Margaret of New Orelans - Graphic Design Services

Closing date: Midnight Sunday 29th September 2024

Leitrim County Council, as commissioning agent, in partnership the Margaret of New Orleans Community Group invites submissions from Graphic Designers to work with commissioners and creative team developing the story of Margaret Haughery’s life for a children audience.

Introduction

To celebrate the life of Margaret of New Orleans and the strong connections between Leitrim and New Orleans, Leitrim County Council invites applications from graphic designers to work with the author/illustrator, editor and commissioner team on the design of a new book for children that tells the story of ‘Margaret of New Orleans’. This will be an illustrated book aimed at children aged 5-7 in the style of historical fiction or historical biography. The commissioned work will be published by Leitrim County Council.

Background

The true story of a woman who fought tirelessly for the poor in New Orleans. Margaret Haughery was born in 1813 in Leitrim before emigrating to America with her family when she was 5 years old. Personal tragedies experienced both as a child and later as a parent shaped her life-long devotion to serving New Orleans’ poor. By the age of 40, she owned 50 cows and with the Sisters of Charity she ran two orphanages, caring for children of every race and religion. In 1860 she opened a bakery and later during the American Civil War she opened a soup kitchen to feed the swelling ranks of the city’s poor. When she died in 1882 the New Orleans Stock Exchange was suspended, and she was given a state funeral. Shortly afterwards the citizens of New Orleans commissioned a statue in her likeness, making her one of the first women in the United States to have a statue erected in her honour.

Budget

The maximum budget for Graphic Design of the book is €XXXX

Process

Once the writer/illustrator team are selected, Leitrim County Council will, following consultation with the writer/illustrator team, procure editing and design services for the project. It is anticipated that there will be a minimum of three scheduled in-person meetings with Leitrim County Council and the Margaret of New Orleans Community Group. These meetings will take place in County Leitrim. Ongoing communication with writer/illustrator team and with the appointed editing and design services with be facilitated by Leitrim County Council as necessary and can take place remotely.

The Artists

Author and illustrator Jon Berkeley has been commissioned to write and illustrate the story of Margaret Haughery in a book for young readers. Jon is a leading Irish illustrator, author and caricaturist. He was born in Dublin, but a lifelong inability to sit still led him to live and work in Hong Kong, Sydney, and London before settling in Barcelona. Jon has illustrated over 150 covers for publications such as The Economist, Newsweek, The New Statesman, American Interest, and the Irish Independent and his incisive caricatures have been regular features in the Sunday Times, Hot Press and the Irish Independent, and have appeared in the LA Times, Insight, Radio Times, Time Out, GQ, The Irish Times, The Observer and Mojo among many others. He is the author of the Wednesday Tales trilogy, which has been published in over a dozen languages, and The Hidden Boy, both from Harper Collins. His novel The Palace of Laughter was shortlisted for the Bisto Book Award. Jon is supported in the project by editor Paula Elmore who has extensive experience in the book publishing industry, including a decade-long role as an editor at The Collins Press.

The Product

At the end of the project, the creative team will have produced finished print-ready files for publishing, including the book cover and all cover text. Leitrim County Council reserves the right to the work. All profits arising from the project will be reinvested in future Margaret of New Orleans projects. The content of the book is as follows:

Tender Process

Process

This is a single stage open tender process. Applications will be on-line only through this link -

https://forms.leitrimcoco.ie/form-77046/mono-graphic-design-services

Requirements

• Biographies/CV.
• Maximum of six examples of most relevant previous work.
• Full lump sum cost for design service (inclusive of VAT and all other costs and charges).

Selection

The assessment criteria are as follows -

Schedule

The successful tenderer will commence work with the creative team from 1st October, with an expected completion date of31st December 2024 (subject to agreement).

Conditions

• The selection panel, whose decision is final, has the right to clarify any issue which may arise in the course of selection.
• The commissioners reserve the right not to award the tender and, in this instance, reserve the right to pursue other selection processes.
• Leitrim County Council will issue the tenderer with a Contract for Services.
• The appointed designer will be required to have any relevant insurance deemed necessary.
• The appointed designer will have to supply an up-to-date tax clearance certificate prior to signing of contract and for the duration of the commission.
• Non-resident artists from EU and non-EU countries must be aware of any tax or VAT implications arising from the commission and ensure any costs arising from this are included in their budget.
• Leitrim County Council is subject to the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act (FOI) 1997, 2003. If you consider that any of the information supplied by you is either commercially sensitive or confidential in nature, this should be highlighted and the reasons for the sensitivity specified. In such cases, the relevant material will, in response to the FOI request, be examined in the light of the exemptions provided for in the Acts.

Queries

If you have any questions in relation to the commission, please contact:

Sarah Duffy, Leitrim County Council on (071) 96 20005 or sarahduffy@leitrimcoco.ie