Call for Artist to design and create a mural at prominent high-traffic Main Street location opposite the Bangor Waterfront

Theme:

An Optimistic Vision Inspiring Neighborhood Recovery

Empowering The Artist:

The selected artist(s) will be given freedom to create an uplifting work of landmark public art that will have a lasting positive impact on our community. The artist has freedom to choose the shape, dimensions and exact location of the mural on the Shaw’s wall, visible from Main Street.

Empowering Our Community:

Together Place Peer Run Recovery Center is leading a Neighborhood Improvement Initiative and issuing a call to artists to proffer a rendering of artwork for a highly visible location at 353 Main Street, Bangor, Maine opposite the Bangor Waterfront. Mural installation must occur before it gets cold in 2022. 

Contract Amount: $5000 for mural as described above.

Here’s a video of the broad community participation for our Neighborhood Recovery Initiative:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBy6EiXGn3U&t=75s

• One can see in the video introduction the time-stamped location of a short summary of the plan. We seek to revitalize a neighborhood immediately adjacent to downtown and the waterfront, a neighborhood with one of the highest overdose rates in Maine, a neighborhood facing considerable poverty. Together Place empowers people in mental health and substance use recovery to support each other in moving forward. It is possible this project could lead to further mural collaboration as we have funding for more. We seek an artistic vision that matches our optimistic plan. The name Together Place Peer Run Recovery Center must be acknowledged in a plaque adjacent to the mural as must be Shaw’s Supermarket, the artist, and artist assistants, but the primary goal is an individual creative vision that will stand the test of time, serving our neighborhood and our entire Bangor regional community. 

We Seek Artist(s) Who Will:

• collaborate with a mural committee convened by Together Place.
• Supervise, in a meaningful mentor role, a small group of members of Together Place who, under the artist’s direction and oversight, would assist in creation of the mural.
• have a vision for a mural(s) that will serve as a long-term point of community pride and neighborhood recovery.

SELECTION PROCESS:

The Together Place Mural Committee will review submissions from artists, including renderings, and choose finalists to discuss their original proposals in more detail.

SELECTION CRITERIA:

 Applications are reviewed based on the following criteria to be addressed in the artist submission:

• Artistic strength as shown through vision, originality, renderings of proposed mural(s) that show cognizance of how the mural will be viewed from various angles and locations, such as the sidewalk, from across the street and by passing vehicles, and documented understanding of craft as well as a portfolio of work and related experience. (35 percent).
• Ability to articulate a process to mentor people in recovery in the implementation phases of the project (25 percent).
• Ability to translate artistic concepts into work that will activate or enhance the proposed space (25 percent).
• Capacity to complete the proposal on time and within budget (10 percent).
• Application is comprehensive with ideas well communicated (5 percent).

WHO IS ELIGIBLE:

Professional artists living in Maine (“living in” is defined by state income taxes, driver license, or state ID).

• The project is open to artists of any age, regardless of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, military status, sexual orientation, marital status, or physical disabilities. Students are eligible so long as they meet the other criteria.
• Artist teams are eligible to apply, including teams from multiple disciplines.
• Members of the selection committee and their immediate families are ineligible.

DEADLINE for Proposals with Renderings:  Friday, July 22, 2022.

Learn more and apply here: https://togetherplace.org/

MATERIALS REQUIRED IN SUBMISSION:

Materials must be submitted via email to mariemmhc@gmail.com. All documents must be in PDF format. All images must be in a jpg or PDF format. Any submissions that do not follow the requirements may be considered ineligible. Make sure submissions are labeled correctly with your name and email information on every document. Your proposal must include:

• A current concise resume for participating artist(s) (2 pages maximum per artist).
• A written proposal describing what your concept and approach will be in addressing the public art space(s) of the site, including how you will include Together Place volunteers in your creation.
• Detailed drawings or paintings of the proposed work.
• A budget regarding how your $5000 will be spent, including anticipated materials, fabrication, and installation costs.
• Projections and assurances regarding the durability of the art, including how the work will withstand the seasons and for how long. Please upload this as a separate document and do not include this in the narrative of your proposal.
• Four digital images of recent work. If an artist team or artist organization applies, they may only submit four images for all artists. Do not upload A/V files of any kind. Only jpg or PDF files are eligible for review.

This mural project is made possible in part by generous grants from the Maine Arts Commission, the Maine Community Foundation and Bangor Savings Bank.