RFP: Heart of Kensington: Reclaimed Materials Public Art
Mural Arts Philadelphia, the nation’s largest public art program, is seeking an artist to oversee a reclaimed materials/found objects project along Indiana Avenue in the Kensington neighborhood. The artist will be responsible for creating site-responsive objects, utilizing reclaimed materials/found objects obtained around the area. The designs should be informed through engagement with the public and in partnership with Impact Services, a community action organization mobilizing people and resources to create connected, resilient, thriving communities. The artist will also be responsible for holding at least four art workshops that offer insight into the process or techniques used to design/create the objects. This project seeks to improve the visual character and/or provide additional community resources for the neighborhood.
The budget for this project is $20,000, which includes an $8,000 fee for the selected artist. The remainder of the budget will go toward supplies and fabrication costs. The project will consist of phases including (1) community engagement during early summer 2023; (2) planning and approval of designs during mid-summer 2023; and (3) fabrication and installation of the designs during fall 2023.
We are seeking an artist who has the requisite community engagement, design, fabrication and installation skills to implement placemaking features and/or permanent sculptural objects. Anyone interested in the project is encouraged to contact Paige Phillips at paige.phillips@muralarts.org. Applications are due by Friday, June 2nd and materials should be submitted through this link. We encourage those with connections to Kensington to apply.
Mural for the Horwitz-Wasserman Holocaust Memorial Plaza
A project facilitated by Mural Arts Philadelphia
In collaboration with the Philadelphia Holocaust Remembrance Foundation
Issued: May 2, 2023
Letters of Interest Due: June 30, 2023
For more information: mural@philaholocaustmemorial.org
Mural Arts Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Holocaust Remembrance Foundation (PHRF) are collaborating to create a new artwork that will be installed on a wall adjacent to the Horwitz- Wasserman Holocaust Memorial Plaza, at 16th and Arch Streets in Center City Philadelphia. The project will continue the decades-long effort to remember and reflect on the Holocaust in Philadelphia, first through a memorial sculpture, then through the creation of a plaza with interpretive features, and now through the creation of a new artwork on the wall that provides a backdrop for the Memorial Plaza.
This is an extraordinary opportunity for an artist to work on a project of profound significance in one of Philadelphia’s most visible civic locations. The artwork has the opportunity to link the storytelling, interpretation and commemoration that occur at the Plaza now with ongoing global narratives of freedom and resistance, and to engage with future generations who did not experience the Holocaust directly but will carry the stories forward in their own ways.
Mural Arts is seeking an artist who is highly accomplished in creating two-dimensional public art, has experience working with topics of deep significance and complexity in public dialogue and public space, and has an emotional connection to the Holocaust through a family, community or cultural connection. The artist’s experience, their artistic practice and their approach to this project should be clearly aligned with the vision of this project.
Artist letters of interest are due June 30, 2023. Qualifying artists will be identified based on the letters of interest; qualifying artists will be asked to submit a portfolio and a short list will be interviewed. The selection is expected be announced by September, 2023. Anticipated completion of the project is a year after that.
Requests for Qualifications and professional development opportunities for artists will be listed on this page.
Interested in joining our staff? Check our Careers page for Mural Arts Philadelphia staff positions.