public art opportunity: tempe beach park plinth sculpture

Tempe Public Art is accepting qualifications from artists and artist teams in Arizona to create a permanent, site-specific sculpture. The selected artist or artist team will design, fabricate, and install a permanent, three-dimensional, sculptural work located at Tempe Beach Park, directly outside of the bicycle corral on Rio Salado, west of Mill Avenue.    

This opportunity is for one, free-standing work of art to display permanently outdoors. The selected artist or artist team will be asked to create a work of art celebrating the bicycle as a symbol of movement, health, sustainability, and community connection. This artwork will become part of the City’s permanent collection, serving as a landmark while reflecting the community’s commitment to cycling as a means of transit, movement, and connection.   

To be considered, the artwork must fit within the established engineering guidelines for the selected site, be durable, be impervious to weather (unless natural weathering is essential to the concept of the artwork), be low-maintenance, and be suitable in form, material and content for a mixed-age audience. 

PROJECT TIMELINE

• Finalists Notified: February 2026 

• Finalist Proposals and Interviews: March 2026 

• Artist Selected & Contract Issued: March - April 2026 

• Installation: Fall 2026