Fire Station 20 Public Art Commission

The Seattle Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs, in partnership with the Department of Finance and Administrative Services and the Seattle Fire Department, seeks an artist or artist team to develop a permanent free-standing or site-integrated art project for Fire Station 20 in Seattle's Queen Anne neighborhood. The new Fire Station 20 will be located between 2800 and 2816 15th Ave. W. on the west side of Queen Anne in the Interbay area, at the northeast corner of 15th Avenue West and West Armor Street. Schematic design is expected to begin in June 2011, with construction anticipated to begin in 2012 and Fire Department operations moving to the new location in 2013.

The selected artist or artist team will work with the community, firefighters and city staff to develop art integrated into the facility that is recognizable as artwork, or create a site-specific, durable, three-dimensional, free-standing artwork next to the facility. The artwork should address the work and spirit of firefighters and the unique character of the surrounding neighborhood. Applicants should have specific skills designing, fabricating and installing artwork in media such as metal, glass, stone, concrete, ceramic, wood, light, surface treatment, sustainable design and environmental design. The selected artist should understand architectural plans and have experience working cooperatively with design professionals, city staff and community members in public settings, with a proven ability to fabricate their own work or work with fabricators and installers.

The competition is open to established professional artists living in the Northwest (Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana) or California. Students are not eligible. The selected artist will receive a commission of $90,000, inclusive of all costs to design, fabricate and install artwork. The artist will first receive a contract for $10,000 to design the artwork. Following design approval, the artist will receive a contract of $80,000 for oversight, fabrication and installation. Application requirements include sixteen artwork images, a letter of interest (not to exceed 2,000 characters), resume, and three references. The selection panel will review applications and select up to four finalists, then interview finalists and award the project to one artist or artist team. For questions, contact Jason Huff at (206) 684-7278 or [email protected].