Call for Artists

Expression of Interest: Rockcliffe Riverine Flood Mitigation Project Phase 1 Public Art Opportunity

Artists are invited to submit expressions of interest for a public art opportunity for Phase 1 of the Rockcliffe Riverine Flood Mitigation Project in the City of Toronto. 

This opportunity is for one Artist/Artist Team to engage in the collaborative development of an artwork concept to be integrated within landscape and architectural elements of Jane St and Scarlett Rd bridge sites, located within the Rockcliffe-Smythe neighbourhood. The artist selected through this process will be working collaboratively with Stantec Landscape Architects to develop site specific artwork concepts for all or some of the site opportunities identified below. 

This call is open to professional Artists/Artist teams from Canada. Given the collaborative nature of this approach and the anticipated need for public engagement at key moments in concept development, it is highly recommended that interested artists be able to spend time in person at the site/in the neighbourhood or have a local representative able to do so on their behalf. 

This call adheres to the Ontario Arts Council definition of professional artist.

This opportunity is the first phase in a program of upcoming public art opportunities that will be located within future phases of the Rockcliffe Flood Mitigation Project site.  

The flood mitigation initiative for Phase 1 of the project involves replacing the Jane Street and Scarlett Road Bridges over Black Creek to enable channel widening at these locations. These replacements, along with related works (i.e. associated up stream and down stream channel modification and tie in, surrounding trails and landscape reconstruction, etc.) are aimed at long-term flood prevention for the surrounding urban area which includes residential, commercial and recreational uses.

Smythe Park, located between Scarlett Road and Jane Street, is a vibrant stretch of parkland with an outdoor public pool, and popular playgrounds. The park is home to the Oasis stormwater ponds, which support diverse wildlife, including turtles, snakes, birds, and foxes. Turtle Protectors actively work in this area to safeguard breeding grounds, highlighting its ecological importance.

This project offers a unique opportunity for artwork that raises environmental awareness, honours Indigenous histories and traditional territories, and integrates into the natural surroundings and has a unique mix between perceived green space, and a highly synthetic engineered channel.

Budget:

The art budget for this opportunity is a minimum $356,650 CAD excl HST, plus contingency up to 30%. This budget covers all fees and the production associated with bespoke design and manufacture. It does not cover the base cost of an infrastructure element into which the art concept may be integrated. 

Selection Process:

This artist selection process will be facilitated by ART+PUBLIC UnLtd, in consultation with a jury of independent art experts and representatives from the project team. 

Stage 1: From this call, the jury will be reviewing submissions against the following criteria: 

  • Demonstrates understanding of the opportunity

  • Experience working both independently and collaboratively within a professional context

  • Examples of past work demonstrate artistic excellence, are relevant to the project objectives and demonstrate the ability and readiness to expand and scale the work into a public commission. 

A short list of up to five (5) Artists/Artist teams will be selected. 


Stage 2: Shortlisted artists will be provided a high-level project brief and will be invited to an online interview with the project team. During this interview, artists will be asked to speak about their past work, practice and approach to this opportunity. Shortlisted artists will be paid an honorarium of $600 excl HST for their presentation and development of a proposed approach. Interviews will be held mid April, 2025.


Artists are NOT asked to make a proposal at this time.

This Call is open to all professional artists. We encourage artists that are Indigenous, Black, people of colour, women, 2SLGBTQ+, people with disabilities, and members of other marginalized communities to apply.

Submissions Requirements:

Please send submissions as one PDF to admin@artpluspublic.com and include the subject line: Application - Phase 1, Rockcliffe Riverine Flood Mitigation Project. Submissions must not exceed 20 MB total size.

Interested artists are asked to submit the following together as one file:

  • Expression of interest statement (max 1 page text)

  • CV

  • Images of recent relevant work (max 10)

  • Image list (title, year, medium, dimensions)

  • References (names, contact details of up to three individuals who would be prepared to provide a reference)

Submissions are due on Thursday, February 20th, by noon EST. Shortlisted artists will be selected and notified in the Spring of 2025.