom you’ve worked.
  • demonstrate an ability to develop a creative exhibit plan that incorporates the needs of both the objects and the visitors.
  • take feedback well, and be willing to work with JMM staff to incorporate all the necessary elementsand to ensure project stays within budget.

Ability to meet the proposed timeline is critical.

Proposal Evaluation Criteria

The Jewish Museum of Maryland will evaluate all proposals based on the following criteria. To ensure consideration for this Request for Proposal, your proposal should be complete and include all of the following criteria:

Experience: Bidders will be evaluated on their experience as it pertains to the scope of this project

Previous work: Bidders will be evaluated on the quality and aesthetic merits displayed in examples of their past work as well as client testimonials and references

Value and cost: Bidders will be evaluated on the cost of their proposal based on the work to be performed in accordance with the scope of this project

Please email your complete proposal, including samples, with the subject line “Exhibit Design RFP” to Joanna Church, Collections Manager at . Questions should also be directed, preferably via email, to Ms. Church.