Artist Call: Reflecting Raleigh

Artist's Focus

Raleigh’s Next Comprehensive Plan should reflect and be accessible to all Raleigh residents. Traditional engagement processes and plans have limitations that often only capture the opinions of a portion of Raleigh residents and use language that isolates those less familiar with the planning process. The Artist in Residence will work with Planning Staff to:

• Ensure a diverse set of opinions is captured and reflected in the future plan.
• Use illustrations, written materials, or other visual media to convey planning topics and the Plan’s goals in a way that is accessible and engaging to the public. 

Eligibility

• This opportunity is open to individuals and teams who live or work in the Triangle Area.
• Applicants must be legally authorized to work in the United States and have unexpired documents that establish employment eligibility.
• Applicants must be at least 18 years of age.
• Applicants must have at least a three-year history of professional practice.
• Applicants must have demonstrated experience in design through the creation of high-quality work.
• Lead applicant cannot be enrolled in an undergraduate course of study in the visual arts as of January 1, 2026.

Budget

The 9-month residency budget is up to $20,000 inclusive of all expenses, including: community engagement, concept and final designs, proposals, travel, taxes, and fees. Additional costs or fees associated with the project can be negotiated during the residency as needed.

Project Overview

The City of Raleigh’s Planning & Development Department is in the process of drafting Raleigh’s Next Comprehensive Plan. The new plan will provide guidance for how the City develops and grows into the year 2050. The process of developing the Next Plan, publicly known as Reflecting Raleigh, began in 2024 and will be complete in 2027. Learn more about the Reflecting Raleigh process and timeline.

Artist Call

Raleigh Planning and Development is seeking an artist-in-residence to assist with community engagement sessions and to create public art encompassing the major themes of the next Comprehensive Plan.  

The artist will begin collaborating with staff during phase 3 and continue support through phase 4 of the project.

Plan Drafting: October - January 2027

During this phase, staff will be reviewing public comments and feedback from key stakeholders to draft policy for the next plan. The selected artist will be onboarded during this time to gain familiarity with the drafting process, past engagement initiatives, and support with planning future engagement opportunities.

Additionally, the artist will have the opportunity to review content for the future plan and work to identify creative methods for interpreting and portraying key plan concepts, goals, or processes through illustration, written language, and/or other artistic methods. The artist’s work may be utilized in future engagement events, the final comprehensive plan, and/or in accompanying promotion materials.

Ongoing Engagement: February - June 2027

During this phase, staff will share a completed version of the plan with residents and key stakeholders to validate the vision and solicit input on technical plan elements. The selected artist may assist with:

• Designing creative engagement activities to gather public feedback through non-traditional methods.
• Presenting the plan’s goals and key topics through illustrations, written content, and/or other visual media.
• Creating original artwork or designs that promote and reflect the major themes to be integrated into the final Comprehensive Plan.
• Creatively capturing public feedback, values, and/or goals of the Raleigh community for inclusion into the final Comprehensive Plan.

Project Goals & Artist Opportunities

• Designing creative methods for conveying and communicating the plan’s vision and goals with the public.
• Collaborating with city staff to design and conduct non-traditional methods of community engagement, specifically with underrepresented groups.
• Offering communication and engagement with the community that is innovative and non-governmental.
• Advise staff on how to incorporate resident feedback in visually and narratively unique ways in the plan through illustrations, written content, or other artistic mediums.

Potential Areas of Design

Staff is seeking to collaborate with the selected artist throughout the process. The artist will have the opportunity to design their own workplan, concepts, and original artwork. Potential areas for design support may be but are not limited to:  

• Designing cover art based on community feedback and input.
• Creating a game, booklet, pamphlet, or comic that conveys key plan concepts in accessible terms for the public.
• Illustrations that portray various place types throughout the city to convey future growth and development.
• Designing original prints or artwork that can serve as supplemental materials for promotion of the plan.  

Roles & Responsibilities 

• Attend bi-weekly meetings with Planning & Communication staff throughout the residency.
• Think through how resident feedback can be gathered and shared in a meaningful way.
• Spend roughly 10 hours per week on Residency duties.
• The selected artist will be expected, within the first month of the residency, to prepare a plan and budget for their final deliverable. This may involve creating artwork, offering workshops, providing engagement opportunities, and addressing any other related needs. The Artist proposal for residency funding and milestones will be approved by the Public Art and Design Board.
• A commitment to ethical standards in working with resident feedback, including obtaining proper permissions and ensuring confidentiality.

Selection Criteria and Process

Applications submitted in response to this RFQ will be reviewed by the City of Raleigh Public Art Director, who will then forward all complete and eligible applications received by the deadline to the Artist Selection Panel. The Panel may include a member of the City of Raleigh Arts Commission, community artists, arts professionals, design professionals, and other stakeholders.

Upon receipt of relevant materials, the Selection Panel will review submissions and select 3-5 semi-finalist candidates. Semi-finalist candidates will be asked to produce a draft concept and explain how they would engage with residents, and what final artistic deliverables they would create. Semi-finalists will be compensated $750 for their time. The selected artist will be notified of the Panel’s selection within two weeks after semi-finalist presentations.

The Artist Selection Panel will evaluate the qualifications of artists based on these criteria: Artistic Merit of past projects; Community engagement experience or other relevant professional experience; and social/cultural relevance of work portfolio / previous projects; Communication and interpersonal skills.

Project Timeline

How to Apply

Those wishing to be considered must submit the following materials:

1. Statement of Interest

Outlining how you foresee engaging with the community, how your work might translate to this project, and experience you have working on public projects. You can submit this information as either: 

• A brief statement (250 words or less) outlining your project idea.
• Or, a one minute or less audio or video clip. We will only play the first minute of audio for the panel.

2. Biography

A biography of no more than one page that includes information regarding your practice, experience, and education. If applying as a team, submit a single file containing separate biographies for each team member.

3. Previous Work, Digital Images

Eight digital images of recent work. Each image should include: title, year, media, location, project budget, dimensions, collaborators or design professionals (if applicable). You can also choose to submit renderings/sketches of how your work could translate to a public project. 

Do not provide or submit any other materials with your application. They will not be reviewed by the panel and will not be returned.

Submission Deadline

Applications should be submitted through Slideroom and are due on Monday, August 17, 2026 at 11:59 p.m.

Apply now!

Non-Discrimination Policy

The policy of the City of Raleigh is, and shall be, to oppose any discrimination based on actual or perceived age, mental or physical disability, sex, religion, race, color, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, familial or marital status, economic status, veteran status or national origin in any aspect of modern life. The City of Raleigh Arts Commission strives for a diverse representation of voices, life experiences, views, and interests to reflect the collaborative community we have and wish to serve.

Questions?

For questions, email Metra Sheshbaradaran, Senior Planner.