City of Moreton Bay is seeking Expressions of Interest (EOIs) from professional artists from South East Queensland and Australia to design and deliver public artworks for the City of Moreton Bay Outdoor Gallery.
We encourage applications from artists from all backgrounds and abilities who have a connection to our city or have an interest in producing an artwork that reflects aspects of the city and local communities.
About the project
Under the South East Queensland (SEQ) City Deal Public Art Initiatives, Council will establish the City of Moreton Bay Outdoor Gallery. It will commission up to 18 Australian artists to create original artworks for the inaugural 12-month exhibition.
The City of Moreton Bay Outdoor Gallery will display two-dimensional artworks at six high-profile outdoor spaces across the city. It will consist of billboards, light boxes, digital screens and projection. Lightbox and billboard artwork will be printed on large-format, seamless, PVC banner substrate suitable for backlighting. Digital panels and digital projection will be high-resolution, industry-leading platforms for outdoor display.
By thinking outside the box about where and how art is encountered, the City of Moreton Bay Outdoor Gallery aims to:
- bring art and creativity to where people are going about their everyday lives,
- enliven public spaces and places,
- create a new art trail annually for locals and visitors to enjoy,
- provide opportunities for artists to share their work with diverse audiences, and
- raise the awareness of Council’s broader Cultural Services venues and programs.
The sites identified for the City of Moreton Bay Outdoor Gallery take account of the fact that we are a polycentric city of over 520,000 people (with a forecast population approaching 800,000 people by 2046 and one million people over the next thirty to forty years). Each of the sites are facilities that are:
- owned by City of Moreton Bay,
- highly visible with strong and frequent foot traffic,
- home to an annual program of community events and experiences,
- accessible by public transport.
Curatorial theme
The overarching theme for the inaugural exhibition is ‘Half a Million Imaginations.’ How might art and creative expression represent and help to foster an inclusive, diverse and connected city?
Currently, there are over half a million people who call City of Moreton Bay home. All of them use their imaginations in some way in their daily lives. Every person’s imagination and imaginative capacity is unique and is shaped by their lived experiences, culture, aspirations and opportunities.
‘Half a Million Imaginations’ evokes a sense of creative possibility in a rapidly growing part of Australia. The City of Moreton Bay Outdoor Gallery seeks to reflect and amplify diverse imaginations, transforming the city into a canvas that celebrates the collective and individual imaginations of its people.
To deliver artworks that are inspired by and reflective of the imaginations of the half a million people that reside in our city, each commissioned artist will design and facilitate two creative workshops with local community members, (between mid-January and late-February 2026) as part of the concept design process for their artwork.
The inaugural exhibition will open in November 2026 and be on display for 12 months.
Artwork commission opportunities
The commission opportunities for up to 18 new artworks consist of:
- Three moving image artwork commissions for digital screen on North Lakes Library façade. Screen dimensions: 2.5 metres wide by 1.5 metres high.
- One artwork commission for billboard on North Lakes Library façade. Billboard dimensions: 6 metres wide by 3 metres high.
- Two artwork commissions for two lightboxes on North Lakes Library façade. Dimensions for each lightbox: 2.4 metres wide by 1.7 metres high.
- One artwork commission for five lightboxes on Redcliffe Library façade. Dimensions for each lightbox: 1.2 metres wide by 1.8 metres high.
- Two artwork commissions for five lightboxes each on Redcliffe Library carpark wall. Dimensions: Combined overall size: 3 metres wide by 1.5 metres high for each salon hang.
- Three moving image artwork commissions for projection in Caboolture Town Square. Projection site dimensions: 6 metres wide by 5 metres high.
- Two artwork commissions for billboards on façade of Morayfield Sports and Events Centre. Dimensions for each billboard: 4.5 metres wide by 6 metres high.
- Three artwork commissions for five billboards on façade of South Pine Indoor Sports Centre. Dimensions for each billboard: 4.5 metres wide by 6 metres high.
- One artwork commission for façade of facility in Pine Rivers Park. Lightbox dimensions: 6 metres wide by 2 metres high.
Submission requirements for your expression of interest
Artists are required to submit the following as part of their Expression of Interest:
- Artist biography. Maximum of 300 words.
- Project response: Provide an initial response to the Curatorial Theme. How your practice aligns with the project and your experience in facilitating workshops with the community. Maximum of 500 words.
- Artist Curriculum Vitae. Maximum of 3 pages.
- Portfolio: Provide up to 7 examples of photos and URLs to view of relevant previous artworks or concepts. Must include title, date, medium, size, and where exhibited or located.
Assessment criteria
EOIs will be assessed by Council’s project team with advice from subject matter experts against the following criteria:
- Curatorial Theme: The artist’s project response shows connections and relevance to the curatorial theme and some of the Outdoor Gallery sites.
- Artistic Merit: The artist’s previous artwork is high quality and has the potential to engage a diverse community.
- Experience: The artist has experience in, or capability to, facilitate meaningful creative workshops with the community. The artist shows an understanding of making art for the public realm or at scale.
If you are successful
Pending a successful funding outcome from the SEQ City Deal Public Art Initiatives, the successful artists will design and facilitate two creative workshops with the local community. Each artist will receive $2,500. The funds will help to plan, buy materials, and facilitate the creative workshops. Workshops will be held on two different dates between 14 January to 28 February 2026 in our city.
The artists will also receive between $5,500 and $8,000 (depending on the commission opportunity) to create a concept and provide a final artwork file suitable for their allocated site. This includes licensing for display of the artwork for 12 months. Moving image works will need to be provided in correct file format to upload to digital screens or projector programs. Council will manage the costs for substrate printing and installation for lightboxes and billboards.
Council will engage an external Curatorial Team to support artists through each stage. Our Cultural Activation team will also support artists through this journey.
Expression of interest closes: 11:59 PM, 31 August 2025
To submit your expression of interest fill in the form via the City of Moreton Bay website:
Half a Million Imaginations exhibition EOI form – City of Moreton Bay
For further information: contact City of Moreton Bay Special Project Officer – Public Art via cultural.activation@moretonbay.qld.gov.au.
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