Request for Qualifications: Sculptural Public Art Commissions, Town of Whitby

Image: Unnamed Park, Town of Whitby

STEPS Public Art and the Town of Whitby invite Canadian artists with a connection to Ontario, to submit qualifications for new sculptural public artwork

Submission Deadline: September 7, 2025 at 11:59pm ET

The public art sculptures will be selected through an open, two-stage competition, with a total budget of approximately $50,000 CAD (HST inclusive) per artwork. The project budget includes all costs directly associated with the artwork: including fees for design, fabrication, shipping, installation, engineering and professional services, insurance, permits, travel, foundation and other incidental and production expenses.

Each site has desired themes to help artists direct and focus their proposals and designs. These include:

• Unnamed Park (Official name forthcoming) – woodland animals, whimsical, colourful materials
• Brooklin Horticultural Society Garden – garden, horticulture, metal/steel to complement existing materials

Following a competitive Selection Panel process, up to six (6) shortlisted artists will be paid an honorarium of $750 CAD (HST inclusive) to develop a design concept for one (1) site. Shortlisted artists will be assigned sites by the Selection Panel to create detailed proposals. Further information on the above themes will be provided to shortlisted artists. The sites will be described in detail in the Terms of Reference for shortlisted artists. Artwork installation should take place no later than September 30, 2026. Applying artists should be aware and ready to commit to this tighter fabrication and installation schedule.

Visit the website for full opportunity and application details.

Image: Brooklin Horticultural Society Garden, Town of Whitby

Community Background

Whitby, Ontario is located on the traditional lands of the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation, which is covered under the Williams Treaties, the traditional territory of the Mississaugas, a branch of the greater Anishinaabeg Nation, which includes Algonquin, Ojibway, Odawa and Pottawatomi.

The Town of Whitby is located in the Regional Municipality of Durham, on the North shore of Lake Ontario. It sits approximately 40 km east of the centre of Toronto and is part of the Greater Toronto Area. Whitby is a rapidly growing community, with a population of over 135,000. The population is expected to grow by over 40% in the next 11 years, making the community one of the fastest growing municipalities in Ontario. Whitby has both a small town atmosphere and abundant urban amenities, where residents enjoy being on the Lake Ontario waterfront and having access to over 100 parks, 60 km of trails and over 1,000 acres of open spaces and beaches. The Town includes two historic downtowns and offers many recreation programs, events and festivals.

Eligibility and Two-Stage Competition

This is a two-stage, open competition for Canadian artists who are from Ontario or have a connection to Ontario. Per the Canada Council’s guidelines, a professional artist is defined as someone who meets one or all of the following criteria:

• has specialized artistic training (not necessarily in academic institutions);
• is recognized as a professional by their peers (artists working in the same artistic tradition);
• has a history of public exhibitions; and/or
• has produced an independent body of work.

A specially convened Selection Panel, composed of practicing arts professionals and community members, will be established for this two-stage competition:

• Stage One: Expression of Interest
• Stage Two: Shortlisted Artist Proposal Development

Submissions

Professional artists and artistic teams are invited to respond to this RFQ by submitting a single PDF document. This PDF document must include:

1. Contact Information: Including full name, business name (if applicable), mailing address, telephone, and email. Teams must identify one artist to be the Town of Whitby’s primary contact for the team, as well as contact information for each artist on the team.

2. Letter of Intent: 1-page maximum. Outline your artistic experience, ability, approach and interest in this project, highlighting relevant experience. Please note any connection to Ontario and/or understanding of the neighbourhood in which the artworks would be installed. Do not include proposals at this stage of the competition.

3. Curriculum Vitae (CV): 3-page maximum. Detail professional experience as an artist, past public art experience, and other information relevant to this RFQ. If applying as an artist team, please identify all team members and include a CV for each.

4. Artistic Support Material: Maximum of ten (10) images of work. For each image, provide a title and image number.

5. Support Material List: A written list that clearly outlines the Artistic Support Material (above) with corresponding titles and numbers. Include the following details in order of: Title, date, location, commissioning agent (if applicable), budget, dimensions, medium/materials and a brief description of the works (maximum 50 words).

6. References: Names and contact information (current email and phone number) for two (2) references (preferably from recent public art projects). Please identify their role and affiliation in the project. Reference letters are not required.

How to Apply

View the full opportunity and apply by September 7, 2025 at 11:59pm ET. Incomplete and/or late applications will not be accepted. Applications must be submitted via Google Forms—emailed, faxed or mailed applications will not be accepted. It is your responsibility to ensure the application package is complete and submitted by the posted deadline. Final submissions must not exceed 20 MB in total size.

Questions and requests for clarification will be received by email until August 27, 2025 at 11:59pm ET. Applicants who need accommodations or support applying for this opportunity are encouraged to contact Collin Zipp at collin@stepspublicart.org at least 10 business days before the application deadline to allow STEPS to appropriately accommodate your needs and to discuss alternate formats for submitting your application.

Contact

Collin Zipp, Public Art Manager
P: 1-888-783-7780 ext. 704
E: collin@stepspublicart.org

STEPS Public Art
stepspublicart.org