Spike 150 Legacy Project - Utah Public Art

The Spike 150 Commission seeks an artist or artists to create a work that honors the diverse communities and railroad workers who labored on and were impacted by the driving of the Golden Spike and the creation of the Transcontinental Railroad. The project aims to extend the visual and historical narrative beyond the singular moment of May 10, 1869, to include and honor all railroad workers from many different cultures and backgrounds whose efforts were crucial in the construction of the nation's first transcontinental railroad.

The work should give voice to the voiceless and expose the invisible contributions of Chinese immigrants, Irish immigrants, African Americans, Mormon graders, and Civil War veterans who built the 1,776 miles of track. An estimated 10,000 to 20,000 Chinese immigrants were recruited by the Central Pacific Railroad and performed the most laborious and dangerous tasks, including handling explosives and digging 15 tunnels through granite mountains. Approximately 10,000 Irish workers faced discrimination and hardship while laying hundreds of miles of track. Over 300 freedmen worked on the Union Pacific for nearly half the wages of other workers. Mormon laborers were employed through contracts signed by Brigham Young, and both Union and Confederate soldiers worked together after the Civil War ended. The final artwork should evoke empathy for these workers and demonstrate within the learning context of Golden Spike National Historical Park that great things are possible with vision, hard work, dedication, and collaboration.

Budget: $250,000. Submission deadline: February 28, 2020. Work sample requirements: 1-10 images, 0-6 audio files, 0-6 video files, with a total of 1-10 samples. Eligibility is open to national applicants.