The City of Portland and its partners are opening up a massive call for artists at the CityFleet facilities on Swan Island. The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC), with CityFleet and the Office of Arts & Culture, invite artists and artist teams to submit their qualifications for one or both of the opportunities mentioned below.
Made possible by the City of Portland's Percent for Art Program, which specifies that up to 2% of qualifying infrastructure project budgets be dedicated to public art, this call for artists includes two separate opportunities: (1) Artwork that will attach to two functional aluminum gates and (2) a large-scale sculpture. The budget for each opportunity is $150,000, and artists may apply to either or both opportunities using the same application.
About the project site
This project moves CityFleet from the Kerby Garage in North Portland, which was built in 1922 as the City's first public works building, to an existing warehouse located on Swan Island which will be renovated into a vehicle maintenance facility. CityFleet's office headquarters are located at the same site. The leased site includes over 105,000 sq. ft. and 125 parking stalls. Surrounding neighbors include FedEx, Swan Island Wholesale Flower Market, Portland Community College's Swan Island Trade Center, and Maletis Beverage.
Swan Island has been an important historical site for Portland's industry as well as for Indigenous peoples of the area (including the Multnomah, Clackamas, and Cowlitz peoples) prior to White settlement.
Art goals
The artwork created for CityFleet's Swan Island facilities should meet one or more of the following goals:
- Contributes to an inviting space that evokes a sense of well-being for staff and visitors
- Evokes a sense of place, which may include natural, historical, industrial, or cultural themes
- Honors the legacy of industry and trade workers
- Recognizes CityFleet's key role in essential functions of the City the Portland
- Takes inspiration from a technologically advanced future
The submission due date is Monday, November 24, 2025.
Photo credit: Historical photo circa early 1900s of men with hats sitting in the back of trucks driving out of a Kerby Garage bay. Photo credit: Portland Archives, A2000-025.125. Courtesy CityFleet.