Public Art
About the Public Arts Master Plan
Home to a young, diverse, and vibrant community, Salinas looks to its future as a colorful piece of art. In response to the community’s desire for public art and the expansion of opportunities for artists, City Council approved a Public Art Program ordinance in 2017 to establish and fund public art. The Public Arts Master Plan is a written strategic plan which supports local artists, artwork and secures the possibility of future public art throughout the next 10 years. The PAMP was accepted by the Salinas City Council early in 2020 and the final draft is available for review in this link: The Salinas Public Arts Master Plan
For more information contact Jose Arreola at [email protected] or at (831) 758-7396
Call for Artist: Public Art Opportunity!

Calling All Local Artist! Help beautify downtown Salinas by applying to paint one or more of the nineteen newly installed trash cart corrals. Selected artists will be paired with an appropriate enclosure location by the selection team. Each artist or team may apply to paint up to 6 corrals. A $500 commission will be awarded to each selected artist or team per corral. All painting supplies will be provided by the City of Salinas. Artists are required to paint the six panels surrounding the sides of the trash cart corral. There is no formal design theme. Designs may be representational or abstract. The panels are made of steel covered in light grey primer paint. CLICK HERE to review the full Call To Artist for complete details on the project guidelines and artists selection process.
MINIMUM ARTIST QUALIFICATIONS
Artists wishing to respond to this request must submit all of the following. If submitting as a team, each team member must submit work samples and a current resume.
- Work samples: Up to 5 images of examples of recent work, with a cover page indicating title of work, media, size, and for public pieces the location for each image of work.
- Current resume: No more than 4 pages with your name, address, phone number, email address, and website URL (if applicable) at the top of each page. Please include names and phone numbers of up to 3 professional references who can address your ability to complete a public art project.
- Sketches and/or preliminary design concepts, description, statement of intent, color scheme, estimated time frame, etc. Artists may submit as many proposal sketches as they desire. Please refer Appendix A in the complete CALL FOR ARTIST document for a Trash Corral Dimensions and images.
To Submit by Email: submit application as a single PDF file via email to [email protected]
To Submit by Mail: send attention to Jose Arreola at 200 Lincoln Ave. Salinas, CA 93901
A selection committee led by city staff and composed of artist and members the Salinas City Center Improvement Association will review all submission to ensure they meet the minimum qualifications and rank them using a rubric. Artists selections will be announced June 18, 2021.
The rubric will rate Artists on:
- Quality and creativity of previous work
- Their concept or vision for an entire enclosure.
- The design quality and originality,
- The way the artwork that will enhance the surrounding area.
Application deadline –June 10, 2021 by11:59 pm
CLICK HERE to review the full Call To Artist for complete details on the project guidelines and artists selection process.
Questions, inquiries, and requests for additional information should be directed to [email protected] .