CITY OF MEMPHIS | UrbanArt Commission

BEARWATER GREENLINE | CALL TO ARTISTS

Release Date: Wednesday, October 8th, 2025

Budget: $60,000 (includes three finalist honoraria of $500 each)

Deadline: Monday, November 24, 2025 at 11:59pm

Eligibility: Any artist living and working within the Memphis metropolitan area. Artists are invited to submit collaborative work if desired, but may only submit one proposal per project opportunity. While there is no limit to the number of calls an artist may apply to at once, UAC strongly encourages artists to consider both the time and scale of each call. 

Information Session: Thursday, November 13 @ 5:30pm, RSVP now.


BACKGROUND

About Bearwater Neighborhood:
Bearwater, a neighborhood in North Memphis, received its name from the frequent sight of bears sipping from a stream of water flowing from the Wolf River stream.  During the 1970s and 80s, Bearwater had a booming commercial and retail presence. Bearwater was once filled with multiple convenient stores, barber shops, bars, and lounges along 2nd street. Since much has been done to restore housing development, and currently there are priorities to revitalize the commercial and community spaces for all to enjoy. 

About Bearwater Greenline project:
The City of Memphis, Shelby County, and Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA)  completed the Bearwater Greenline project along N 2nd Street in 2023. The path includes a 125-foot lighted tunnel below the entrance to Grind City Brewing.The Greenline project features spacious walkways, an exercise park, and playground. The proposed tunnel mural project features meaningful art that educates the public and empowers the historically underserved community.

About UAC: 

The UrbanArt Commission (UAC) works to create opportunities for artists and neighborhoods to connect and shape spaces through public art. Since 2002, UAC has managed the City of Memphis’s Percent-For-Art Program, which allocates funds annually to develop public art in connection to capital improvement projects. UAC also facilitates public art projects throughout the city working with various partners and clients to support artists and new experiences with art.

SITE SPECIFICS

The Bearwater Greenline travels north from Hickory Avenue to Washington Park alongside N 2nd Street.

Entrance of Bearwater Greenline

Entrance of Bearwater Greenline

Bearwater Greenline Tunnel

Entrance of Bearwater Greenline

Historical markers that will be featured along the Greenline

Historical markers that will be featured along the Greenline

Historical markers that will be featured along the Greenline

Historical markers that will be featured along the Greenline

SCOPE OF WORK

The UrbanArt Commission (UAC),  Shelby County, and Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) are seeking an artist to create a large-scale, exterior mural.  The proposed tunnel mural project should feature meaningful art that educates the public and empowers the historical Bearwater community.

The selection committee has expressed interest in an exterior mural that:

  • Includes Bearwater in large text

  • Features transportation: Steamboat and Trains (this area was formerly on train tracks)

  • Incorporates designs that are welcoming, uplifting, and inclusive, reflecting both Bearwater’s history and its continued growth.

The commissioned artist/s will be selected based on the strength of their qualifications submitted, ability to adhere to deadlines and work within the stated budget. Applicants are expected to have or collaborate/subcontract with appropriate vendors to meet the necessary technical capabilities to design and install such projects, including providing maintenance instructions. The artist(s) will work with the UAC Program Managers to coordinate community engagement efforts. This engagement should help inform the final design. The finished project must require little to no regular maintenance. Final artwork should complement the characteristics and neighborhood identity of the site. The artist/s selected shall be expected to collaborate closely with site engineers, landscape architects, and any necessary party for the successful installation of the project, including residents. NOTE: Commissioned artists are permitted to work with outside contractors to fabricate the actual work of art. 

PROJECT EXPECTATIONS

A selection committee organized by UAC will review submitted portfolios and will invite finalists to submit site-specific design proposals. All finalists will receive a stipend of $500 for their designs. The selected artist will be expected to work closely with the Selection Committee and UAC to execute the proposed artistic enhancements.

SELECTION COMMITTEE 

  • Andre Jones- Co-Owner of Jones Urban

  • Andy Greenman- CRA

  • Alan Higdon- Community Stakeholder

  • Charia Jackson- CRA

  • Felicia Lloyd- TechFit, Bearwater Resident 

  • Glenn Lloyd- TechFit, Bearwater Resident

  • Hopper Seely- Grind City Brew

  • Rachael Clark-  Bearwater District Neighborhood Association

  • ____________- City of Memphis Engineering Division


*Neighborhood Vote: Collected public votes will serve as one additional selection committee member vote for the final selected artist


PROJECT BUDGET

Total project budget is $60,000, including artist honoraria - up to three finalists will receive a $500 honorarium for a site-specific proposal. Design budget $14,625.00; Fabrication budget $43,875.00 all-inclusive.

PROJECT TIMELINE

Wednesday, October 8, 2025           RFQ released 

Thursday, November 13, 2025           UAC Information Session

Monday, November 24, 2025 at 11:59pm           RFQ deadline 

December 2025                                               Notify finalists of RFP invitation

Spring 2027           Completion celebration

APPLICATION GUIDELINES

Please submit the following materials online by clicking the submit button below.

  • Completed application form

  • A typed letter explaining your interest in the project and your general approach/concept to its design and production. Please do not submit design proposals at this point.

  • Up to 20 images of past work including title of work, date, medium, budget and project partners, if any.

  • Resume or CV, not to exceed 2 pages.

  • List of three professional references, including current phone and email.

  1. Clicking on the Submit button will redirect you to our Submittable page, which contains all of our current open opportunities. Click the Submit button next to the opportunity that you wish to apply for, or if you are already within an opportunity, scroll down to the Create your account / Have an account? Sign in form.

  2. If you already have a Submittable account, click the Have an account? Sign in tab to sign in to your account.

  3. If you don’t have an account, you must create one to apply. Create your free account by filling out the Create your account form. Fill in all information and click the Create Account and Continue button to continue with the submission process.

  4. From there, you will be able to complete and submit your application. You can now use this account login when submitting to all future UAC opportunities. Once you have submitted your application, you will receive a confirmation email that confirms receipt of your full application.

    For more information about this project, please contact:

    Kayla J. Smith-Hardy | Sr. Program Manager

    901.343.6983 | kayla@uacmem.org 

INFORMATION SESSIONS

UAC will host an information session for interested artists on Thursday, November 13th, 2025. The session will be recorded and a link made available to applicants who are unable to attend during that time. Interested artists who have not completed a public art project previously or not completed a project of this scale are strongly encouraged to reach out to the UAC team in advance of submitting their application. Artists may also schedule a meeting with UAC staff to review their application and portfolio. Appointments are available until 1 week prior to the close of the call to artists. See project contact information in the above section. 

RSVP here

DISCLAIMERS

UAC is committed to equity and inclusion in our work. People of color, LGBTQ+ individuals, differently-abled and neurodiverse persons, indigenous peoples, youth, seniors, and women are strongly encouraged to apply. 

Applicants will be notified as to the status of their application. Commissioning of artists by UAC and the pursuit of all UAC activities are implemented without preference to racial or ethnic origins, gender, sexual orientation, religious affiliation, disability, or age.

UAC reserves the right to modify this solicitation and to request additional information from participating artists.

UAC reserves the right to accept or reject, at any time prior to the commissioning of a work, any or all proposals when the acceptance, rejection, waiver or advertisement would be in the best interest of the project. 

The UAC team will be responsible for all correspondence and communication by and between applicants and members of selection panels. Discussion regarding these projects by and between any applicant and any member of a selection panel outside of regularly scheduled meetings during the selection process may be grounds for the disqualification of the applicant. Such determination shall be at the discretion of UAC.

SUBMIT