Centre City Banner Program 2023 – 2025
Program Overview
Calgary Arts Development and The City of Calgary invite artists to submit qualifications for consideration in the design of banner artworks to be installed on streetlight poles on six bridges and streets in the downtown area.
Up to three artists will be selected through this Call to Artists. Each artist will create six original designs which will be displayed on banners across the city centre for approximately one year. Selected artists will work collaboratively with Calgary Arts Development and The City to develop to develop a concept that considers different characteristics of Calgary, and the downtown communities in which the banners will be displayed. For detailed information, download the Call to Artists below.
Designs to be installed between 2023 – 2025.
This call is open to visual artists residing within the City of Calgary (or surrounding areas within a 75 km radius and strong connections to Calgary).
Total artist budget: $7,000 CAD (not including GST)
Information Session
Applying to the Centre City Banner Program? Join us for two online Artist Information Sessions, held through Zoom, on the following dates:
- July 19, 2022, 10:00am
- August 2, 2022, 6:00pm
Register for the information sessions here.
The purpose of this session is to provide more context about the program, its specific goals, and criteria. It will also provide some approaches, examples and questions that might be helpful to consider when determining if you will apply and how best to do so.
Project Timeline
September 2022: Artist selection
September 2022: First artist contracted end
October 2022: Artwork development
January 2023: Artwork approvals
February 2023: Artwork to printer
May 2023: Installation
September 2023: Second artist contracted
May 2024: Installation
September 2024: Third artist contracted
May 2025: Installation
Commitment to Equity
We acknowledge that we are on the traditional territory of the Blackfoot Nations — Siksika, the Piikani and the Kainai; and also acknowledge the Beaver people of the Tsuut’ina and the Bearspaw, Chiniki and Wesley bands of the Stoney Nakoda First Nations, the Métis People of Region 3, and Indigenous people who make the Treaty 7 region their home.
As part of our responsibility to Calgarians to ensure equitable access to public funding, Calgary Arts Development is dedicated to addressing and working to eliminate institutional inequity in our programs, policies, and practices. We also acknowledge that our actions — both conscious and unconscious, past and present — have benefited some communities while limiting opportunities and outcomes for others including Indigenous communities, Black communities, persons of colour, persons with disabilities, Deaf communities, as well as persons with diverse sexual orientations or gender identities.
We envision a city where all artists have the freedom, agency and platform to share and amplify their stories, art, cultures and experiences: a city where Calgarians of all backgrounds can access, create and participate in art as part of their everyday lives.
To that end, Calgary Arts Development’s community investment team is accountable to ensuring that lines of communication are welcoming, clear and open, and that the scoring process is fair and deeply considerate. We will work one-on-one with applicants who experience barriers to access to develop accommodations that suit their unique abilities and situations and continually seek to learn and address inequities in our programs and processes.
Learn more about our commitment to equity here.
Eligibility
This call is open to visual artists residing within the City of Calgary, or surrounding communities. We encourage submissions from artists that are typically underrepresented, including BIPOC (Black, Indigenous and People of Colour), LGBTQIA2S+ identifying individuals, Deaf persons, and persons with disabilities. Artists should live in/near Calgary to work with the project team as travel is not provided.
We welcome artists at various stages of their careers to apply. Experience working with commissions, project teams, and managing similar sized budgets and projects is an asset, but not a requirement.
Accessibility
We recognize that barriers to access exist for many artists who are interested in applying. Calls to Artists are written in English, shared online, and require applicants to submit online applications, documents, and reports in English. This creates technological, linguistic, communication and cultural barriers, to name a few.
In recognition of these barriers to access, eligible applicants can request assistance to help alleviate some of the costs associated with preparing and submitting an application.
Who can Request Assistance?
Applicants who self-identify as:
- Deaf, hard of hearing, Blind, loss of sight, have a disability or live with a mental illness
- Facing language or cultural barriers
Email: publicart@calgaryartsdevelopment.com
Phone: 403.264.5330 ext. 221.
How to Apply
Applications are accepted through our online grant interface. The application form will be available on the date the program opens. Applicants must create a user profile in order to apply. Artist collectives and organizations must create a profile that is separate from their individual account in the grant interface and apply through their collective or organization account.
To apply from our online grant interface visit calgaryartsdevelopment.smartsimple.ca.
Questions
If you require any assistance with your online application, please email publicart@calgaryartsdevelopment.com.
Staff are available to assist with your application up to one week prior to the submission deadline.
We are dedicated to inclusion, access and openness in the application process. If you require accommodation with the submission of your application, please contact us to determine alternative formats. Submission accommodation may include ASL video applications, audio applications, connection to language translation services, or use of an alternative file transfer service.
Please contact us at least two weeks prior to the submission deadline.
For more information about the call to artists and application assistance, review the attached PDF’s.
