Lexington Avenue Public Art Project RFQ

The Lexington Avenue Public Art Project seeks a commissioned artist or team to create a public art piece reflecting the neighborhood identity of Lexington Avenue and celebrating the community's preservation efforts. In 2016, the American Planning Association named Lexington Avenue as one of five great streets on its annual Great Places in America list, recognizing streets, neighborhoods, and public spaces that demonstrate exceptional character, quality and planning.

The artwork should reflect the whimsical, dynamic energy of the neighborhood and the significance of the grassroots preservation initiative. The piece must complement surrounding architecture, be durable, meet all safety codes, and not impede sidewalk or crosswalk foot traffic or block parking. This is a nationwide call open to all qualified artists and teams. The selected artist or team must be able to work in close collaboration with city staff, the Asheville Downtown Association, and the selection/review committee.

Submitted materials will be reviewed by a 7-person committee including City of Asheville staff, Asheville Downtown Association Foundation representative, Public Art and Cultural Commission member, Lexington Avenue business owners, Asheville Area Arts Council representative, and a family member of a downtown-focused pioneer. Three finalists will be selected to submit proposals. Finalists must conduct a site visit and interface with community groups through mandatory public feedback sessions. Finalists will be paid $1,000 each for preliminary designs and public meetings. The selected artist or team will receive a $40,000 budget on a turnkey basis, covering all costs including proposals, materials, engineering, fabrication, installation, artist commission and travel. The selected finalist retains copyright over the original design; the City of Asheville retains rights to promote and reproduce the completed work in print and electronic form on a non-commercial basis.

Applicants must submit up to six images or videos of their work, a current résumé (individual résumés required for team submissions), a one-page letter of interest highlighting their approach to public art and relevant experience, an annotated image list, and at least three professional references. All materials must be submitted electronically through CaFÉ. There is no application fee. Site photos are available at https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B1n68D_oLh67TlZaTjdLWFpmcDQ?usp=sharing. Contact: Brenda Mills, Economic Development Specialist, (828) 259-8050.