public art project: montbello central park

Introduction

The City of Denver’s Public Art Program seeks to commission artists and artist teams to design original artworks for the shade structure ceiling in Montbello Central Park (see Fig. 1). Selected artists or artist teams will be responsible for design only. The fabrication and installation of the panels will be provided by a separate project vendor. Successful artists or artist teams must demonstrate an ability to work collaboratively, be responsive, flexible, and work under a quick timeline. The commission amount for designing original artworks will be $50,000 USD per artist or artist team.

About Montbello Central Park Project

In 2017, Denver voters approved the Elevate Denver Bond to improve and update parkwide systems. Denver Parks & Recreation (DPR), implemented several improvements at Montbello Central Park in 2022. These improvements included a new irrigation system, converting aging sidewalks from asphalt to concrete, creating new picnic areas as well as bicycle pump track, and pedestrian lighting throughout the park. The park is bounded by Montbello High School, Maxwell Elementary School, and residential areas.

Goals, Site, Media & Materials

The selection panel members have set forth specific goals and parameters for this public art project with the hope of creating unique and inspiring pedestrian-scaled works of art for the diverse communities that utilize Montbello Central Park.

Goals:

• Artworks should be colorful and engaging.
• Artworks should celebrate and be inclusive to all park visitors and families.
• Artworks should be engaging and help amplify the stories of the area. It is imperative that any artistic representation accurately reflect the community’s heritage and narratives, honoring its past and present contributions.
• Artists should possess excellent group facilitation skills and be enthusiastic about working with nearby community members, particularly elders and youth, to finalize their designs. Community collaborations and submissions are encouraged!
• The panel strongly encourages emerging, studio, and 2D artists who have a connection to the Montbello neighborhood to apply.

Artwork Site

The panel has identified the ceiling of the Montbello Central Park shade structure as the location for artwork. Images of the space are provided at the end of this document (see Fig. 1). Finalists will have the opportunity to meet with the art selection panel as well as Denver Parks & Recreation staff, Denver Public Art staff, and other members of the project team to receive more specific information about the site and project.

Media & Materials:

Selected designs will be etched, cut, or printed onto metal panels. This work will be performed by a vendor chosen by the project team. Artists are not responsible for the fabrication but will be asked to collaborate with the vendor to achieve best results. Designs may be created using any two-dimensional medium, including drawing, painting, printmaking, photography, graphic design and typography. Selected artists will be asked to consider certain limitations of the fabrication process when finalizing designs. Final designs must be provided digitally in the format and resolution acceptable to the fabricator. We are not seeking three-dimensional artworks or other integrations with the shade structure currently.