Calling all mural artists!
The Pikesville Community Mural is a paid residency for an experienced mural artist who will create an originaloutdoor mural, engage with community volunteers to work on at least one phase of the mural, and participate in up to two public events during the course of the project.
The mural is part of an initiative to give residents and visitors alike opportunities to engage with the arts, and to inaugurate a creative placemaking plan for the Pikesville “Mainstreet” commercial corridor. Creative placemaking is the integration of arts and culture into an area to build a sense of community identity and to boost the local economy through increased interest and tourism.
Project Details
The mural site is located in the heart of the Pikesville community at 1220 Reisterstown Road, a busy commercial corridor. It is located at Zips Cleaners on a prominent north-facing wall opposite the entrance to the Pikesville Library and Senior Center—one of the busiest intersections in Pikesville. The wall is visible to all southbound traffic on Reisterstown Road coming from the Baltimore Beltway (I-695). For context, the wall is also prominently visible to all Library patrons through a long bank of windows inside the Library.
The wall is a rectangular space measuring 45 x 13 feet. Permission from the building owner has been secured. The wall is clean and in good condition for an installation. The wall abuts the sidewalk; there are no obstructions.
Applications will be reviewed by sponsors for completeness and eligibility. Designs may also be subject to review by the Baltimore County Design Review Panel, and any other County agencies that may have jurisdiction. After review by an art advisory group (jury), three semi-finalists will be selected and notified to submit a full- color, site-specific design for consideration.
Mural Requirements
The mural should contain one or more Instagrammable images that will encourage visitors to stop and interact with the mural, take photographs, and post to social media. It should be visually impactful both for moving traffic and pedestrians.
The mural subject matter should have a recognizable theme or motif, which the artist can elaborate on in an Artist Statement in their application, that relates to at least one of the following:
- The history of Pikesville
- Natural motifs including plants, birds, animals, etc. especially those native to Maryland
- The Arts
- A contemporary theme of the artist’s choice
Mural artwork must be original. It may be painted in any style, period, or genre. The mural may not contain any words or numbers, profanity, sexual or violent content, lewd gestures, hate symbols, or any other content that is deemed by the sponsors to be unacceptable. The mural should be installed to withstand weather and other site conditions for a term of five years.
