Artist Opportunities: Request for Mural Proposals

The Colored Conventions Project is proud to announce its partnership with the City of Philadelphia Mural Arts Program, the nation’s largest public art program, dedicated to the belief that art ignites change. Together we are seeking proposals for the first in a series of murals to be dedicated to the rich history of the Colored Conventions Movement which was founded in Philadelphia. The project will run approximately from the beginning of June until late summer, and the artist fee will be $10,000. This is a two-phase selection process, in which several artists will be short-listed and then asked to prepare a concept, and the selection will be based on both qualifications and concepts. The deadline for applications is Friday, April 2nd. If you have questions or concerns, please contact Maya Thomas, Project Manager Community Murals, Mural Arts Philadelphia: maya.thomas@muralarts.org.

RFQ Overview

Download RFQ for full details.

Project Goals

• Establish a vibrant work of public art inspired by the continuity of the past, present and future of narratives of Black activists, political thought leaders and free and enslaved people of color in the city of Philadelphia.
• Effectively connect The Colored Conventions Movement to the City of Philadelphia’s long history of Black organizing movements through art and community engagement that creates critical discourse.
• Support the voices of Black artists, activists, business owners and scholars.
• Celebrate the innovation of digital engagement and scholarly research to uplift and tell untold narratives of Black history and life.

Artist Scope of Work

The artist will be expected to work throughout this project with a task force composed of local residents, the Colored Conventions Project team, local government representatives, Mural Arts Philadelphia staff, and selected task force members who are experts in the historical context of this project. Though a specific wall has not been selected for this project yet, the wall is expected to be in the area of the historic Wesley AME Church located at 1500 Lombard Street and site of one of the first Colored Convention’s meeting.

Mural Design

The artist will be expected to complete a mural design concept from April – July 2021.

Engagement and Education

The artist will be responsible to schedule exploratory sessions to understand the historical context of the Colored Conventions in Philadelphia and to work with a select number of task force members for conceptual input that will help form the overall conceptual design of the mural. The artist will be expected to work with the task force to plan and implement a community outreach plan with the public at large, under strict Covid-19 guidelines and regulations.

Project Detailed Schedule

• March 22nd: Deadline to submit any questions about the project
• Monday, March 29th @ 6pm EST: Artist Information Session
  • Artists who apply are strongly encouraged to attend this event and RSVP by Thursday, March 25th with this link. *Note: If you have limited internet access an information sheet can be provided upon request. Those who register will automatically receive the informational sheet.
• Friday, April 2nd @ 5 pm EST: RFQ submissions are due
• The week of April 5th: Task Force meets to select a shortlist
• Week of April 13th: Selected artists will have an opportunity for dialogue with the task force to help artists shape design proposals and engagement plans
• Tuesday, April 27th: Scheduled Task Force meeting
• Monday, May 3rd: Shortlisted artists present design proposals and engagement plans with preliminary feedback from the task force
• Tuesday, May 27th: Task Force selects finalists
• Week of July 12th: Selected artist/ team completes the design review process
• October: Painting complete
• Fall: Dedication/Press conference

Submission Instructions

Submissions will be accepted electronically by email, Dropbox or WeTransfer, please submit your application materials in one folder file attachment and send to the following:

Mural Arts will reply with an acknowledgement of all submissions it receives.

Partners

Mural Arts Philadelphia is the nation’s largest public art program, dedicated to the belief that art ignites change. For 30 years, Mural Arts has united artists and communities through a collaborative process, rooted in the traditions of mural-making, to create art that transforms public spaces and individual lives. Mural Arts engages communities in nearly 100 public art projects each year and maintains its growing collection through a restoration initiative. Core Mural Arts programs such as Art Education, Restorative Justice, and Porch Light yield unique, project-based learning opportunities for thousands of youth and adults. In recent years, Mural Arts has evolved into a multi-disciplinary arts organization exploring the intersection of muralism, public art and contemporary art. In addition, Mural Arts has collaborated with an increasing range of community, civic, cultural and development organizations to realize projects that have expanded the city’s public art portfolio in new and exciting ways. Increasingly, Mural Arts has assisted in private organizations in commissioning artworks that engage the communities where they are working. For more information: www.muralarts.org

The Colored Conventions Project documents nineteenth-century Black collective organizing and highlights the many leaders and places involved in the convention movement, bringing them to digital life for new generations of researchers, students, and community scholars. The award-winning project has more than quadrupled the number of state and national records that document the movement, making them fully searchable and freely accessible for the very first time. CCP’s curriculum and interactive exhibits have involved thousands of college and high school students and teachers across North America. CCP has been featured in outlets such as the New York Times and Forbes magazine. It was selected as a NEH Essential Project alongside the Dead Sea Scrolls, George Washington Papers, the Transatlantic Slave Trade Database, and Ken Burns’s Civil War. It has won grant support from the NEH, the Mellon Foundation and the Council on Library and Information Resources. CCP’s principles seek to mirror the collective work and partnerships used by the conventions themselves. Founded at the University of Delaware, it is now housed at Penn State University’s Center for Black Digital Research, or #DigBlk, alongside DouglassDay.org and the soon-to-be launched early Black Women’s Organizing Archive. For more information visit ColoredConventions.org or consult The Colored Conventions Movement: Black Organizing in the Nineteenth Century edited by the project’s co-directors.