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​The Moline Public Art Commission and Quad City Arts are seeking the design and installation of a public mural for an exterior wall in Moline, Illinois. The mural will be on the west-facing brick wall of 1405 5th Avenue and will be above the patio of a popular local restaurant. The mural will be highly visible as 5th Avenue is a heavily used downtown Moline corridor only blocks away from Mercado on Fifth.

This addition to the collection of public art in Moline is intended to enhance community pride, local quality of life, beautification, and creative placemaking, as well as increase the public’s awareness of visual arts in Moline. This mural project is jointly undertaken by the Moline Public Art Commission and Quad City Arts. The Moline Public Art Commission is excited to begin the process of finding a mural artist and believes this is an excellent partnership between two entities that share a similar goal.

“We are excited to implement this major art installation to be funded by the City of Moline through our commission,” said Jeff Dismer, Moline Public Art Commission Chair.  “Earlier this year we sponsored the installation of four public sculptures through the rotating sculpture program with Quad City Arts, and the 5th Avenue Mural will build on our goals to enhance the richness of character and make our downtown a more vibrant place to live, work, play, visit and learn.”   

The Public Art Commission, formed in 2021, advises the City’s Corporate Authorities in all matters pertaining to City-sponsored art in the Downtown Moline Public Art Program Area, as identified in the Public Art Master Plan approved and adopted by the City Council. The Commission’s primary goal is to increase the public’s awareness of all visual arts, including, but not limited to, the exhibition of sculpture, paintings, mosaics, photography, and video. The Public Art Commission is responsible for interpreting and reviewing proposed Public Art projects in Downtown Moline, Cultural Corridors, and Public Art Program areas.

“Nationally, cultural tourism is on the rise,” Kevin Maynard, Executive Director of Quad City Arts. “We are happy to help organizations in the Quad Cities to bring more art to our community. This is an exciting project and an excellent placemaking step for the city of Moline, and for the Quad Cities to grow our community collection of public art.”

Quad City Arts is a nonprofit local arts agency dedicated to enriching the quality of life in the Quad City region through the arts.
  
For more information about the open call, and to apply visit https://www.quadcityarts.com/moline-mural
Learn more about the Moline Public Art Commission: https://moline.il.us/1794/Public-Art-Commission​
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The Visiting Artist Series is turning 50 this year, and schools are invited to schedule engagements for the next school year with these artists. 
 
Schools will have access to professional performing artists who celebrate the diversity of the students and communities we serve as Quad City Arts also celebrates the 50th anniversary of the season. The series will provide outreach visits featuring music from Sweden, Japan, Quebec, Ireland, and Middle Eastern/American jazz, plus a bilingual children's theatre production, a female Muslim hip-hop dancer accompanied by a DJ, Native American music and dance, and a visual arts experience. 
 
As a keystone program of Quad City Arts, the Visiting Artist Series, which started in 1974 to present multi-disciplinary performing arts residencies in schools and community sites, has brought in 476 residencies, more than 830 artists, over 10,400 school visits, more than 450 concerts, and just over 2.73 million reached.  ​