Request for Qualifications (RFQ)
RFQ available in English and Spanish. If you need this document in another language, please contact RACC for translation services.
Project Overview
In partnership with the Beaverton School District and BRIC Architecture, the Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) invites artists/artist teams to submit qualifications for multiple interior site-specific public artworks at the newly constructed Beaverton High School in Beaverton, Oregon.
- Overall Art Project Budget: [$25,000] (funded by Beaverton School District 2022 Bond; BHS Rebuild)
- Application Deadline: April 6, 2025, at 11:59 PM PST
About Beaverton High School
The new Beaverton High School, located at 13000 SW 2nd St in Beaverton, OR, will serve up to 1,500 students in a state-of-the-art facility designed to be inclusive, welcoming, and culturally reflective. This newly designed building project prioritizes student and community voices, ensuring the school environment supports learning and connection. The new building is scheduled for completion in Fall 2026.
Art Opportunity
Artists/artist teams are invited to create 7 site-specific digital artworks or artworks delivered as digital files that reflect the themes of belonging, diversity, and student representation at Beaverton High School, a student body made of various cultures. The artworks will be located in highly visible areas of the school, known as “Jewel” spaces, which are locations in the building designed to highlight these different cultures and allow communities to be represented who don’t often see themselves in these spaces, ultimately, enhancing the student body experience. Final medium will be a vinyl application installed on walls or glass.
(Please review the attached Design Summary included as Exhibit A for details on the “Jewel”areas.)
Artwork Goals and Qualities
The selected artworks should:
- Celebrate diversity and cultural representation.
- Reflect the student body and Beaverton’s diverse community.
- Be visually engaging, with layered meaning that resonates from a distance and up close.
- Be site-specific, complementing the architectural and environmental elements of the school.
Seven (7) Art Opportunities
Below are the seven separate art opportunities, some with preselected themes, along with size, location, and respective individual budgets. All glass vinyl will need to have some level of transparency incorporated into the final design (opaque or completely clear). To ensure we have a myriad of styles and artistic voices represented, up to seven different artists/artist teams may be selected for the different sites.
(Please refer to Exhibit B for details on each location.)
Artist Opportunity Budget
Listed below are the various opportunities–each one comes with its own budget, location, size, recommended theme, the reference page to find a visual in the ‘Exhibit B’ document followed by the budget. The budget listed below covers artist fees, including time, labor and engagement with the school’s Art Advisory Committee to produce the digital file.
| Grand Stair Wall Mural | |||
| 29’W x 40’H | Celebration & Family, Culture and Community |
Exhibit B, Sec. a., pg 1 |
$11,000 |
| Mega Flex Wall Mural Needs to be scaled to be legible from the street while providing interest up close as well. |
|||
| 26’W x 27’H | Empowerment | Exhibit B, Sec. b., pg 2 |
$1,000 |
| Multicultural Glass Vinyl | |||
| 29’W x 9’H | Family, Culture and Community |
Exhibit B, Sec. c., pg 3 |
$1,000 |
| Mega Flex Glass Vinyls Rounds a corner, forms an ‘L.’ |
|||
| 8’W X 7’H 12’W x 7’H |
***see note below | Exhibit B, Sec. d., pg 4 |
$1,000 |
| Flex Spaces Glass Vinyls (6 Flex space locations) | |||
| (4) 28’Wx7’H (1) 20’Wx7’H (1) 24’Wx7’H |
***see note below | Exhibit B, Sec. e., pg 5 |
$2,500 |
| Library & CAD Lab Glass Vinyls | |||
| Library 24’W x 10‘H 5’W x 10’H CAD 24’W x 7’H |
Nature and Local | Exhibit B, Sec. F., pgs 6-7 |
$1,000 |
| Future You Glass Vinyl | |||
| 18’W x 7’H | Empowerment, many pathways to success, career and college |
Exhibit B, Sec. h., pg 8 |
$500 |
***These spaces do not have prescribed themes; rather, they serve as special gathering areas for students, either as breakout spaces during class or in their free time. Artists should align their designs with the overarching goal and qualities rather than adhering to a specific theme. However, designs should consider the unique characteristics of the installation surface, particularly the interplay of transparency and opacity, given that the artworks will be mounted on glass.
Engagement with the Art Advisory Committee
We are seeking an artist/artist team who welcomes and reflects the diverse communities that are served by the school within their process and work. The artist/artist team will work with the Art Advisory Committee (comprised of students, staff members, and community artists) to develop and refine the final design of the art pieces.
Eligibility
This opportunity is open to artists/artist teams based in Oregon and Washington. If applying as a team, at least one member must meet the residence eligibility requirement. Those with significant current or past connections, or those with interest and ability to create meaningful connections, to Beaverton, Washington County and communities served by the school are preferred. Applicants who have an interest in and/or experience with community engagement processes, including social practice, which inform their approach and art practice are strongly encouraged to apply. Strong consideration will be given to artists who have experience working with youth and residents from historically underrepresented communities to develop their artwork including communities of color, LGBTQIA+ as well as immigrant and refugee communities.
Beaverton School District, BRIC and RACC are committed to reflecting the cultural richness of our city by promoting opportunities for emerging and historically underrepresented artists. Artists/artist teams representing communities of color are strongly encouraged to apply.
Selection Process
Round One: RFQ
An artist selection panel consisting of school representatives, community members, and art professionals will review submissions based on:
- Quality of past work
- Artistic approach
- References
- Connection to theme
Based on the artist selection panel’s scores, the panel will meet to create a shortlist of artists who will be advanced onto Round Two: Request for Proposals (RFP)
Round Two: RFP
Semi-finalists from Round One will be invited to Round Two where they will receive a design stipend for their conceptual proposal.
Artists will submit the following as part of their conceptual proposal materials:
- Initial sketches/drawings of design concept for the sites you are applying for
- Conceptual information that includes:
- Inspiration behind the design such as: imagery, narrative, symbols, and colors
- If applicable to your design, research process specific to this site and community
- Ability to deliver a digital file of the design
Top scoring RFP submissions will be invited to participate in Round Three: Presentations and Conversation with the Artist Selection Panel.
Round Three: Presentation and Conversation
Finalists will have the opportunity to present their initial design proposal to the Artist Selection Panel, further discussing their practice and qualifications and engaging in a mutually beneficial and informative conversation.
How to Apply
All application materials must be submitted through the RACC Opportunity Portal, an online application system. Applicants will need to create an account, or log into their existing account at https://racc.org/apply. (If you are a first-time user, learn how to create an account here). If you are applying as a team, please assign one person to apply and be the point of contact on behalf of the team. Submissions due Wednesday, April 2, 2025 at 11:59pm PDT.
Required materials include:
- Artist Bio/Resume Upload a PDF of no more than 2 pages that outlines your creative activities and artistic accomplishments. If applying as a team, submit one PDF that includes a bio/resume for all team members no more than 6 pages.
- Statement of Interest Two (2) options in submitting your responses:
- Written Statement: 3000 characters or less
- Oral Statement: Upload a video/voice recording no longer than 2 minutes
- Items to Include
- Your interest in this opportunity
- Include demonstrated experience to complete a scope of work
- Ability to deliver final design in an appropriate digital format.
- Elements and themes you are most interested in
- Why you value community engagement in your artistic process
- Include demonstrated successful incorporation of community vision, values and voices into a project
- If applying as a team, describe your individual roles on the team and how you anticipate working together.
- Work Samples (up to 8 images with descriptions)
Provide up to 2 images, no larger than 5MB each, for each past work sample. For each image, please provide title, artist name, media, dimensions, year completed, budget and location. Conceptual information is desirable but not required. - References Provide 2 references for past projects or clients. Please include name, email and/or phone number, title, organization/business and brief sentence or two how you know them and why they’re a reference.
Once you have started your application, you can save after each step and sign out. Your application will be saved as a draft that you can continue to work on, as needed. Please note that after you click “Submit,” your application is final and no further edits can be made. Late submissions will not be accepted.
Questions & Support
For questions regarding the RFQ or application process, contact Mario Mesquita, Project Manager and Director of Advocacy & Engagement at mmesquita@racc.org. If you need access to a computer or translation services, please reach out in advance.
Important Dates
- RFQ Release: March 14, 2025
- Application Deadline: April 6, 2025
- Semi-finalist Selections: April 25, 2025
- Design Submissions Deadline: May 16, 2025
- Final Design Announcements: June 13, 2025