Underwater Sculpture Garden Round 4

The City of Pompano Beach is commissioning an artist or artist team to design and fabricate a sculpture for a work-for-hire project. The sculpture will be displayed on land at a location to be determined for one year, then submerged into the ocean and attached to Lady Luck in Shipwreck Park, a 324-foot tanker vessel sunk in 2016 as an artificial reef approximately 1.5 miles off Pompano Beach's shore. This will be the fourth Shipwreck Park-specific sculpture added to Lady Luck.

The sculpture theme should focus on native marine life or other things synonymous with Florida, realistic or surreal. Artists should consider how the artwork will appear once submerged and becomes an artificial reef, as it will eventually contain moss and other marine life. The sculpture must not exceed 3 feet by 3 feet wide and 6 feet tall, and must weigh a minimum of 500 pounds. Permitted materials include concrete, ferrous metals (1/4 inch or more in thickness), clean steel, and limestone boulders—all must be clean and free from contaminants, asphalt, petroleum, hydrocarbons, and toxic residues. The artwork must include construction that allows it to be lifted safely from at least three pick points and lowered level and upright by lift bag. The artist is responsible for working with South Florida Diving Headquarters to sink and attach the sculpture, and must provide and work with an engineer if necessary. The City will supply $7,000 toward installation, documentation, and associated fees, with sinking fees covered up to $4,000.

Designs must be appropriate for public display and cannot be religious, political, or sexual in nature. The structure may not display messages with text, words, or alpha-numeric characters, and cannot include corporate logos or advertising. Three artists will be shortlisted and paid a $300 honorarium to create detailed proposals. The project budget is $35,000. Submissions must include a resume, artist statement, examples of previous artwork (minimum 3, maximum 5), and optionally a design sketch. This opportunity is open to all professional artists in the continental US. Artists with immediate family or business partners on the selection committee are not eligible.