Rendering of the south lobby of the new East County Library. Image provided by Holst Architecture.
In partnership with Multnomah County Library (MCL), the Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) invites artists/artist teams living in the Portland metropolitan region to submit qualifications for multiple site-specific digital designs for 2-dimensional interior artworks in the newly constructed East County Library as part of the Library Capital Building Projects. The budget available for the commission comes from Multnomah County’s Percent for Art Program and is up to $25,000 – $30,000. Submissions are due by Wednesday, April 16, 2025 at 11:59pm PDT.
Art Opportunity
One artist/artist team will be selected to create digital designs that will be scaled and installed as two-dimensional artworks on five site-specific walls on each of the four levels of East County Library. The artworks will be placed in four high-traffic areas that include the building’s main elevator bays, accessing the parking garage, 1st and 2nd floors and rooftop deck. This is an opportunity for studio artists, illustrators/comic book artists and/or graphic designers interested in scaling up their work.
Below you can find each of the sites organized by building floor, wall dimensions, renderings of the finished sites, and architectural plans.
| PARKING GARAGE | ||
1. Long Wall
2. Elevator Wall
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| 1ST FLOOR | ||
3. Elevator Wall
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| 2ND FLOOR | ||
4. Elevator Wall
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| ROOFTOP DECK | ||
5. Elevator Wall
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Each of the artworks’ designs will be digitally printed on a vinyl-like substrate that will be adhered to the walls and elevators, allowing for custom graphics, a smooth finish and durability. The artist/artist team is expected to provide a high-resolution digital file for printing as a final deliverable. The artist/artist team is not required to have experience in digitizing their work, but it is highly desirable. If needed, RACC can support with meeting this technical criteria. RACC will coordinate fabrication and installation of the wallcovering with the contractor, and the artist/artist team will be invited to review samples, installation drawings and the final install.
Library staff, patrons and community members will benefit from close interaction with the artwork as they enter and navigate through the building. The artwork will be installed at heights accessible to the general public, where many people will be able to reach and touch it, including children. Therefore it should be assumed that people will touch the artwork over time. However, the wallcovering substrate is easily cleanable, has a semi-long lifespan and can be reprinted if damaged.
The selected artist/artist team must be able to create, complete and deliver the digital files of their artwork designs by October 2025.
Artwork Goals and Qualities
The artwork’s design should reflect and compliment the natural and organic elements of the building’s design which is informed through the use of wood and earth tones on both the interior and exterior and the vast amount of windows which allow natural light into the library. Since the allocated sites are on several floors of the building, there is an opportunity for the artwork to have a storytelling quality, threading themes, motifs and narratives into a cohesive work. The artwork should be memorable, colorful, and engaging since these areas of the building will be the some of the most frequented by members of the community, including folks who may have disabilities, use mobility devices, strollers or anything else that may require frequent use of the elevator to navigate the building.
Another main goal for the artwork is to acknowledge and celebrate the diversity and richness of cultures that will utilize the building. Currently, 40 percent of the county’s population lives east of I-205, and East County is one of the most diverse areas of the region. To appeal to the diverse groups of users at this significant location, the artwork should be meaningful and dynamic. Some key approaches in accomplishing this is to align with the library’s programming and be relevant to the library’s users and communities; generate art that connects to contemporary and/or traditional art-making practices; and stimulate and engage the senses for passersby.
We are seeking artwork that considers culturally specific color palettes, shapes, patterns, symbols and storytelling inspired by the various communities served by East County Library. Innovatively connecting the vast array of community stories and experiences together is desired. Further collective visioning through engagement with the community will likely inspire even more creative suggestions.
Community Engagement
Community engagement has been a central component to this project. The broader community that will be served by the library were invited to participate in the building’s design process by contributing their experiences and ideas through open houses, tabling events, leave-behind boards, and community design advocate conversations. The selected artist/artist team will have access to the community engagement report that was created from these sessions to ensure a better understanding of the local communities and their priorities.
We are seeking an artist/artist team who welcomes and reflects the diverse communities that are served by East County Library within their process and work. Genuine understanding and demonstration of community engagement practices in existing artistic practice, past work and/or other key areas of experience where skillsets may be transferable, such as teaching, mentorship, community organizing, care work and other non-typical/non-traditional examples of embedding community into process and practice, are desired.
Prior to finalizing a design, the selected artist/artist team will plan and facilitate at least two engagement sessions to meet with community stakeholders to gather information and insight into the library, community and area. The artist(s) is expected to welcome and encourage community participation within the design phase, seeking feedback, input and inspiration from key stakeholders to ensure the final artwork meets the intended goals as outlined above, specifically community representation. The project team is able to work with neighboring community partners to provide venues to host such community engagement events. Interpretation, translation and other access services can be made available, if needed, and coordinated through MCL and/or RACC, if enough time is given in advance.
Budget
The selected artist/artist team will receive up to $25,000 – $30,000 for this opportunity to create an artwork design that will be delivered as a digital file. This fee is inclusive of the following expenses; artist fees, design development, digitization of artwork designs, community engagement and communication/coordination with the design team, construction team and third-party contractors who will help to print and install the artwork.
About East County Library
Located in Gresham, the 95,000 sf building will be located at the corner of two busy thoroughfares, NW Division and NW Eastman Pkwy, with the Gresham City Hall TriMet Max stop north of the site that also includes a civic space for farmer’s markets and public events. Designed by Holst Architecture and PLACE Architecture, the new library will serve as a transformative space for community members. Being the second largest library in the county, this site will provide much needed services and access to library resources for a large swath of the region’s communities. The mass timber and symmetrical building will consist of four floors that include an auditorium, flex rooms, creative learning spaces, child, teen and learning areas, gathering spaces, rooftop deck, a collection of over 200,000 library materials, and a parking garage on the bottom floor.
Eligibility
This opportunity is open to artists/artist teams based in the Portland metropolitan area (including Washington, Clackamas, Multnomah and Clark Counties). Those with significant current or past connections, or those with interest and ability to create meaningful connections, to East County Library and the surrounding East Portland neighborhoods and as well as neighboring cities are preferred. Artists 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 participate. 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 as well as immigrant and refugee communities.
MCL 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 participate. RACC is committed to engaging new communities of artists and expanding the range of artistic and cultural expression represented in the City’s public art collection.
Selection Process
At this time, the selection process will be entirely virtual. A selection panel composed of MCL representatives, project team members, local artists, and community members will review artists’ submissions and choose more than one finalist to invite to interview for the commission.
Overall, the purpose of the interview will be to allow the artist(s) and the panel to meet each other and engage in a mutually beneficial and informative conversation. It’s an opportunity for the artist(s) to better understand the context of the project and the intentions the selection panel has for the final art piece. Both parties will be given the chance to ask questions and determine best alignment and artist selection for the project. After the interviews are completed, the selection panel will choose a final artist/artist team to award the public art opportunity to. Criteria for selecting semifinalists for interviews are (1) quality of past work as demonstrated in submitted images; (2) ability and interest in creating site-specific artwork; (3) how past artwork has fit one or more of the general goals described above through demonstrated processes and/or final design.
(Note: the selection panel reserves the right to select an artist who does not directly apply to this call, if appropriate. Likewise, the panel maintains the option to make no selection from submitted applications and to reopen the selection process or propose other methods of selection if no applicant is accepted.)
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 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 16 2025 at 11:59pm PDT
Application Materials
- Artist bio/resume. Upload a PDF of no more than two 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. Based on the information given, please address the following:
- Your interest in this project
- Why this project, its focus, and themes are of interest to you
- Why you would be a good match for this project
- How do you foresee your work connecting to the mission and values of the project
- Describe your capacity and/or experience to complete the scope of work
- If you are applying as a team, describe your individual roles on the team and how you anticipate working together
- There are two options in submitting these responses:
- Written Statement: 3000 characters or less
- Oral Statement: Upload a video/voice recording no longer than 2 minutes
- There are two options in submitting these responses:
- Your interest in this project
- Up to 8 past work samples. These work samples are the primary way the quality of your work will be judged. Provide up to two images, no larger than 5MB each, for each work sample. For each image, please provide title, media, dimensions, year completed, budget and location. Conceptual information is desirable but not required.
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.
If you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact us throughout the process.
Questions
We are here to support and assist you! If you have questions about the overall opportunity or have any needs for assistance please email project manager, Salvador Mayoral IV, at smayoral@racc.org
If you would like to be considered for this opportunity and don’t have a computer or online access, please feel free to contact RACC for support. Also, if you prefer these materials in another language you can contact the RACC project team for translation services.
We strongly encourage you to submit your application with enough time for any questions to be answered prior to when submissions are due as inquiries received towards the end of that period may not be responded to. We appreciate your understanding and consideration of our capacity.
Interpretation services are available, please email info@racc.org.
Servicio de interpretación disponible
Предоставляются услуги переводчика
Có dịch vụ thông
提供口译服务
Info Session
An info session for the opportunity was recorded. You can view that recording here.
Important Dates
| March 27, 2025 | RFQ launch |
| April 16, 2025 | Applications due |
| Late April-Early June 2025 | Panel review and artist selection (including interviews) |
| June-August 2025 | Design Phase (including community engagement) |
| September-October 2025 | Fabrication |
| November-December 2025 | Artwork complete and installed |