"Flow": Sun Link Public Art Concept
According to lead Sun Link project artists Simon Donovan and Ben Olmstead, ‘flow’ was the broad and encompassing art concept provided to artists as they started to create unique art for streetcar stops. “Flow can mean transportation of people across a city, the flow of time and history, the flow of words, the flow of ideas and much more,” said Donovan.
Artists have created public art for 22 streetcar stops and the Sun Link Operations & Maintenance facility. There are 11 unique stops featuring signature public art installations and 10 stops with light emitting diodes (LED) panels that offer up poetry provided by the University of Arizona Poetry Center – and ridership information too.
Selecting and Funding Public Art
The Tucson Pima Arts Council (TPAC) facilitated the selection of the artists for the Sun Link project. Specifically, the artists for the unique Sun Link stops were selected by a panel of local residents, artists, streetcar designers, and representatives from the City of Tucson and Regional Transportation Authority (RTA). These artists were selected in 2009 and brought under contract in 2010. Design proposals were reviewed and approved by the selection panel with close coordination by the project team. Installations of stop art were 90% complete in early 2014.
Public art is funded through the City of Tucson and Pima County’s Percent for Arts Program, which allocates one percent of the budget for capital improvement projects for public art. RTA policies also support the inclusion of artwork.
More about TPAC
TPAC, a 501(c)(3) non-profit, is the designated local arts agency for the City of Tucson and Pima County. TPAC provides arts and cultural development services through direct funding, technical assistance, commissions and contracts to artists and arts organizations, special cultural projects, and cultural development studies.
Please click here for more information about TPAC
Additional Resources
Sun Link streetcar artwork goes with the 'flow' (AZ Daily Star)
Art Foundation: Public Art Map
Streetcar Route Stop and Public Art Map