Duke Street Tunnel Public Art Project

The City of Alexandria, Virginia invites artists and artist teams living and working in Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia to submit qualifications for a temporary public art project for the Duke Street Pedestrian Concourse. An artist or artist team will be selected to design a temporary public art installation for the tunnel, located south of the King Street metro station. The tunnel was created in 2004 to allow pedestrian traffic between the metro station and the Carlyle neighborhood, with an average of 3,000 people walking through daily. The public artwork will be located inside the tunnel with potential expansion to the north entrance. The concourse features a vaulted ceiling reflecting the historic beer vaults of the former West End Brewery, is enclosed and properly lit, but not climate controlled. Currently there are twelve panels inside the tunnel (six on each side) and additional exterior panels on the north side.

The project aligns with the Carlyle Vitality Initiative, an effort to enhance neighborhood vitality and quality of life while improving the area's competitiveness in the regional office market. Eligible artists must be 18 years or older and live or work in Virginia, Maryland, or the District of Columbia. Selected artist or artist teams must be able to attend at least two public meetings. The budget is up to $20,000. Applications are due June 4, 2017 at 11:59 MST, with final artist notification by the week of June 19, 2017, and final artwork due in September 2017.

Applicants must submit an artist statement (maximum 1000 words describing their general approach to public art), a letter of interest (maximum 1000 words describing their interest in the project and how their approach relates to Alexandria's Vision for Public Art and Carlyle's Vitality Initiative), a resume (maximum 4 pages), and a minimum of 6 images. Work sample requirements include 6 images (required), up to 2 audio files, and up to 2 video files, for a total of 6-10 samples. Selection criteria include artistic merit, ability to work with the community, collaboration skills, ability to work with various mediums, probability of successful execution, and appropriateness of qualifications. For questions, contact Jimena Larson, Public Art Coordinator, at [email protected].