£15,000 art commission up for grabs at The Telford Centre

The Telford Centre is calling all new and established artists to come forward as it hunts for a designer for 13 new art installations - with a £15,000 design fee commission up for grabs.

The installations form a key part of the ongoing £50m redevelopment of the shopping centre which has seen the arrival of additional restaurant units at Southern Quarter, a new Northern Quarter gateway to the scheme and the fully let, and currently under construction, Fashion Quarter at the heart of the scheme.

As part of the new Northern Quarter project, the competition is set to deliver 13 art installations that celebrate the town’s unique heritage and exciting future. A £15,000 design contract has been established for the selected artist.

The works of art are scheduled to be installed towards the end of the year (2018), as part of Telford’s year-long 50th anniversary celebrations. The aim is that they will help to enhance visitors’ experience of Telford town centre, adding more variety and interest to a highly visible external view of the centre.

The art, which will be unique to Telford, will be located along the northern elevation of the Northern Quarter, which is directly visible from Lawn Central as well as the pedestrian footbridge that brings people into the town centre from the office area and the train station. It’s also on the pedestrian route between Ash Grey and Red Oak car parks. Positioned between the Northern Quarter’s exciting “drum” feature and the new Aldi store, the installations will become a landmark for visitors to the town centre.

The Telford Centre bosses are very flexible about the nature of the art – which could take the form of interesting word forms, graphics or be more sculptural and can be in either 2D or 3D. It must also meet the key design and practical criteria provided as part of the briefing process.

In addition to concept designs and information about their experience, artists and designers are also being asked to submit proposals for engaging with the community to inform the designs and help bring a strong community focus to the installations.

The winning artist or designer will work with the centre’s development team to see the project through to completion.

Commenting on the competition, centre manager at The Telford Centre, Glynn Morrow said: “This is a really great opportunity to create something exciting and completely unique for The Telford Centre. The competition is open to all, but given the strength of artistic talent that we have in this region, we’d be delighted if a local artist or designer submitted the winning designs.”

Telford & Wrekin Council leader Councillor Shaun Davies said: “This is just one more exciting aspect of our Telford 50 celebrations which are intended to unite our community. I would like to congratulate the Telford Centre for their desire to get involved and include their new Northern Quarter development in our plans. This will provide a unique opportunity for an artist or designer to have their work on permanent display in the town centre and I look forward to meeting the winner and seeing their work.”

The tender closing date is Monday 23 April 2018.

Anyone interested in receiving the full Invitation to Tender pack should email art@telfordshopping.co.uk asap with brief background details and contact number.

Expressions of interest will be accepted until 5.30pm on Friday 6 April.