City of Bloomington Seeks Bicentennial Gateway Public Art - Indy Arts Council

Opportunities Public Art City of Bloomington Seeks Bicentennial Gateway Public Art Deadline: 12/04/2026 City of Bloomington Seeks Bicentennial Gateway Public Art City of Bloomington Parks and Recreation, and the Economic and Sustainable Development Departments, request qualifications from professional artists or artist teams to create a signature public artwork that celebrates the vibrancy, diversity, resilience, creativity, rich history, and many other strengths of our beloved city, Bloomington, Indiana. Artists or artist teams will design, fabricate, and install permanent public artwork for the second phase of the city’s Bicentennial Gateway project. The artwork should inspire excitement and anticipation in visitors entering our community and stir a sense of pride and belonging in our residents. It might be abstract or representational. Review the full Request for Qualifications solicitation here. Eligibility: Open to all professional artists/artist teams aged 18 and older residing in Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, and Illinois. Must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or otherwise lawfully authorized to reside/work in the United States. Exclusions: Enrolled full-time degree/certificate-seeking students, City of Bloomington selection committee members or their immediate families, and artists who have held an active public art installation commission within the City of Bloomington during the six months preceding the application deadline are not eligible to apply. Total Commission Budget: $125,000 The total budget includes all artist fees, design development, structural drawings/renderings, engineering, materials, fabrication, transportation, installation, lighting, travel, insurance, and concrete foundation site prep, if needed etc. *The City of Bloomington can offer limited negotiated site prep support outside of its stated budget. Finalist Proposal Honorarium: $1500 5 semi-finalists (artists/teams) will be invited to prepare site-specific design proposals and will receive a paid honorarium of $1500 upon formal proposal presentation. Timeline RFQ Release Date: October 16th RFQ Submission Deadline: December 4th Selection Committee Qualification Review: January 4th- February 5th Notification of Finalists: Week of February 8th Finalist Site Visits: February-April Proposal Due: April 9th Finalist Presentations: April 12- April 23rd Artist Notification: May 7th, 2027 Fabrications & Installation: Summer/ Fall 2027 How to Apply All materials should be submitted electronically through the application portal by December 4th, 2026. Incomplete submissions or hard-copy submissions will not be reviewed. QUESTIONS? Contact Paige Sharp, Assistant Director of the Arts ([email protected]). Learn more here Share