The city has chosen five artists out of 84 art submissions it received from across Canada for phase two of the Main Street Mural Project.
The five finalists will be asked to develop a project proposal, budget and concept design for the artwork to be installed in two public sites: the left parkade wall and the main parkade wall.
The winning artwork and artist will be announced on Feb. 28.
The 16-by-24 foot artwork on the left parkade wall with a budget of $18,000 and the 28-by-20 foot artwork on the main parkade wall with a budget of $25,000 will be completed remotely by the artists using aluminum composite panels. The installation will be completed by a third party organized by the city.
Shortlisted artists for the left parkade are Roadsworth, Lacey and Layla Art, Dan Bergeron and Gabriel Specter.
Shortlisted artists for the main parkade are Annie Hamel, Lacey and Layla Art, scenere0.
Designs for the winning artwork are expected to be completed at the beginning of March with installation completed at the end of April.
Last year, the City of Guelph received one-time funding from the province’s Main Street Revitalization Initiative to support and revitalize main streets. Phase 1 of the initiative saw artwork of a monarch on the side wall beside the Guelph Farmers’ Market, a mural consisting of Guelph’s founder John Galt among other Guelph landmarks on the side of city hall, an abstract mural on the east underpass wall on the Guelph Farmers’ Market side, and a bird mural on the west underpass wall.
