The Arts Commission Announces New Water Tower Public Art Project; Request for Qualifications Open

The Arts Commission of Greater Toledoʼs Art in Public Places Program, in partnership with the City of Toledoʼs Water Treatment Department, is launching a Request for Qualifications RFQ to select an artist to create designs that will be added to two new water towers in 2026.

The Request for Qualifications is currently open, beginning June 3rd and remaining open until July 1st. The RFQ is open to all artists living within Lucas County, with a focus on selecting an artist with a strong vector based graphic design portfolio. The implementation of selected designs will be executed within the horizontal portion of two water towers by painters recoating the entire water tower surfaces, and specific graphic frameworks will be provided to selected artists to ensure proposed designs meet the criteria for implementation.

The selection process will be led by a Design Review Board (DRB) consisting of members of The Arts Commissionʼs Art in Public Places Committee, City of Toledo Water Treatment Department staff and additional stakeholders. This review board will be tasked with selecting three finalists from the pool of RFQ applicants. These three finalists will then each be commissioned to create final designs for the water towers, and ultimately one artistʼs designs will be selected for completion.

Interested applicants should visit The Arts Commissionʼs website to review the full Request for Qualifications and apply.

Required application submittals include a Letter of Interest, current resume, and relevant visual support materials. Applications will be reviewed competitively by a Design Review Board DRB consisting of members of The Arts Commissionʼs Art in Public Places Committee, City of Toledo Water Treatment Department staff and additional stakeholders.

The Design Review Board will review all submissions and select up to three artists/teams as finalists. The finalists will then be asked to develop and present completed designs, and one artist will ultimately be selected to complete the project.