2021 Lead Artists for NYC Health + Hospitals Community Murals Project

Request for Qualifications (RFQ)

Lead Artists for NYC Health + Hospitals Community Murals Project

NYC Health + Hospitals Arts in Medicine

Summary:

NYC Health + Hospitals Arts in Medicine (AIM), with support from the Laurie M. Tisch Illumination Fund and the Mayor's Fund to Advance New York City, is seeking a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for lead artists to work on the NYC Health + Hospitals Community Murals Project (CMP). Continuing the tradition established in the 1930s when the Works Progress Administration supported hundreds of murals across New York City’s public hospitals, the CMP will connect artists and local community members to re-imagine hospitals and promote greater neighborhood wellness.

Visual artists will engage with patients, staff, and local residents to create an integrated internal or external mural at selected NYC Health + Hospitals facilities. The aim of the program is to use a collaborative mural making process as a tool to build trust and engagement between the hospitals and their communities, build neighborhood pride, and reduce the stigma associated with hospitals through community building activities.

Proposed themes can include:

Heart & Soul
Health Care Heroes
​Power of Community
Thrive
Grit

NYC Health + Hospitals Arts in Medicine anticipates selecting nine (9) professional visual artists to work closely with nine (9) NYC Health + Hospitals facilities to engage staff and community members in a participatory design process and to create and install nine (9) health themed murals. Murals will be installed in both internal and external locations at the facilities, all of which will be highly visible public areas. This collaboration will last from February 1, 2021 through July 31, 2021. This RFQ is soliciting nine (9) professional visual artists that have a portfolio of work executing large-scale murals, have connections with the boroughs and communities of New York City, and experience facilitating workshops and events that engage diverse communities in the creative process.

Project Budget:
The Project Budget is $8,000.00 per location for artist fees including design services, community engagement, site preparation, fabrication, travel, and installation. NYC Health + Hospitals AIM will provide any necessary supplies, permits, insurance, and documentation. NYC Health + Hospitals Arts in Medicine Department will execute a deliverables-based MOU valued at $8,000.00 with the lead artist. Lead artists will be paid 1/2 upfront, and 1/2 upon completion. NYC Health + Hospitals Arts in Medicine Department will cover all costs related to art supplies and additional materials for workshops and community events, equipment for the installation, special insurance, permits for mural sites and other relevant costs relating to the production of the murals.

Who May Apply:
Professional visual artists or artist teams working in any media, legally authorized to work in the United States, and who are at least 18 years of age, are eligible to apply. Artists with ties to neighborhoods and communities of the participating NYC Health + Hospitals facilities are encouraged to apply, as well as artists with experience in community engagement practices. NYC Health + Hospitals is committed to the values of inclusion and advancing diversity in the field of arts and health. We highly encourage applicants that are traditionally underrepresented* to submit to this RFQ.

*Including, but not limited to: Immigrant, Indigenous, LGBTQIA, Person of Color, Person with Disability, Socioeconomic Disadvantage)

The project period will occur from February 1, 2021 through July 31, 2021.  

Deadline for Submission of RFQ:

Friday, January 29, 2021 at 11:59pm EDT

**Late applications may be disqualified from considerations.** 

Finalist Interviews will be held during of February 8 and February 12, 2021.

Selected artists will be notified on February 15, 2021

Project Locations:

Please choose at least one or as many preferred locations:

(Size of each mural will not exceed 300 square feet)

Harlem Hospital (Interior Wall)
506 Lenox Ave, New York, NY 10037

Segundo Ruiz Belvis (Interior Wall)
545 East 142 St, Bronx, NY 10454

Gotham/Morrisania (Interior Wall)
1225 Gerard Avenue, Bronx, NY 10452

Gotham Health, St. Nicholas
281 West 127th Street, New York, NY 10027

East New York (Interior Wall)
2094 Pitkin Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11207

Gotham Health, Dyckman-Clinica de Las Americas
175 Nagle Avenue, New York, NY 10034

Cumberland (Interior Wall)
100 N Portland Ave, Brooklyn NY 11205

Gotham Vanderbilt (Interior Wall)
165 Vanderbilt Ave, Staten Island, NY 10304

Sydenham (Interior Wall)
264 118th St, New York, NY 10026

Project Calendar:
Mural Artists will be required to be on site for 5 public events, plus additional days to present to the facility CEO, prepare mural panels before the Paint Party, finish painting after the Paint Party, and installation. Time required for preparation, finishing, and installation will be dependent on mural size and detail.

Each mural project will be executed over a period of three (3) months, on a rolling basis from February 8, 2021 through December 31, 2021. The NYC Health + Hospitals facility will choose their start date and mural artists may be paired accordingly.

All mural artists will be required to attend virtual training and onboarding in February 2021, exact date TBD.

Artists are expected to develop mural concepts, themes, imagery through engaging with the H + H staff, patients, and greater community during virtual Focus Groups and CEO Presentation. Designs will not be considered final until approved by the facility CEO. The CEO will be asked to limit rounds of revisions to a maximum of two (2).

View calendar and more information via this link.