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WOMEN IN
PUBLIC SPACE

Memorial Day Weekend Mural Commission

Expressions of Interest — 2026

Theme: CODE GIRL

 

The Women in Public Space Commission invests in women and gender-expansive artists through the development of ambitious mural work. The program provides curatorial and organizational support for the creation, presentation, and public communication of a large-scale interior mural on the main wall of the Pictorial ArtSpace.

The commission also creates structured opportunities for experimentation, mentorship, and professional development. Selected artists are supported in expanding sector connections across local, national, and international networks. The mural is embedded within a broader public program of exhibitions, live events and discussions, ensuring the work is not only presented but contextualized and shared with community, diverse audiences and industry peers.

Public space is not neutral. It reflects histories of access and exclusion that shape who is seen and who is supported. While the Pictorial Foundation presents artists across all identities and backgrounds, Women in Public Space is a focused initiative designed to address documented disparities in representation. Through a commissioned mural program, it establishes structural support for women and gender-expansive artists at scale.

This commission is grounded in the understanding that equity requires deliberate action. By committing scale, duration, and institutional backing within our ArtSpace, we work to ensure that the visual language of our public environment reflects a broader spectrum of artistic leadership and authorship. The wall becomes a sustained platform for presence, recognition, and professional advancement.

Each year over Memorial Day Weekend, the selected artist paints the mural live, transforming the ArtSpace into an active site of making and public engagement. Across the 3-day weekend, the space functions as a cultural gathering point, with food, a bar, music, and open access to the mural process as it unfolds. Visitors witness the work in progress, positioning creation itself as central to the event and establishing an annual public ritual of authorship and visibility.

For Memorial Day Weekend 2026, we are seeking one female or gender-expansive mural artist to create a large-scale work under this year’s theme:


CODE GIRL


GIRL is not a label. It is a declaration.


CODE GIRL treats GIRL as structure. As acronym. As manifesto. As blueprint.


G — Great
I — Inspiring
R — Remarkable
L — Leaders


CODE GIRL invites proposals that consider language, systems, and authorship. Code can be read as structure, as instruction, as the unseen framework that shapes behavior and visibility. It can also be personal — the internal logic by which identity is formed, concealed, or declared.

What happens when women and gender-expansive artists write themselves into space — at scale and with spatial authority? What does leadership look like on a wall? How can language and image operate together as framework rather than slogan?

As the inaugural artist launching this initiative, the selected muralist’s name will be permanently acknowledged on the Foundation wall as a legacy member. This recognition marks their collaborative role in establishing the program and situates them within the ongoing history of the Foundation’s commitment to supporting women and gender-expansive artists.


This commission is not about filling a wall.

It is about defining it!

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