Quincy Square - Call to Artists: Sculpture & Murals - Deadline approaching soon!

Quincy Square's art additions an opportunity to recognize city's African American heritage
 

Kai Uyehara, Kitsap Sun

City's call for downtown sculpture and murals

View Bid Opportunities

• Quincy Square - Call to Artists: Sculpture
  • Closing date/time November 19, 2023 10:59pm
• Quincy Square - Call to Artists: Mural Art
  • Closing date/time December 10, 2023 10:59pm

(EXCERPT: Read full story here)

Harriette Bryant, interim executive director of the YWCA and founder of the Our GEMS nonprofit,  was part of the team that asked Quincy Jones for his approval of the proposed Quincy Square project on Fourth Street, envisioned to pays homage to the humble beginning of his launch into stardom and commemorate Jones as part of Bremerton’s rich history of African American influence.

With Jones's blessing, Quincy Square is now aimed to revitalize Fourth Street from Pacific Avenue to Washington Avenue, and establish a district focused on arts, entertainment, evening-centric retail spaces and a Musical Discovery Center. The $5.5 million project is going out to bid for a contractor in coming months before construction is anticipated to start in the spring. In the meantime, the city has put out a call for artists to creatively memorialize the diaspora of African American history Jones and others have been a part of. 

“We have a designer who's doing the street part of it, but if we really do want to give Quincy Square heart and soul, it needs to come from that community,” said Katie Ketterer, project manager for Quincy Square. “So, we split off some of the more artistic elements of the project and brought in the Bremerton Arts Commission to help us come up with some committees that would define what the art should be like, the goals of the art, type of art and to select those artists that will execute the art.”The Bremerton Arts Commission has issued artist calls for a sculpture on the southeast corner of Pacific Avenue at Fourth Street, and a mural and site specific art on the parking garage on Washington Avenue. Artists can apply until December 10.

Focus on a Celebration of African American Pioneers

The focus of these pieces should be “the celebration of the African American pioneers that's been here – we're asking the artists to capture their spirit,” committee member Roosevelt Smith said, mentioning significant Black Bremerton residents like Lillian Walker, Nathanial Sargeant and Jane Ruley. “Our scope is to highlight what Quincy Jones stands for and that’s the collaboration of everyone because his music spans all genres. There was no boundaries.”

"The artwork “will depict the history of Bremerton,” Mayor Greg Wheeler said. “You're going to see it share the different parts in our history that our City's not proud of – it'll be redlining, it could be segregation and where African Americans were in Sinclair Heights.”

View Bid Opportunities

• Quincy Square - Call to Artists: Sculpture
  • Closing date/time November 19, 2023 10:59pm
• Quincy Square - Call to Artists: Mural Art
  • Closing date/time December 10, 2023 10:59pm