National Battle of the Bands Poster Commission

The Cultural Council for Palm Beach County requests qualifications from professional visual artists to create an original artwork celebrating the inaugural National Battle of the Bands (NBOTB) at FAU Stadium in Boca Raton on MLK weekend 2026. The artwork will be used for a poster and promotional materials for this invitational showcase of bands from Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). The theme should celebrate music, dance, and the energy of the event.

This is a two-part process: a call for qualifications followed by selection of up to three finalists to develop proposals. The selected artist will receive $5,000 for the completed piece and will grant the Cultural Council and NBOTB full license to use the image in marketing and promotion. Eligibility is open to professional visual artists aged 18 and over who reside in Palm Beach County, Florida. Qualifications must include a professional resumé (2 pages maximum), a statement of interest (500 words maximum), and 5-7 images of past completed work from the past five years (JPG or PNG, 300dpi, 5MB max).

Project goals include creating artwork of high artistic quality that honors the HBCU mission, is expressive and thematic, and is inspired by participating HBCU bands and their traditions. The artwork should not contain images or likenesses that could be construed as advertising for any product or service. Selected finalists will each receive a $500 stipend to develop their concept proposal. The final artist may be required to make minor revisions to meet licensing and sponsorship criteria as part of the commission fee. Deadline for qualifications is June 24, 2025. Finalists will be notified June 30, with proposals due July 28 and the final artist notified August 1.