Western State Hospital seeks artists or artist teams who have lived experience with mental illness to design and create artwork for the first floor interior walls of the new forensic hospital.

📆Deadline to apply: Tuesday, April 30, 2024, 4 p.m. Pacific

💵 Budget: $800,000 (1-3 artwork opportunities)

Eligibility:

• Live in the United States or British Columbia
• Are not enrolled as a visual arts student as of March 2024
• Do not have an active project with ArtsWA
• Are not a staff or Board member of ArtsWA, DSHS, or WSH

Description:

• We seek artists or artist teams who have lived experience with mental illness to design and create artwork for the first floor interior walls of the new forensic hospital.
• The art selection committee seeks peaceful artwork to aid recovery. The chosen artist(s) should be able to design artwork that is culturally sensitive and considerate of the patient experience. Artworks should be calm, soothing and convey an uplifting message of hope and resilience.
• The committee is interested in artworks that enhance the interior downtown corridor’s design theme or “urban park” which utilizes Douglas Fir wood paneling and subtle shades of green and blue. Artworks will need to adhere to strict patient safety criteria.
• Artists from Nisqually, Steilacoom, Puyallup, Cowlitz, Coast Salish, and/or the other tribes of the Pacific Northwest are encouraged to apply.
• Washington state’s vision of transforming behavioral health includes constructing a therapeutically designed hospital on the Western State Hospital campus with 350 beds to care for forensic patients in a modern facility. The new forensic hospital will serve patients who enter care through the criminal court system.