City of Chicago Public Art Commission for CTA State and Lake Elevated Station

The Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE), the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT), and the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) invite professional artists and artist teams with demonstrated experience completing complex, permanent, outdoor public art projects to submit qualifications for a $750,000 public art commission for the new CTA State and Lake Station. The station will be built on the Loop elevated tracks at the intersection of State and Lake Streets in downtown Chicago, with construction scheduled to begin in Summer 2023. This project is funded by CDOT under the Percent for Art Ordinance and the City of Chicago's Capital Plan.

The new State/Lake Station will replace the existing 100-year-old structure with a modern, fully accessible rail hub serving five CTA train lines. The station features double-width platforms, a full-coverage glass canopy, elevators for accessibility, and wide balconies open to the public with scenic overlooks of State Street. The public art opportunity is for a suite of objects to be located at specified sites on the passenger platforms and crossover. Successful proposals should approach the artwork's setting with bold and creative vision sensitive to the new station architecture, State Street vistas, and the daily commuters using the facility. Designs must be informed by community engagement with neighborhood residents, interested members of the public, and commuters. Acceptable media include stainless steel, galvanized steel, bronze, laminated art glass panels, ceramic, or other durable materials pending approval. Artworks must be engineered to withstand environmental demands and require minimal to no annual maintenance.

Applicants must submit 6-10 images of past large-scale public art and infrastructure projects, with an optional video of no more than two minutes. An annotated image list including title, media, year completed, dimensions, location, project budget, timeline, and commissioning entity is required for each image. Following the application deadline, DCASE will convene an advisory panel to review applications and select 3-4 finalists, who will each receive a $2,500 honorarium to develop design proposals. Finalists will present proposals to the selection panel, and a final artist or artist team will be selected. The artwork commission of $750,000 is inclusive of all costs from design through structural engineering, fabrication, site preparation, and transportation to site. This opportunity is open nationally to all professional artists and artist teams. Selection criteria include artistic excellence, creative process demonstrating community engagement, ability to manage large-scale public art projects, and meaningful relationship between the artistic approach and the project's purpose.