The City of Ann Arbor Parks and Recreation Services Area is seeking to commission artists or artist teams to design two unique public artwork projects:
PROJECT ONE:
Gallup Park Pedestrian and Vehicle Bridge
PROJECT TWO:
Barton-Bandemer Park Pedestrian Tunnel
PROJECT ONE
Public Art Project for the City of Ann Arbor
Gallup Park Pedestrian and Vehicle Bridge
BUDGET:
$40,000
ELIGIBILITY:
Open to artists or artist teams residing in the United States of America
DEADLINE:
June 23, 2024 at 11:59pm EST
OPPORTUNITY
The City of Ann Arbor Parks and Recreation Services Area is seeking to commission an artist or artist team to design a unique public artwork for the new Gallup Park Pedestrian and Vehicle Bridge Project and/or adjacent landscape in Ann Arbor, MI. The City is open to proposals for different art mediums, including but not limited to sculpture, installation, mosaic, and murals. The community desires a work that positively reflects the themes of nature or the Huron River and integrates well into the park and trail’s natural setting.
The City has identified the area surrounding the new bridge or the bridge itself as the site for public art. Construction on the new bridge is underway and anticipated to be completed by the late summer or early fall of 2024.
PROJECT BACKGROUND
Gallup Park is a 69-acre park and is one of Ann Arbor’s most popular recreation areas. It is located along the Huron River with scenic walkways that traverse small islands with pedestrian bridges that form a loop. It also includes a section of the county-wide Border-to-Border Trail that provides both recreation and non-motorized transportation. The community and visitors use this park for leisure, exercise, biking, boating, and play.
The Gallup Park Pedestrian and Vehicle Bridge will replace an existing wooden bridge with a new concrete structure that also includes natural materials such as cobblestone and wood. It will maintain a single-vehicle lane but double the sidewalk space on both sides. The new bridge will also feature bank stabilization around each abutment in the form of large stepped stones/boulders. This project also includes improvements to the park road approaches, Border to Border Trail crossing, and park pathways.
ELIGIBILITY
The City is seeking artists or artist teams who can commit to working in Ann Arbor as necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of this project. Any artist or artist team residing in the United States can apply.
TIMELINE
All dates except the submission deadline are approximate, subject to change, and are presented for guidance only.
- Call Submission Deadline: June 23, 2024 at 11:59pm EST
- 3 Semi-finalists Selected: Mid-July, 2024: **UPDATE** SEMI-FINALISTS AND ALL ARTISTS WILL BE NOTIFIED MID-AUGUST 2024
- Semi-finalists Proposals Due and Interviews coordinated: Mid-August, 2024: **UPDATE**: MID-SEPTEMBER 2024
- Finalist Awarded: September 2024
- Project Completion and Installation: May 2025
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS
- Written Proposal Statement and Visual Support
- CV/Resume
- 3 References
- Artist Bio
- 5-10 Past Work Images. Videos are permitted.
HOW TO APPLY:
FOR QUESTIONS:
This Call-for-Art is managed in collaboration with the City of Ann Arbor by the A2AC’s Art in Public Program. Please direct your questions to:
artinpublic@annarborartcenter.org or call 734-926-4122
PROJECT TWO
Public Art Project for the City of Ann Arbor
Barton-Bandemer Park Pedestrian Tunnel
BUDGET:
$8,500
ELIGIBILITY:
Open to artists or artist teams residing in the United States of America
DEADLINE:
June 23, 2024 at 11:59pm
EST
OPPORTUNITY
The City of Ann Arbor Parks and Recreation Services Area is seeking to commission an artist or artist team to design a unique public artwork for the new Barton-Bandemer Park Pedestrian Tunnel Project in Ann Arbor, MI. The concrete tunnel will house metal panels, mounted several inches off each wall, to hide lighting fixtures that will backlight the metal panels and provide ambient uplighting to the tunnel interior. The selected artist will design a 2D image to be laser cut out from the metal panels. The community desires a work that positively reflects the themes of nature or the Huron River and integrates well into the park and trail’s natural setting.
Construction on the new tunnel is anticipated to begin in Spring of 2025 and be completed in Summer of 2025.
PROJECT BACKGROUND
The Barton-Bandemer Park Pedestrian Tunnel project will be a newly constructed pedestrian underpass below the Amtrak railroad to allow people to safely cross between Bandemer Park and the Barton Nature Area on Ann Arbor’s northwest side. This construction continues the growing link along 38 miles of the regional Border to Border Trail (B2B Trail) through Washtenaw County, which connects parks along the Huron River from the VanBuren Township (Wayne County) to Pickney and Stockbridge, MI (Livingston County). This tunnel will be a gateway along the B2B Trail into and out of Ann Arbor’s west side.
The tunnel, constructed of fifteen concrete box culvert segments, is 16’ wide, 10’ tall, and 60’ long. The exterior facing wing walls will have a split-faced stone façade. Pedestrians and cyclists will approach the tunnel on a sloped, descending concrete pathway below the surrounding grades, which will be restored with native plants that reflect the character of the park. Metal panels (each measuring 4’ wide x 5’ tall) will be attached to each side of the tunnel’s interior to create a continuous surface (approximately 56’ in length per side). Each panel will sit on top of a 12” concrete curb, and will be offset from the concrete wall approximately 5-6”. This gap between the concrete wall and the metal panels will allow lighting to be mounted in two locations: (1) on top of the 12” concrete curb to illuminate the panels from behind, and (2) just below the top of the panels to uplight the tunnel interior. Pole-mounted pedestrian lights will also be included leading up to the tunnel from either side.
The City’s tunnel contractor will procure and install the panels and lighting under the primary construction contract. This call seeks to select an artist to develop the design for the metal panels themselves and then to work with a pre-identified fabricator to fine-tune the design for production. Artists do not need to know metal fabrication techniques or how to operate metal machining equipment.
Download Project Images and Construction Plans
ELIGIBILITY
The City is seeking an artist or artist team who can commit to working remotely and/or in Ann Arbor as necessary to fulfill the responsibilities of this project. Any artist or artist team residing in the United States can apply.
TIMELINE
All dates except the submission deadline are approximate, subject to change, and are presented for guidance only.
- Call Submission Deadline: June 23, 2024 at 11:59 pm EST
- 3 Semi-finalists Selected: Mid-July, 2024: **UPDATE** SEMI-FINALISTS AND ALL ARTISTS WILL BE NOTIFIED MID-AUGUST 2024
- Semi-finalists Proposals Due and Interviews coordinated: Mid August, 2024: **UPDATE**: MID-SEPTEMBER 2024
- Finalist Awarded: September 2024
- Final Design Approval: December 2024
- Fabrication Completed and Installation: Summer 2025
APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS
- Written Proposal Statement
- Visual Support, including overall sketches and a detail sketch of a sample panel
- CV/Resume
- 3 References
- Artist Bio
- 5-10 Past Work Images. Videos are permitted.
HOW TO APPLY
FOR QUESTIONS:
This Call-for-Art is managed in collaboration with the City of Ann Arbor by the A2AC’s Art in Public Program. Please direct your questions to:
artinpublic@annarborartcenter.org or call 734-926-4122
PRESS
ANN ARBOR LOOKING FOR ARTISTS FOR NEW PEDESTRIAN TUNNEL AND PARK BRIDGE
ANN ARBOR, Mich. – Local artists are needed to help beautify the new bridge at Gallup Park and the new pedestrian tunnel connecting Bandemer Park and Barton Nature Area.
-All About Ann Arbor, May 28, 2024