Call for Artists: Public Art for New BC Children’s Hospital Centre for Health Complexity, Vancouver

Future BC Children’s Hospital centre for health complexity at Slocan Street and East 21st Avenue in Vancouver, BC.

Call for Expressions of Interest for Public Art Now Open

BC Children’s Hospital Centre for Health Complexity, Vancouver, BC
Extended Deadline: December 31, 2025

This call for expressions of interest is being issued as the first in a two-stage competition to select a qualified artist to design, supply, deliver, and install a permanent public art piece in a designated landscaped area at the future BC Children’s Hospital centre for health complexity. Only professional artists who either (a) reside in British Columbia or the Yukon, or (b) are members of Indigenous Nations whose traditional territories include, span, or intersect with these regions, are eligible to apply.

About the BC Children’s Hospital Centre for Health Complexity

The future BC Children’s Hospital centre for health complexity is being developed on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and səlil̓ilw̓ətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations, with gratitude and respect for their ongoing stewardship of these lands. The centre, located at 3644 Slocan Street in Vancouver, is set to open in early 2028. It will be the first of its kind in Canada and will serve the most medically complex children in BC and the Yukon, and their families. To learn more about the centre and medical complexity in children, visit the BC Children’s Hospital website.

Green space to the north of the future BC Children’s Hospital centre for health complexity, where the public art piece will be located.

Material Opportunities and Limitations

Durable, low-maintenance materials must be used for this commission. Wood is not an option. During site excavation, several impressive granite erratics were uncovered and have been reserved as potential material for use by the artist. This material, sourced from the land and deposited on the site during the last Ice Age, offers enormous potential and is an opportunity to honour Indigenous place-based artistic traditions.

Candidates interested in this project should clearly indicate their skill and experience in working with stone.

Eligibility and Requirements

Opportunity is restricted to professional artists who are residents of British Columbia or the Yukon, or who are members of Indigenous Nations whose traditional territories include or intersect with these regions.

Proponents must meet the definition of professional artist as outlined by the Canada Council as an individual trained in the art field, recognized by their peers as an artist, and demonstrating a history of public exhibition as an artist. We are also seeking artists with experience in the design and creation of permanent, exterior artwork.

Indigenous artists (including First Nations, Inuit, and Métis) are encouraged to apply, as well as Black artists, artists of Colour, LGBTQIA2S+ artists, artists with disabilities, and artists from other equity-seeking communities who meet the residency requirement.

Selection Process

This call for expressions of interest comprises the first of a two-stage competition. The stages are as follows:

• Stage One: Expressions of Interest
  Interested artists are invited to submit their credentials. No payment is made for the submission. Artists must not submit ideas nor offer works for sale at this stage.
• Stage Two: Juried Interviews
  The jury (made up of local artists and owner representatives) and the public art working group (made up of patients/families, neighbours, clinical and operational staff at BC Children’s Hospital, the design-builder, and project team members) will interview up to three artist candidates to select the commissioned artist.

The jury and working group include a professional Indigenous artist/curator and representatives from PHSA’s Indigenous Health team, who will participate fully in deliberations to ensure that decision making reflects cultural safety, authenticity, and reconciliation values.

Opportunity Brief and Application Form

To receive an application form and the opportunity brief, please email Karen Mills, public art consultant at: mills.karen@gmail.com.

Extended Deadline: December 31, 2025, 5pm PST

Late submissions will not be opened. Only artists selected to advance to the second stage of the competition will be contacted. Thank you for your interest.

Project Website: www.bcchildrens.ca/about-us/current-projects/centre-health-complexity