The City of Lowell, through the Office of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (CASE), invites artists or a group of artists working together to submit qualifications to be considered for a single commission. The project will consist of creating a three-dimensional temporary artwork on the extension of Lowell’s River Walk.
As stated in their General Information section, Lowell wants to recognize the importance of their waterways in its development as a city. “CASE is looking to commission artist(s) to create a temporary public art project that creatively engages the cultural, social, economic, and/or environmental importance of Lowell’s connection to and relationship with our waterways.”
The River Walk extension is located in downtown Lowell and will run behind the Massachusetts Mills complex between Bridge and Brown Streets. You can contact CASE directly to schedule a visit to see the site.
The area will be prepped by the city, so no worries about having to wash and prep before installing your art. The city will also install any temporary infrastructure needed to display the three-dimensional element. At the end of the display period, CASE will work with the artist to make a plan for deinstallation and rights for future use.
Most importantly, the artist(s) selected for this will receive a budget of $10,000 which includes labor and materials. Of course, there are some guidelines to this project:
- The project concept must creatively engage the cultural, social, economic, and environmental importance of Lowell’s connection to and our waterways through public art-making.
- Be inclusive and welcoming to diverse audiences that engage with this space.
- Appropriate for viewers of all ages.
- Have a three-dimensional element, but may be of any artistic medium.
- While it is only optional, it would be wonderful to engage the community in the art-making process. Lowell envisions several community engagement activities to occur around the installation that is planned May 6 to September 30, 2023
- The artwork cannot feature any commercial, political, or religious content.
- It can also not impede the use of the River Walk in any way. This project must comply with the American with Disabilities Act guidelines.
Interested in submitting your qualifications?
Proposals are due by September 5, 2022 at 11:59 pm. The applications must contain the artist name and contact information including phone number, email, and mailing address.
Are you submitting on behalf of a team? The application should include a brief description of the team and identify who the main point person for the team will be.
To learn more about the applications themselves, what’s required, and where to submit them please visit likelowell.com/riverwalkart.
