Chelsea Aquatic Facility Public Art Commission

The City of El Paso Public Art Program seeks to commission a professional artist or artist team to design, fabricate, and install site-specific artwork at the Chelsea Aquatic Facility located at 900 Radford St in El Paso, TX, adjacent to Liz Morayma Gonzalez Park near the intersection of Montana and Radford.

The Chelsea Aquatic Facility will be reconstructed in a modern water park format on a 1.2-acre parcel and will include a 5,000 to 6,000 sq. ft. building with offices, restrooms, lifeguard facilities, and concession areas; a four-lane lap pool; climbing wall; lazy river; zero-depth water play area; tot splash area; two water slides; sunning decks and shade areas; parking; and associated equipment, decking, fencing, and landscaping. The selected artist will work collaboratively with the design team to develop the best approach for public art at the site.

The total project budget is $200,000 to include design, fabrication, and installation. The budget is all-inclusive and must cover design fees, travel expenses, all materials and fabrication costs, insurance, engineering expenses, shipping and transportation to the site, and installation. Artists must provide an artist statement, previous work examples, resume, and letter of interest. An Artist Selection Panel will review applications and select 3-5 finalists to prepare proposals. Selection criteria include experience creating functional/interactive public artworks in collaboration with public entities, experience with large outdoor sculptures, and review of resume, letter of interest, and previous successful public art projects. Work sample requirements: minimum 1 image, maximum 6 images; minimum 0 audio files, maximum 6; minimum 0 videos, maximum 1; total samples minimum 1, maximum 6.