Call Description

The City of San Rafael invites artists and artist teams to apply for multiple mural projects located in the city’s Arts District. Downtown San Rafael has been designated one of 14 California Cultural Arts Districts by the California Arts Council (CAC). The city’s goal is to enhance the aesthetic and vibrancy of its public spaces by incorporating a diverse and engaging body of public art. 

The City is seeking to commission new permanent mural artworks on public property at 3 key locations. Depending on the location of each mural site, some areas may require hand-painting onsite while others may be considered for offsite preparation, for example - mosaic, tile, or polytab material. The artwork should add a fresh contemporary aesthetic to complement the City’s existing public art portfolio.

Looking for varied artistic styles and themes. The goal is to create a contemporary body of public artwork that is diverse and well-executed. Drawing inspiration from San Rafael and the surrounding region is ideal, even if abstracted. We encourage styles and themes of subject matter not already heavily portrayed in the current public art collection of San Rafael. Here is a link to the current public art in the City for reference. All designs must be appropriate for public viewing, and adhere to the City of San Rafael’s Public Art Guidelines.

The artworks commissioned will:

●    Be of high artistic quality in terms of originality of concept and artistic vision

●    Work with the location setting, architectural design elements, and be appropriate in scale, media, and context

●    Contribute to San Rafael's appeal as the arts and culture epicenter of Marin County

●    Be made with high quality materials that can be maintained over time

●    The artwork installation can reasonably be accomplished in under 21 days

Finalist artists will only be selected for one location. Artist/Artist Team Stipend: $5,000 up to $30,000 each, varies per location. The artist stipend includes all artist and artist subcontractor fees for mural materials (paints, tiles, supplies, etc.), meeting and administration hours, mural installation labor, travel, mileage, per diem, and insurance. The following will be provided at no cost to the artist: city permits, surface preparation of pressure washing, a primer coating may be applied (if necessary) before the installation of the mural, and a protective coating will be applied to the mural upon completion of installation. One location will require scaffolding which will also be provided at no cost to the artist.

 APPLICATION DEADLINE: July 25, 2025; 5:00 PM PT

TIMING

The table below describes the estimated timeline from the application process through the artwork installation completion deadline.

Application Requirements

All applications must be submitted through CAFÉ. Applications that do not meet the requirements and are not submitted through CAFÉ will not be accepted. Artists must submit the following:

Statement of Interest:

• What draws you to this project and why? Your artist statement is a key part of the review process. Be intentional; it does not need to be longer than around than 200 words
• Please note in your application which location you desire for consideration. If you would like to be considered for any of the locations, note this in your application as well.
• Include a paragraph briefly describing how you might approach the design for the mural location you are applying for.

Resume or CV:

• A paragraph about you, your artistic focus, qualifications, and something about you that isn’t necessarily art-related. Provide insight to complement your resume.
• If you are applying as a team, please include your team/studio resume.

Examples of mural work:

• Upload 3-6 images of your previous work.
• Acceptable file types: .jpg, .png, .pdf. Please ensure your uploaded images are good quality and large enough to see detail, 1MB to 5MB.
• Include dimensions, year completed, medium, and the project location for each image.
• Proposals or renderings will not be accepted.
• You may link to a short video of a project as well (under ten seconds in length).

ARTIST SELECTION PROCESS

The curatorial team comprises the City of San Rafael, the stakeholders of the Downtown San Rafael Arts District, and Local Edition Creative - the City’s public art program facilitator. Artist finalists will be determined by the curatorial team based on application completeness, project criteria, and artist qualifications.

Two (2) artist finalists will be selected by the curatorial team for each mural location. Each candidate will be provided with a stipend of $1,250.00 to develop a fully rendered design. Completed designs must be delivered in a hi-res digital format as a final proposal with the artwork narrative. The proposals will be displayed at open public forums for community input and the final artists will be selected upon conclusion of the forums. Final artist notification is anticipated to be at the end of October or Early November 2025.

Click On Map To See Each Location's Street View. Site Plan Images Are Attached On This Call As Well.

GOOGLE MAP

(For the location at C St & 3rd St Garage: Must have experience installing a mural on scaffolding of at least 2-stories high - see site plan and link to Google Maps).

QUESTIONS?

Questions about this call can be submitted via email until 12pm PST on the application deadline date. Please contact info@localeditioncreative.com with the subject line: San Rafael Call For Muralists.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility is open to artists and artist teams residing in California. Artists residing in Marin County and the Greater San Francisco Bay Area are highly encouraged to apply.

●      Previous experience designing and installing murals; particularly public murals

●      For the location at C St & 3rd St Garage: Must have experience installing a mural on scaffolding of at least 2-stories high

●      If selected, must be available to install the artwork during dates to be determined between mid-April 2026 and June 2026.