Request for Expressions of Interest: Chinatown Connections - Chinatown Welcome Gateway
The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA) Percent for Art program, in conjunction with the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC), is issuing this Request for Expressions of Interest (RFEI) for a qualified artist or artist team to serve as a design partner to create permanent public artwork serving as the Chinatown Welcome Gateway as part of the Chinatown Connections initiative.
CHINATOWN CONNECTIONS AND WELCOME GATEWAY BACKGROUND
Chinatown, Manhattan has long been a significant part of New York City history and cultural identity. It is a resilient neighborhood withstanding great challenges throughout the years, prompting a growing call for catalyzing change to revitalize the area. In response, The Chinatown Downtown Revitalization Initiative (“DRI”) Strategic Investment Plan (2022) was developed through robust coordination with local community members, organizations, and businesses. It highlights eleven projects aimed at improving the quality of life and economic opportunity for the area’s diverse residents, workers, entrepreneurs, and attracting visitors beyond.
The City of New York is implementing multiple public realm improvements through Chinatown Connections derived from the Downtown Revitalization Initiative Plan. The New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) is leading the project in partnership with the New York City Department of Transportation (NYCDOT) and NYS Department of State (NYSDOS). NYCEDC has procured Marvel as the Design Team Project Lead on Chinatown Connections. Marvel is an interdisciplinary collective driven by a collaborative and community-focused approach to creating responsible, beautiful spaces that reflect shared values. The multi-disciplinary practice is well-versed in shaping large scale, public realm projects in the complex urban environment of New York City.
Chinatown Connections aims to celebrate the cultural heritage of Chinatown, improve multimodal circulation in the area, and support local economic development. Alongside (1) Redesigning Kimlau Square and (2) Beautifying Park Row – (3) Creating a Chinatown Welcome Gateway will serve to highlight the neighborhood’s cultural heritage. This is a piece of public art meant to reflect a longstanding community desire for an iconic symbol that demarcates a key entrance to Chinatown.
The Welcome Gateway will be located in a redesigned Kimlau Square. Currently a six-point intersection with complex traffic movements, it will be redesigned as a standard four-way intersection with expanded public space, shorter pedestrian crossings, and direct bicycle connections. The Welcome Gateway will coexist with two monuments in Kimlau Square: The Kimlau War Memorial Arch and The Lin Ze Xu Statue. It should do so in a respectful and harmonious way to acknowledge this public space serves many local communities and is a highly traversed node in Chinatown.
An essential aspect of Chinatown Connections involves robust community engagement. At the outset of the project the Chinatown Connections Working Group (CCWG) was formed, consisting of elected officials and community stakeholders to help guide the overall public engagement process and help make decisions on the project’s design and implementation. A Welcome Gateway Subgroup was simultaneously established, consisting of 6 community stakeholders focused on providing valuable feedback and guidance to culminate in Chinatown Welcome Gateway Design Brief. The brief outlines the principles, purpose, role, and impact the Welcome Gateway should ultimately embody and accomplish. To learn more, visit: https://edc.nyc/sites/default/files/2025-04/NYCEDC-Chinatown-Connections-Welcome-Gateway-Design-Brief.pdf
PROJECT BUDGET
The public artwork budget for this project is approximately $2.5M and must include all project costs, including but not limited to the following: artist’s fees, design services, community engagement, engineering, fabrication, travel, transportation of the work to the site, insurance, permits, installation, documentation of the artwork, and contingency.
WHO MAY APPLY
Professional visual artists or artist teams, working in any and all mediums, legally authorized to work in the United States, and who are at least 18 years of age, are eligible to apply. Employees of the City of New York, Selection Panel Members (as defined in the following section) and their family members are not eligible to apply. If applying as an artist team, please identify the team member who will serve as the Lead Artist.
ARTIST / ARCHITECT COLLABORATION
The artist selected for the Chinatown Connections - Chinatown Welcome Gateway project will work as part of an artist / architect collaboration with the Chinatown Connections Design Team Project Lead (Marvel). This process allows for greater integration of the artist’s vision into the Kimlau Square redesign.
In this process, the artist does not begin with a pre-conceived proposal but rather joins the project team while the capital project is still in the early phases of design development. The artist works in tandem with the design team to align their vision into the larger capital project. The artist’s scope of work is focused on the design of the artwork and then serves in an advisory capacity for the fabrication and installation of their final design. Design development will be led by the artist and architect together, supported by NYCEDC and DCLA. Fabrication and installation of the artwork is the responsibility of NYCEDC and the procured construction manager, with support from the artist and DCLA.
ARTIST SELECTION PROCESS
In accordance with the NYC Percent for Art program, a Selection Panel will be formed consisting of:
Voting Panelists: DCLA Commissioner or Designee (Panel Chair); Representative of the Percent for Art Program (DCLA); Representative of the Design Agency (NYCEDC); Representative of the Sponsor Agency (NYCDOT); Representative of the Design Team (Marvel); Members of the public who are arts professionals and knowledgeable about contemporary art and the community where the project is taking place.
Advisory Panelists: Local Council Member, Borough President, and Community Board representatives; Chinatown Connections Working Group members; Chinatown Connections Welcome Gateway Subgroup members; Representatives from the Public Design Commission; Program staff from DCLA, NYCEDC, NYCDOT, and NYC Parks; Other community members.
The selection process is organized in two phases:
Phase One
Phase One includes the completion of this RFEI. To respond to this RFEI, see the application instructions below.
Interested artists will submit a statement of interest and artistic approach, artist’s statement and biography, examples of past work that highlight relevant experience and other requested supplementary materials. Proposals are not requested and will not be reviewed by the panel.
In the applications, DCLA and the Selection Panel will consider:
The City, in partnership with the Selection Panel, will select Finalists to proceed to Phase Two of the selection process.
Phase Two
Finalists will be invited by DCLA to participate in a design charrette (a collaborative design planning activity) with the design team to discuss their creative practice, working process and artistic approach, and to brainstorm possibilities for the project. Panelists (including community members) may attend the charrettes virtually and may submit questions to be integrated into the conversation. The charrette format emphasizes the collaborative relationship between the artist and design team.
Prior to the charettes, Finalists will be briefed on project details and expectations for the charrettes at an orientation meeting. Artist deliverables for the charrettes may include a presentation highlighting past work, approach to project, case studies, working style and approach to community engagement. Finalists will receive an honorarium of $500 for participation in the charrettes.
Following the charrettes, the design team, in conversation with the project team and panel members, will decide which artist is best suited to collaborate on this project.
TENTATIVE TIMELINE
PHASE ONE APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS
Submissions will only be accepted using the online application program. There is no submission fee. Submissions must be made online through https://nyculture.submittable.com/submit.
Interested artists must submit all of the following application materials online:
1. Statement of Interest and Artistic Approach (250 words max):
2. Artist's Statement (250 words max) :
3. Artist Bio (250 words max)
A brief description of “who you are”, including your life and artistic career.
4. Resume or CV (2 pages max):
Provide a current resume or CV, highlighting artistic excellence, any teaching experience, community engagement work, and/or experience working with multiple stakeholders. Be sure to include any relevant public or private commissioning experience. If you are applying as an artist team, combine your information into a two-page document that summarizes the team members’ qualifications. For example, a four-member team may choose to include a half-page bio for each team member.
5. Work Samples:
Provide 10-15 digital images in JPEG format of recent works and/or past work relevant to this project. If you are applying as an artist team, designate one artist to be the team leader to submit your information, along with team member(s) images and resume/bio(s). Submissions from artist teams should reflect samples from each artist on the team and not exceed the overall submission limit of 10-15 images.
6. Work Sample List:
Provide a list of submitted work in PDF format, including title, date, materials and dimensions, or running times. Include 1-2 sentence descriptions as needed. If any work sample links require a password, please provide this information in this sheet.
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS: JUNE 15, 2025, 11:59 PM EST
QUESTIONS:
Please direct all inquiries regarding this RFEI to [email protected]
06/15/2025