The City of Tacoma is seeking applications from artists and community groups interesting in participating in the Tacoma Murals Project, which aims to combat blight and vandalism throughout the city by creating murals that reflect positive neighborhood themes or messages.

Adult artists or artist teams who already possess strong artistic skills are needed to work with the community to design and implement high-quality outdoor painted murals in select communities in Tacoma. Mural designs will be based on the lead artists’ aesthetics and based on input from the communities regarding themes or messages. Artists selected through this call to artists will be added to the 2014 Tacoma Murals Project Lead Artist Roster. Community groups approved for a mural in their community through the Tacoma Murals Project will select an artist for their site from this roster of artists, with a limit of one mural per artist. The City of Tacoma will provide mentorship to artists selected from the roster who do not already have extensive outdoor public mural experience. Artists selected from the roster will be paid at a rate of $30 per hour for mural meetings, design and implementation. Artists can expect to invest between 90 and 250 hours in their murals. Applicants must be professional artists, 18 years or older, and available to lead a mural in the summer of 2014. Applicants must also reside in Pierce county or have graduated from the Tacoma Murals Project as either an apprentice artist or lead artist between 2010 and 2013 and been added to the Tacoma Murals Project public roster. The deadline for artist applications is midnight on March 28, 2014.

Community groups who would like an outdoor mural painted at a specific site in their neighborhood to fight blight and combat vandalism are also needed. Each selected community group will receive a funded mural that includes artist supplies and artist compensation, an artist or artist team from a roster provided by the City, technical assistance and general promotion of the project. In return, each selected community group would be responsible for contributing in-kind services and materials as required to prepare their mural wall, participating in the selection of an artist/artist team from a City-provided roster, coordinating community meetings and the dedication of their completed mural, and maintaining their mural after completion. Community groups must, with property owner permission, propose specific mural walls. Proposed mural walls must be on commercial or public property and located within Tacoma city limits. Priority will be given to sites located in areas without a good representation of public art and/or that are highly visible to the public. It is tentatively projected that five mural sites will be selected for 2014. The deadline for community applications is midnight on April 4, 2014.

Twenty-one murals have been completed between 2010 and 2013. More information is available online at cityoftacoma.org/artsopps and here.