Request for Qualifications

The City of Bloomington’s Creative Placemaking Commission invite experienced public artists to submit qualifications for design and installation services to transform utility boxes in the South Loop District into creative, exciting, and captivating objects of art that celebrate Bloomington while enhancing the district’s character and vitality.  For the 2025 round of the ARTBOX Project, three locations have been selected. Two of the locations have single utility boxes to be hand painted.  The third location is a cluster of utility boxes with two to be hand painted, four to be vinyl wrapped. 

Budget:  Each selected applicant will receive a $2,000 budget for a single painted utility box. For the cluster of painted and wrapped utility boxes, one selected applicant will receive a $6,000 budget. 

Deadline:  Applications are due: Monday, March 3, 2025 by 11:00 PM CST 

WHERE AND WHY

All utility boxes are in the South Loop District, Bloomington. Applicants will be considered to paint a utility box located at one of these sites: 

• 33rd Avenue and 80 1/2 Street
• 8051 33rd Avenue South

Or a cluster of six utility boxes (two to be hand painted, four to be vinyl wrapped in the artist’s design) located at: 

• Old Shakopee and Killebrew Drive

South Loop is a growing district in the northeastern corner of Bloomington. The area is home to Mall of America, a 50-acre mixed-use development called Bloomington Central Station, and the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge. Initially guided by a 2012 district plan developed by the City of Bloomington, South Loop is quickly evolving into a true neighborhood with 1,100 housing units added in the last 4 years, significant employers like Health Partners and TKDA, expanding high tech facilities like Polar Semiconductor and SICK Sensors, and the addition of new amenities like Hazelwood restaurant and Backstory Coffee. Creative placemaking plays a key role in highlighting the character, assets, and history of the district through public art, programming, and partnerships. For more information, visit  blm.mn/southloop.   

In 2014 the City of Bloomington and Artistry initiated a South Loop District Creative Placemaking Plan acknowledging that the arts and other creative activities can contribute to a more walkable, vibrant, welcoming neighborhood. The goals of the Plan are to create Urbanism, Animation, Involvement, Leadership, and Investment. The ARTBOX Project is just one way to expand on the creative enthusiasm and enjoyment already experienced in the South Loop. In simple yet powerful ways the utility box wraps enhance neighborhoods by helping shape a more animated, distinct place, making the area a more pleasurable place to walk, deterring graffiti and creating elements of surprise and delight.  ARTBOX Projects may reflect on the unique history or assets of Bloomington; celebrate and embrace the City’s diversity; and elicit interest, excitement and enjoyment from people of diverse ages, cultures and backgrounds. 

About Painting Utility Boxes/The Vinyl Wrap Process 

The selected designs will be painted directly on the utility box, except for the four utility boxes in the middle of the cluster which will be vinyl wrapped in a design submitted by the selected artist. If submitting for the cluster of boxes, the design should unify the individual boxes in some way.  Selected artists must adhere to the requirements put forth by Xcel Energy and the City, and owners of the utility boxes.  

For the vinyl wrapped utility boxes: The City will contract with an appropriate vendor to ensure that the vinyl wrapped utility box design is digitally applied to a high-quality product. The vendor will then apply the vinyl to the utility box, using a process similar to applying graphic vinyl to vehicles. Anything that can be copied, scanned, or printed can potentially become a vinyl wrap design (i.e. a painting, photograph of a 3-D object, written words, etc.). Applicants should note that certain areas of utility box cannot be covered by paint or the vinyl wrap including meters, windows, vents, and handles, and as such the design may be affected by the need to keep these elements clear. 

Application Requirements

How to Apply?

Step 1: Submit qualifications by Monday, March 3, 2025, by 11:00 p.m. CST

In addition to your contact information, you will be asked to provide the following:

• Up to one-page letter describing interest in the project, approach to design as well as a statement addressing eligibility criteria.
• Up to one-page biographical information or resume. If you have multiple team members, please provide brief biographical information on each essential member but do not exceed one page.
• Work Samples: up to 5 images of your recent projects (at least one of which should be for a commissioned piece that reflects an outdoor public artwork or mural which was completed in the past ten years). 1,200 pixels or greater on the longest side, less than 5 MB in size, with a sRGB color profile.

Do not submit a project proposal or design at this time. 

Applications must be received no later than Monday, March 3, 2025 by 11:00 PM CST. 

Step 2: Selection of finalists – Notification by March 21, 2025

The submitted qualifications will be reviewed and scored by a selection panel potentially consisting of Bloomington’s Creative Placemaking Commissioners, stakeholders, community members, and/or artists.  One artist/team will be selected per location and commissioned to complete the ARTBOX project. 

Artists will be selected based on the following equally weighted criteria: 

1. Quality of letter of interest, and an understanding of the project description and goals;
2. Quality and relevance of work samples;
3. Connection to Bloomington or Minnesota.

All applicants will receive notification of the panel’s decision by March 21, 2025.

The 2025 ARTBOX Project Timeline

RFQ – Qualifications Due:  Monday, March 3, 2025 by 11:00 PM CST   

Finalists Selected and Notification sent to Applicants: by Friday, March 21, 2025 

ARTBOX Installations: Summer 2025 

Eligibility Criteria

This Request for Qualifications (RFQ) is open to experienced public artists/teams that have completed at least one outdoor artwork or mural in the past ten years, who are at least 18 years or older, and residents of Minnesota. Priority consideration will be given to Bloomington residents. Previously accepted ARTBOX artists will not be considered to provide others an opportunity to display work.