The Towson Chamber of Commerce is inviting artists to submit proposals for a mural to be erected at the Towson Public Library, located at 320 York Road.
BUDGET: unavailable (include desired fee in proposal)
ELIGIBILITY: Professional artists
DEADLINE: April 30, 2020
Review full RFQ and site images here.
About Towson, Maryland
Towson is home to local government, two universities, and three prestigious medical institutions. It is a vibrant college town, with a developing downtown art, music, and film scene.
About the Project Sponsors
The Towson Chamber of Commerce, Inc. is a private, nonprofit business organization founded in 1964 to plan a program of action to enhance the Towson Community. The Chamber represents more than 350 businesses that are concerned with making Towson a better place to live, work and visit. Our mission is to strengthen existing businesses as well as to help new ventures in Towson succeed. The Chamber appreciates the assistance of the Towson Creative Partnership.
The Towson Creative Partnership (TCP) is part of the Towson Chamber of Commerce. Its mission is to utilize public art to strengthen and diversify Towson’s downtown economy while connecting surrounding communities through a creative urban landscape.
About the Towson Public Library
William Boulton “Bo” Kelly, Jr., a Baltimore architect, preservationist and civic leader, was the architect of this three-story brick and concrete building, featuring a tower-like rotunda. The architectural style of the building, Brutalist or Brutalism, emerged from Europe after WWII. The library is one of two Brutalist buildings in Towson (the County Courts Building on Bosley is the other). Many of the federal buildings around L’Enfant Plaza in DC are also in this style, featuring bold, structurally innovative forms that use raw concrete as their primary material. At once recognizable for their massing and materiality, Brutalist buildings often reveal the means of their construction through unfinished surfaces that bear the imprints of the molds that shaped them. The name for the style is most commonly attributed to Swiss-French architect Le Corbusier (born Charles-Édouard Jeanneret-Gris), who specified béton brut (concrete that is raw or unfinished) in his Unitéd’Habitation apartment buildings, the first of which was completed in Marseille in 1952. Architecture critic Reyner Banham spread the term more broadly through his writings on the work of British architects Alison and Peter Smithson, whose work focused on raw materiality and an industrial aesthetic.
Project Description
The Towson Chamber of Commerce, working with The Towson Creative Partnership, is pleased to announce a CALL FOR ARTISTS for the design and production of a large scale mural to cover the west facing facade of the Baltimore County Library located in Towson MD.
The mural is a unique opportunity for an artist to merge creative vision into classic modern architectural elements. The proposed mural(s) will be at a critical location where a large-scale mixed-use development, now under construction, will mark the south entry into downtown Towson.
Funding for this project is provided through the Maryland State Community Legacy Grant. The Towson Chamber of Commerce thanks the State of Maryland and Baltimore County for supporting public art in downtown Towson.
Artwork Description
The mural will be erected on the west exterior walls of the Baltimore County Public Library, Towson Branch, located at 320 York Road. There are five walls that consist of sprayed textured concrete measuring space, roughly 1800 square feet (additional space also available). The mural will be hung on the York Rd. Side of the Towson Public Library. There are 5 ½ panels that reaches approximately 90’ across and 22’ high, starting approximately 10’ from the bottom to avoid potential vandalism. It should be noted the workspace is not a contiguous wall but a front facade constructed as separate panels. The Library is constructed in the Brutalist style and was built in 1974.
Theme
There is no specific theme required. The theme for the mural is open for consideration to include the Towson community, Maryland, the Library’s mission, or its position as the “Gateway of Towson.” No preferred artist style or other parameters are specified for the mural image. It can be realistic or abstract or some combination.
Timeline
Based on the ongoing threat of the coronavirus, all deadlines are subject to change.
Selection Process
All proposals that meet the Chamber’s qualifications are reviewed and selected by a panel of judges from the County, the Library, the Towson Creative Partnership and the Chamber. An artist will be selected on MAY 18, 2020 to execute and display their mural for a projected to be started JUNE 30 and completed by AUGUST 31, 2020.*
Selection Criteria
Selection criteria include presentation, originality and vision, cost, and the capacity/experience of the artist to reliably complete the project.
What to Submit
How to Submit
This opportunity requires BOTH a digital AND a physical submission.
Digital Submission:
Submit digital versions of all materials to this Google drive. Please call the Towson Chamber of Commerce at (410) 825-1144 prior to uploading.
Physical Submission:
Mail documents and physical slides or printed photographs in a 9” x 12” document envelope to 44 West Chesapeake Ave., Towson MD 21204 .
QUESTIONS? Contact info@towsonchamber.com
