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City of Vancouver asks artists for their best public art ideas

The city is most interested in proposals that reflect on the complexities of place, engage cultural practices, and engender critical dialogue
Artists share meaning behind Vancouver Mural Festival artwork_7
Mural by Linsey Levendall.

The City of Vancouver is asking the public for artist-initiated projects in all scales, scopes, and media, including the performative and temporary.

The call is open to both new and emerging artists, and initial applications only require a short resume with images of previous work.

With that being said, the city is most interested in proposals that reflect on the complexities of place and publics, engage cultural practices, and engender critical dialogue. In addition, artists are asked to propose sites of interest for their project. Potential locations for site-specific works on city-owned properties could include plazas, greenways, community centres, libraries, and civic infrastructure.

The Artist-Initiated Call is open to all creatives, working individually or in collaboration. Artists and cultural practitioners of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations are especially encouraged to apply.

For a complete list of previously commissioned projects, click here.

Artist-Initiated Projects

For the purposes of this call, the definition of an artist is a regular practitioner who:

  • has completed basic academic training in art or an apprenticeship with an
  • accomplished practitioner in the field, or
  • maintains an artistic practice and has publicly shared an independent body of
  • their work for at least two years, or
  • is recognized as an artist by peers within their community

While you don’t have to be a Vancouver resident to apply, you must have significant experience with and relationship to the city.

All proposals must be submitted via the online application form. Submission deadline is at Thursday, June 6 at 3 pm.