Bison calf sculpture will join adult artwork at Tourism Moose Jaw site

MOOSE JAW — City hall’s public art committee will acquire a metal baby bison sculpture after initially turning down the offer, after the artist decided to donate the artwork instead of seeking payment for it.

Metal artist Bill Keen spoke to the public art committee in May about a bison calf he created to accompany his adult-sized creation and his hope that the city would purchase the second artwork.

He told the committee that he wanted $4,500 for the sculpture, which included $3,600 for the materials and $900 to install it beside the adult bison sculpture — Billy Blaze Bison — at the Tourism Moose Jaw office.

However, the committee voted to consider purchasing the bison calf in the fall, if there was money left in its budget.

During its June meeting, though, the committee decided to acquire the metal sculpture after Keen said in an email that he would gift the entire cost of the bison calf materials and installation fees to the City of Moose Jaw. His desire, though, was for permission to install the sculpture adjacent to Billy Blaze Bison quickly.

“It would certainly be a nice addition for this year’s tourism season,” he wrote, while acknowledging that he would have to complete the necessary paperwork like he did for his first bison metalwork.

He also asked that, in return for donating the calf sculpture and installation costs to the city, the municipality consider giving him an income tax receipt for the artwork.

The public art committee then passed a detailed recommendation agreeing to the installation of Keen’s metal bison calf sculpture at the Tourism Moose Jaw site.

Furthermore, it asked city council to approve the artist’s request for a charitable donation receipt for the non-cash donation of the fabricated and installed artwork, if he provided “satisfactory documentation” to substantiate the fair market value of the donation, as the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) requires.

Moreover, if city hall lacks the internal capacity to determine the donated artwork’s fair market value, it would require Keen to obtain and submit an independent appraisal to verify the value if he requested a receipt that was more than the actual cost of the materials, excluding labour.

Alternatively, if Keen requested a receipt for the material costs only and provided an itemized proof of costs that he incurred, excluding labour, the city would issue a charitable receipt of the same amount without requiring the appraisal.

Meanwhile, the committee asked council to authorize city administration to facilitate the direct purchase and donation exchange, if required, to ensure compliance with CRA rules and to mitigate the risk of “valuation ambiguity,” with all transactions resulting in a net-zero budget effect.

The committee also wanted administration to amend the July 17, 2023, agreement with Keen that saw the purchase and installation of the adult metal bison sculpture to include the addition of the bison calf artwork. Once that occurred, the mayor and city clerk would sign the agreement for the city.

The public art committee sent the recommendation to city council, which approved it during its July 14 regular meeting.

The next regular council meeting is Monday, July 28.