Community Murals

The Sprout Fund has worked with artists and communities to create 38 enduring works of high-quality public art.

* Additional details on murals and muralists coming soon. *

Sprout Public Art 2008 Community Application

Downloads

Deadline

All applications are due no later than 5pm on Friday, March 28, 2008.

Eligibility

Community applicant eligibility: Any organization with a physical presence within the community of the proposed mural site or an individual who is a resident of that community that has met all criteria and delivered a complete application to the Sprout office no later than 5 pm on Friday, March 28, 2008 is eligible to be considered to participate in the Sprout Public Art program.

Community site eligibility: The proposed mural site must be within Allegheny County. The surface of the proposed mural site should be as smooth as possible and devoid of any peeling paint, cracks or leaks. Please contact Sprout if you have any questions regarding wall condition. Proposed mural sites must be as permanent as possible. Sites that are currently for sale, will be for sale soon, or have plans for renovations that will affect the visibility of the proposed mural may not be eligible for consideration. Moreover, applicants should contact adjacent property owners to assess any plans on their part that may effect or cause a visual disturbance to the proposed mural surface. Any concerns regarding the permanence of the site and/or potentials for disturbance must be communicated to Sprout staff prior to submitting an application.

Requirements

A complete application is due no later than 5 pm on Friday, March 28, 2008 and must include:

  • Contact information, including: Full name of primary contact person, organization (if applicable), mailing address, email address and phone number
  • 25-member signed petition supporting the proposed mural
  • Photographs or digital images of the proposed mural site visually indicating the dimensions and mural surface area
  • Signed Letter of Intent (download available on Sprout website) from the owner of proposed wall/ site stating permission to use the wall/site for the installation of permanent public art
  • Answers to the questions below (using no more than 1500 words)

Application Questions

  1. Describe the proposed mural site and specific wall. What is the closest address and cross street? Is it visible to traffic? Is it a business or private residence? Who is the property owner? What direction does it face? What are the measurements and composition (brick, stucco, etc)? Remember that the wall integrity must be sound, with no visible cracks, peeling paint or leaks.
  2. Describe the level of community commitment and support. Are you able to organize a minimum of two community meetings during the month of June? How will you publicize the meetings and where will they take place? How will you encourage maximum neighborhood participation?
  3. If applicable, please describe the level of organizational support for the project. What is the mission/goals of your organization or group? What is its history and role in the community? How many people are involved with this project?
  4. Briefly describe the community's capacity to maintain the mural site after completion. Have you identified community organizations and individuals who will assist with the mural project and maintain the mural and its surrounding site in the future? Please provide names and contact information.
  5. How do you anticipate that the mural will benefit your community? What would the significance be of having a mural at this location?
  6. Are there currently any other works of public art within your community? If so, what impact have they had on you and/or your neighborhood?
  7. Have you spoken to property owners adjacent to the mural site and garnered their support? If applicable, have you secured his or her permission for access to the mural site? Please list your adjacent property owner(s) name and contact information.
  8. Briefly describe the theme, imagery or subject matter your community envisions for the mural.
  9. Although it may not be possible, would your community prefer to work with an artist who is a resident of your community? (yes/no) This information is used in placing artists in competition for communities. No community is guaranteed to work with an artist who is a resident of the community.

    10. Note: A community applicant may only apply for one site. If the applicant has more than one site and doesn't know how to proceed, contact Sprout for advice.

Submitting Applications

If you are an eligible artist or community applicant, submitting applications through Sprout's online system is encouraged. Please also print out a copy of the application and deliver it along with all supplemental materials. Complete applications should be mailed or hand delivered to:

The Sprout Fund
Sprout Public Art 2008 Application
5423 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15206-3423

For more information or specific questions regarding your application contact Curt Gettman, Public Art Program Manager at publicart@sproutfund.org or 412 325 0646.

Sprout Public Art 2008 Artist Application

Downloads

Deadline

All applications are due no later than 5pm on Friday, March 28, 2008.

Eligibility

Any artist residing in the 14-county Pittsburgh/Western Pennsylvania region of Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Bedford, Butler, Cambria, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Lawrence, Mercer, Somerset, Washington and Westmoreland counties that has met all criteria and delivered a complete application to the Sprout office no later than 5 pm on Friday, March 28, 2008 is eligible to be considered to participate in the Sprout Public Art program. Artists with at least a minimum level of experience in working in large scale are strongly preferred.

Note: Artists that completed murals in both the 2006 and 2007 seasons of Sprout Public Art are not eligible to participate in the 2008 program, but may re-apply the following year.

Requirements

A complete artist application must include:

  • Contact information, including: full name, mailing address, email address and phone number
  • Current contact information for two professional references
  • 5 slides or digital images highlighting your original work that best illustrates your ability as a potential muralist (if you are submitting images of collaborative work, please include a statement describing your role in the creation of the work)
  • Resume or CV highlighting relevant work experience (no more than 3 pages)
  • Answers to the questions below (using no more than 1500 words)

Application Questions

  1. Briefly describe your interest in public art. What do you feel you will bring to the program and what do you hope to gain from it?
  2. Briefly describe your experience in the following areas: working in large scale, working outdoors, working collaboratively and working with community groups.
  3. How would you describe your artistic style, influences, and inspiration? Consider historical or contemporary art movements, media, techniques, etc.

    4. Please take the time to carefully examine the program overview, process, and timeline. Then, please explain the feasibility and level of your commitment to the scenarios proposed in questions 4-9.

  4. Have you worked on scaffolding or hydraulic lifts? (yes/no) If yes, please describe your experience.
  5. Are you afraid of heights of at least 10 feet from the ground? (yes/no)
  6. If you are not chosen as a muralist, would you be interested in being an artist assistant in the program? (yes/no)
  7. If you were to be selected as a muralist, would you be able to commit to at least two meetings with members of the community in which you are selected to develop the mural design during the month of June?
  8. If you were to be selected as a muralist, would you be able to devote at least 35 hours/week during the mural painting period?
  9. If you were to be selected as a muralist, how would your regular work schedule factor into the program timeline? Please note that some murals might require specific daily or weekly schedules that may conflict with yours. Are there any restrictions or advantages in your particular schedule? Please explain.

Submitting Applications

If you are an eligible artist or community applicant, submitting applications through Sprout's online system is encouraged. Please also print out a copy of the application and deliver it along with all supplemental materials. Complete applications should be mailed or hand delivered to:

The Sprout Fund
Sprout Public Art 2008 Application
5423 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15206-3423

For more information or specific questions regarding your application contact Curt Gettman, Public Art Program Manager at publicart@sproutfund.org or 412 325 0646.

Apply for Sprout Public Art

Deadline

All applications are due no later than 5pm on Friday, March 28, 2008.

Downloads

Artists

Communities

Submitting Applications

If you are an eligible artist or community applicant, submitting applications through Sprout's online system is encouraged. Please also print out a copy of the application and deliver it along with all supplemental materials. Complete applications should be mailed or hand delivered to:

The Sprout Fund
Sprout Public Art 2008 Application
5423 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15206-3423

For more information or specific questions regarding your application contact Curt Gettman, Public Art Program Manager at publicart@sproutfund.org or 412 325 0646.

Program Timeline

February - March: Weekly information sessions

Friday, March 28, 2008: Application deadline for artists and communities

Early April: Notification of artist selection

Early April: Notification of community selection

Early April: Interviews of selected artists

Early April: Selected communities attend brainstorm session to refine subject matter

Monday, May 12, 2008: Artists preliminary designs due by 5pm at Sprout offices

Thursday, May 15, 2008: Preliminary design exhibition at Concept Art Gallery in Regent Square

Early May: Artist design presentations to community committees

Early May: Selection of muralists by communities

Mid May - Mid June: Artist/community dialogues

Late June: Final designs approved

Early July: Mural kickoffs and site clean-ups

July - September: Murals painted

Late September: Mural dedication ceremonies

October: Surveys conducted and program evaluated

Program Process

Sprout Public Art is a seasonal program that occurs annually from January to October. Below is a detailed description of the 2008 program's process and procedures.

Outreach (January - March)

  • Beginning in early January, Sprout staff conduct artist and community outreach to solicit applications for the program.
  • Information sessions are held at The Sprout Fund offices throughout February and March to make artists and communities aware of the opportunity to participate in the program.

Application (late March)

Artist Selection (early April)

  • The selection process for artists includes the review of 5–10 digital images or slides, a written application and onsite interview.
  • A group of local artists, critics, educators and other community stakeholders selects a pool of artists to participate in each year's program. Artists are reviewed by the group on the basis of artistic merit and ability to create public art.
  • Once juried into the program, artists' experience, available working hours and location preferences are discussed in an interview with Sprout staff to assist in placing each artist in competition for a particular community.
  • Artists who are juried into the program, but who might be less experienced and/or do not match criteria of communities in the program, could be selected to work as paid artist assistants.

Community Selection (early April)

  • The selection process for communities includes review of application materials and site visits at prospective mural locations.
  • The Sprout Fund Public Art Advisory Committee recommends communities to receive murals based on criteria such as public accessibility, visibility and potential for impact in the community.

Matching Artists and Communities (April)

  • The selected communities attend a facilitated meeting to brainstorm and refine the subject matter of their murals.
  • Communities express preferences for specific artistic styles, themes and whether or not they wish to work with an artist who is a resident of their communities.
  • A strong effort is made to place artists in competition for mural sites that are commensurate in size, artistic style and physical complexity relative to their experience in working at heights and in large scale. Artists' experience and technical qualifications are discussed at and determined by interviews.
  • Communities are shown slides of the pool of artists that are qualified by experience and meet the communities' other criteria. Communities rank these artists by order of preference.
  • Artists are sent a packet of the site information and ideas for subject matter generated by the communities for which they are qualified. Artists rank these communities by order of preference.
  • Preference information for artists and communities is used to best place three or four artists in competition for each community.
  • Artists receive a preliminary design assignment for the community in which they are in competition.

Preliminary Design (Late April - Early May)

  • The goal of the preliminary design process is for artists to present their own original visions for the murals as inspired by the ideas and subject matter expressed by the communities.
  • Artists have two weeks to prepare a fully painted preliminary design. The medium may be oil or acrylic paint on any substantial surface such as canvas, panel or heavy gauge artist paper. Exact size specifications will be determined based on the dimensions of the mural site; however, designs typically do not exceed 36" x 36". Photographs, digitally manipulated images and non-painted collages are not acceptable media for the preliminary design. A fully completed preliminary design must be received no later than 5 pm on Thursday, May 8, 2008 at the Sprout office and approved by Sprout before artists can move forward in the process.
  • All artists completing preliminary designs receive a fee for their work whether or not the design is selected to become a mural.
  • Once the designs are received by The Sprout Fund, the designs are exhibited at a preliminary design exhibition on Thursday, May 15, 2008 at Concept Art Gallery in Regent Square. During this exhibition, artists and communities are invited to attend and view the artists' work.
  • Following the preliminary design exhibition, a pre-scheduled meeting occurs in which artists are given 15 minutes to present their works to the communities for which they are competing. Artists are encouraged to bring supplementary materials (contextual renderings, photo mock-ups, etc.) that compliment their preliminary designs in order to more clearly articulate their visions for the murals in their environments.
  • Each community mural committee chooses one final muralist with which to move forward in a facilitated, collaborative design refinement and approval process.

Refining the Design (May - June)

  • Each selected muralist and community have approximately one month to discuss and expand upon the initial ideas captured in the preliminary design and refine the design into a final mural design.
  • Once the design is finalized and approved by Sprout Public Art and reviewed by the City of Pittsburgh Art Commission, mural site preparation begins.

Mural Painting (July - September)

  • Kickoff events are held at each mural site to mark the beginning of the mural season and include wall preparation and site clean-up.
  • Murals are painted over the course of a four- to eight-week period. Actual duration of the mural painting period is determined by the size and complexity of the murals.

Mural Dedication (September)

Public dedication ceremonies occur after the completion of the murals and offer an opportunity for Sprout to formally present the murals to the communities and acknowledge the artists for their work and contributions to the communities.

Program Evaluation/Debriefing (October)

After the mural dedication ceremonies have occurred, Sprout sends online surveys to representatives of each participating group from the program-artists, community partners, facilitators, Sprout advisory board members, and jury members to effectively make an evaluation/debriefing of its participants. Sprout has done this at the close of each of the other seasons, and many of the suggestions and comments folded directly into programmatic changes that improved the program in the following year.

Program Overview

The concept of community engagement is central to Sprout's vision for site-specific public art. Communities apply and are selected by Sprout Public Art to receive murals. Artists are qualified into the program by a diverse group of local artists, educators and other community stakeholders and then placed in competition for the selected community mural sites. Artists that are chosen as final muralists by the communities are paid competitive artist fees determined by the size of the mural. All supplies, materials and design and artist fees are provided by Sprout Public Art and murals are provided at no financial cost to participating communities.

Artist Selection

Artist eligibility: Any artist residing in the 14-county Pittsburgh/Western Pennsylvania region of Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Bedford, Butler, Cambria, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Lawrence, Mercer, Somerset, Washington and Westmoreland counties that has met all criteria and delivered a complete application to the Sprout office no later than 5 pm on Friday, March 28, 2008 is eligible to be considered to participate in the Sprout Public Art program. Artists with at least a minimum level of experience in working in large scale are strongly preferred.

Note: Artists that completed murals in both the 2006 and 2007 seasons of Sprout Public Art are not eligible to participate in the 2008 program, but may re-apply the following year.

  • The selection process for artists includes the review of 5–10 digital images or slides, a written application and onsite interview.
  • A group of local artists, critics, educators and other community stakeholders selects a pool of artists to participate in each year's program. Artists are reviewed by the group on the basis of artistic merit and ability to create public art.
  • Once juried into the program, artists' experience, available working hours and location preferences are discussed in an interview with Sprout staff to assist in placing each artist in competition for a particular community.
  • Artists who are juried into the program, but who might be less experienced and/or do not match criteria of communities in the program, could be selected to work as paid artist assistants.

Interested artists can learn more with the artist application.

Community Selection

Community applicant eligibility: Any organization with a physical presence within the community of the proposed mural site or an individual who is a resident of that community that has met all criteria and delivered a complete application to the Sprout office no later than 5 pm on Friday, March 28, 2008 is eligible to be considered to participate in the Sprout Public Art program.

Community site eligibility: The proposed mural site must be within Allegheny County. The surface of the proposed mural site should be as smooth as possible and devoid of any peeling paint, cracks or leaks. Please contact Sprout if you have any questions regarding wall condition. Proposed mural sites must be as permanent as possible. Sites that are currently for sale, will be for sale soon, or have plans for renovations that will affect the visibility of the proposed mural may not be eligible for consideration. Moreover, applicants should contact adjacent property owners to assess any plans on their part that may effect or cause a visual disturbance to the proposed mural surface. Any concerns regarding the permanence of the site and/or potentials for disturbance must be communicated to Sprout staff prior to submitting an application.

Community selection strategy: Community selection is based on criteria such as meeting strategic goals, public accessibility, visibility and potential for impact in the community. Communities are selected by the Sprout Public Art Advisory Committee. To enhance its effectiveness and provide opportunities for all communities of the Pittsburgh region to create community murals, The Sprout Fund has committed to a long-term strategy of coverage, concentrations and corridors to inform community selection decisions. Coverage is the widespread placement of murals across the region and reflects an organizational focus on locating new murals in communities where none currently exist. Concentrations are communities that have a large number of existing Sprout murals and have the potential to grow with subsequent murals. Corridors are major traffic arteries that run through and connect many neighborhoods, with the potential for many new murals along its route.

Interested community members and groups can learn more with the community application.

Sprout Public Art

Sprout Public Art improves the image of the region and enhances the visual landscape of neighborhoods in Pittsburgh and the surrounding communities of Allegheny County by creating high quality public art. The program encourages dialogue on public art between the community and the artist, contributes to community and neighborhood development and raises awareness about the important role that local artists can have in shaping communities. Sprout Public Art addresses three key issues: disconnect between visual culture and day-to-day life, level of leadership and personal investment in the region's neighborhoods and need to support the ideas and creativity of people living in the Pittsburgh region.

During the first five seasons of Sprout Public Art, communities collaborated with artists to develop 38 enduring works of public art that enhance the urban landscape and consider the people of the community, their history and their hopes for the future. In the summer of 2008, Sprout Public Art will again create murals in diverse neighborhoods within Pittsburgh and the surrounding communities throughout the region.