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For immediate release: June 24, 2009 CONTACT: Joan Jonkel, City of Missoula Public Art Committee PHONE: 728-0345 or 721-1835 E-MAIL: [EMAIL REDACTED] CALL FOR ARTISTS Traffic Signal Box Project The City of Missoula Public Art Committee invites artists residing in Missoula County to apply for a public art project to create art on traffic signal boxes (TSB) located throughout Missoula. The goal of the project is to use local traffic signal boxes as canvases. The Missoula TSB project has been patterned after those implemented with great success by communities throughout the United States and around the world. Artists have colorfully and creatively transformed signal boxes, usually painted gray, in cities ranging from Dublin, Ireland, to Columbia, Missouri. The Missoula Traffic Signal Box Art Project is designed to enhance the city by adding works of art to streetscapes on surfaces that are often targeted by graffiti vandals. Artwork on TSBs functions as a form of communication to a moving audience with the goal of creating a safe, inclusive and interesting environment. Successful proposals will foster community pride and convey the sense of community. Selected designs will also consider the relevance of the image to the project site and consider what makes Missoula unique in its arts, history, music, recreational opportunities, and special attractions. In conjunction with the City of Missoula Public Works Department, the State of Montana Department of Transportation, the Missoula Redevelopment Agency, the Missoula Downtown Association, the Missoula Downtown Business Improvement District, and private donors, at least 10 signal boxes will be selected each year for this multiyear project. The 2009 signal boxes are centered in the Higgins, Broadway, and Brooks areas, each in a location that provides a safe environment for artists to work and maximum visibility for pedestrians and drivers. The total budget for each traffic signal box is $1,000 and includes materials and artist labor. The boxes will be prepared for artists’ applications, and the Missoula Public Art Committee has specified a latex primer, paint, and clear coat with an approximate 25-year lifespan. Artwork to be selected will be major public art commissions. Designs may be executed in paint or applied vinyl. Applications will be evaluated on the basis of artistic and technical merit as well as ---PAGE BREAK--- relevance of proposed design. Applications must be received by July 24, 2009. Commissions will be awarded August 7, 2009. All selected artists will install their works at the same time, on the weekend of August 29-30, 2009. All information, including application materials, park schematics, etc., is available on the City Web site: http://www.ci.missoula.mt.us/index.aspx?NID=854 #