Chicago Joint Public Safety Training Campus Public Art Commission

The Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) invites professional artists and artist teams with a demonstrated history of completing complex, permanent, large-scale, outdoor public art projects to submit their qualifications for a $500,000 exterior public art commission at the Joint Public Safety Training Campus (JPSTC), located at 4443 W. Chicago Avenue in West Garfield Park. This project is funded by the Percent for Art Ordinance and the City of Chicago's Capital Plan.

The JPSTC site is a 32-acre parcel formerly used as a railroad yard, bounded by Chicago Avenue on the north, Kilbourn Avenue to the west, private industrial property to the south, and Kolin Avenue to the east. The public art commission locations are the public entry plaza (75'x50') on the east end and a concrete abutment with small plaza (65'x13' tapering to 6') at the west end of Building One, the main academy building. The east end plaza entry artwork must be a freestanding object that creates a sense of invitation and welcome while serving as a visible new landmark. The main west end artwork should be wall-mounted and may include a sculptural component on the small plaza. The two sites should function as a related suite, complementing each other and contributing to a comprehensive sense of place for the JPSTC.

Successful proposals will approach the artwork's setting with a bold and creative vision sensitive to the surrounding neighborhood, its diverse residents, and the mission of the JPSTC. Designs must be informed by robust community engagement with neighborhood residents, interested members of the public, and public safety personnel. The artwork must be engineered to withstand environmental demands and require minimal to no annual maintenance; only durable and resilient media will be considered. Following the application deadline, DCASE will convene a selection panel to review applications and select 3-4 finalists, who will each receive a $2,500 honorarium to develop proposals. The final commission budget is $500,000, inclusive of all costs and fees for design through structural engineering, fabrication, site preparation, and installation. Applicants will be evaluated on artistic excellence and the meaningful relationship of the artwork with the mission of the JPSTC and the community. Applications must include a one-page letter of interest, six to ten images of past large-scale public art projects, an annotated image list, and optionally one video of no more than two minutes.