When you imagine public art – particularly the kind that cities invest in – it’s usually sculpture, and it’s often large. The pieces require the work of engineers in addition to the artists who are leading the creative process.
Projects that involved can seem daunting for those artists who have never turned their hand at that kind of work. Add to that the technical expertise that’s required to submit for a government art project, and you can end up with a small pool of applicants. And that’s entirely the opposite of what the city of Phoenix Office of Arts & Culture wants to see.
The Office of Arts and Culture is making a special push to get word out about its latest call for artists. Staff is gearing up for a set of projects that will add perforated steel screens to several bus shelters in south-central Phoenix. And though metalwork will be involved, it’s the kind of project that any artist who works in two dimensions – drawing, painting, even weaving – can apply for. According to Elizabeth Grajales, the senior public art project manager overseeing the submissions process, it’s the perfect introductory opportunity for someone who can develop beautiful, engaging designs that also accommodate a bus shelter’s primary function – to provide seating and shade to waiting transit passengers.
“In thinking through what we needed from artists, in the end, we settled on the necessity of high-caliber design. It’s that creative spark that we can’t reproduce,” noted Grajales. “We can help an artist navigate fabrication, we can help an artist work with vendors, but we depend on the artists for the inspiration that can add a few moments of magic to someone’s daily experience.”
Applications for the RFP can be submitted online, and anyone who is interested in submitting should read the call to artists for more information. Applications are due by Feb. 21, 2020 at 11:59 p.m. Arizona time.
Submit an application online at callforentry.org.
Applicants with questions can contact Procurement Officer Romeo Rabusa at romeo.rabusa@phoenix.gov.
Photo caption: A public art bus shelter at 16th Street and Bethany Home Road, by artist Maria Salenger.
