Information provided by the San Benito County Arts Council
The San Benito County Arts Council announced it is seeking California-based artists or artist teams to submit their qualifications to create and install a site-specific outdoor sculpture at the corner of Santa Ana Road and Highway 25 in Hollister. The deadline is May 11.
The council said this project, budgeted at $130,000, is part of a State Highway Beautification Project, sponsored by the California Department of Transportation and the Clean California Program.
The release said Clean California, launched by Gov. Gavin Newsom as part of his California Comeback Plan, is investing $1.1 billion for state and local governments to clean up trash and debris statewide, beautify community gateways and public areas along highways, streets and roads, and to provide jobs to thousands of Californians.
The Arts Council said the Clean California Beautification Project is located along Highway 25 near the east entrance to Pinnacles National Park, in the community of Hollister, in San Benito County.
The Arts Council said the project is located on a bypass route that serves as the “main street” through multiple residential neighborhoods, and retail and industrial developments.
“This project is an opportunity to soften the stark appearance of the many sound walls along this corridor by adding landscaping to increase shade and reduce urban heat island effects, to suppress weeds and discourage graffiti, and to add seasonal color, resulting in a more aesthetically pleasing, vibrant and comfortable pedestrian and bicycling environment,” the release said. “It is also an opportunity to add aesthetic and artistic elements which enhance pedestrian scale and create a more distinctive community identity which highlights the cultural heritage of the area.”
It went on to state the sculptural piece will be installed at the “start” of this particular Highway 25 corridor between Santa Ana and Sunnyslope roads, and shall include aesthetic elements that reflect and enhance community identity, as well as integrate with the overall goal of this Caltrans project to beautify the route and encourage pedestrian and bicycle usage for local residents and visitors.
All applications must be submitted online by, May 11 at https://artist.callforentry.org/festivals_unique_info.php?ID=10322. To download the RFQ Submission Guidelines and learn more about this project as well as the results of the Community Public Art Survey, please visit the Arts Council’s Public Art page.
For more information, please contact the Jennifer Laine, Executive Director, at 831.636.2787 or at info@sanbenitoarts.org