Kirkland Woman’s Club Mural Collaboration

The Kirkland Woman’s Club, in collaboration with KCF, the City and the Village at Totem Lake seeks submissions of completed work for purchase of a completed art design for a mural. Works should be of durable materials but will not be exposed to the PNW elements.

The location is at the Village at Totem Lake at the hallway area to the parking garage between Sincere/Purpose Men & Yuan Spa across from Joe’s Burgers.

The total art budget is $8,000 with the intent to be inclusive of artist time, supplies and final mural artwork. The Kirkland Woman’s Club and the Village at Totem Lake reserve the right to change the art selection if the art originally selected does not physically fit the selected site.

At a Glance

• Application deadline: October 30, 2026
• This art call is for the purchase of artwork that the Kirkland Woman’s Club, in
  collaboration with The Village at Totem Lake, the Kirkland Community Foundation and the City of Kirkland will use to install in a mural at a specific indoor location in the Village of Totem Lake.
• The total budget for this art call is 8,000 purchasing a minimum of one artwork.
• Looking for art in the following category: mural
• All art will be for an indoor exhibit.

Summary
The Kirkland Woman’s Club, in collaboration with KCF, the City and the Village at Totem Lake seeks submissions of completed work for purchase of a completed art design for a mural. Works should be of durable materials but will not be exposed to the PNW elements.

The location is at the Village at Totem Lake at the hallway area to the parking garage between Sincere/Purpose Men & Yuan Spa across from Joe’s Burgers.

The total art budget is $8,000 with the intent to be inclusive of artist time, supplies and final mural artwork. The Kirkland Woman’s Club and the Village at Totem Lake reserve the right to change the art selection if the art originally selected does not physically fit the selected site.

City of Kirkland
Kirkland is a city of approximately 90,000 in East King County, and is known for its Lake Washington waterfront, vibrant downtown, parks, and robust public art collection. The Kirkland City Council has taken action to ensure that the City is safe and welcoming for residents and visitors. With this project, the City seeks public art that addresses those aspirations and reflects the City’s diversity, including racial and ethnic diversity, diversity of sexual identity and orientation, gender diversity, and diversity of age and ability.

Kirkland Woman’s Club
Founded in 1920, the Kirkland Woman’s Club is a non-profit, charitable organization bringing together women from around the Kirkland and surrounding areas. For over 100 years, the club has served as a cornerstone of community service, education, philanthropy and social leadership, bringing together women across backgrounds to strengthen the social fabric of Kirkland. As a part of the General Federation of Women’s Clubs, the KWC stands for its mission of unity, diversity, and collective empowerment. As part of its broader mission to support the arts, the KWC is collaborating with the City to fund a mural that reflects the organization’s mission to promote the values of unity, diversity, and female empowerment. The Kirkland Woman’s Club invites artists to submit proposals celebrating the club’s century long commitment to service, unity, and diversity. The mural will honor the historic role that women have played and will continue to play, in the history and future of Kirkland, shaping civic and cultural life, while reflecting the inclusive spirit and diversity of our community.

The City of Kirkland Supports Equitable Opportunities
The City Council and the Kirkland Woman’s Club seek to dismantle structural racism and inequities in Kirkland. We affirm that all people, their culture, and their art contribute to the meaning and understanding of our shared humanity and should be honored and celebrated. We strive to proactively solicit and curate art that reflects the diversity of the Kirkland community, encourages a sense of belonging for all people, and supports the expression of historically marginalized communities. The art created by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color performs a unique role in our community and helps provide inspiration to resolve societal inequity and injustice. This important work of bringing equity to art is pivotal to our efforts to confront injustices of the past and reveal inequities of the present to build a more diverse, inclusive collection of public art, now and in the future.

Exhibition Guidance
The artwork should invigorate, inspire, and energize the Kirkland community, communicate Kirkland as a safe, inclusive, welcoming, and belonging place, celebrate diversity and honor social and racial justice qualities that are in accordance with:

• City of Kirkland Resolution R-5693 (2025) which reaffirms the City’s Commitment to Being a Safe, Inclusive, and Welcoming Community Where All People Belong
• Resolution 5434 (2020) ensuring the safety and respect of Black people, committing to examining and dismantling interpersonal, institutional, and structural racism in Kirkland
• Resolution R – 5548 (2022) – adopting the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging 5-Year Roadmap
• Resolution R – 5686 (2025) - declaring Kirkland as a welcoming, inclusive, and safe city for the Two Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer/Questioning, Intersex, Asexual Plus (2SLGBTQIA+) people and recognizing their human rights and well-being

This request for artists seeks works that reflect the tenets of these resolutions, as well as seeking to represent the important role that women play in both the history and future of Kirkland. The work should seek to honor the historic role that women have played and will continue to play, in the history and future of Kirkland, shaping civic and cultural life, while reflecting the inclusive spirit and diversity of our community.

We have collected community feedback on what they love about Kirkland and expressed the responses with a wordcloud to give you artistic direction. Click Here.

Artist Selection Process
The Kirkland Woman’s Club has selected some of its members to become a sub-committee that will make the selection for this art call, in conjunction with partners at The Village at Totem Lake and the Kirkland Community Foundation. The selection will be based on the evaluation of written and sample artwork submissions. The sub-committee may also conduct an interview process; however, it reserves the right to select an artist based only on the evaluation of written submissions of work and artwork submissions. All submissions and interviews will be evaluated based on the Scoring Rubric Criteria (below). The final approval will be provided by the Kirkland Woman’s Club, The Village at Totem Lake and the Kirkland Community Foundation.

The sub-committee reserves the right not to select any submissions received from this call for artists. Submitting artist(s) should be prepared and available to present their submissions virtually during an interview process if so selected. Submitted artists must be able to meet the project timeline. KWC and The Village at Totem Lake reserves the right to change the art selection if the art originally selected is not a proper fit for the location selected.

Art Site
Hallway area to the parking garage at the Village at Totem Lake in between Sincere/Purpose Men & Yuan Spa across from Joe’s Burgers. 26’ wide x 12’ high

Accepted Mediums:
Artists are welcome to submit examples of completed work that contemplate artwork in an array of sizes, types, and mediums. The medium(s) should be durable for a space which will be exposed to an open/close entry door into the space, by the public. The medium(s) should not pose any hazard to the public and the environment.

Project Budget and Contract Requirements
The amount of art compensation depends on the art mode and mediums. The total art budget is $8,000 with the intent to purchase one artwork at a minimum.
 

For the awarded artist(s) to contract with the Kirkland Art Center for display of their work, the following documents are required:

• IRS Form W-9.
• Certificate of Insurance for the duration of the project showing 1) Commercial General Liability for $1,000,000 each occurrence with The Village at Totem Lake named as an additional insured.
• State of Washington Business License with City of Kirkland endorsement.

*Selected artists are responsible for coordinating the installation of the work with The Village at Totem Lake.

For questions and to request assistance to fulfill these requirements, please contact:
Bryan Kozu
Senior Marketing Manager
O: 425.658.0140 | M: 509.834.0763
bkozu@centercal.com

Art Call Selection Scoring Rubric
For this submission, the KWC will use a scoring rubric—based on City of Kirkland Public Art Policy Guidelines and funders’ intent—in its selection process. The KWC subcommittee will recommend selections to the KWC members for final approval, in collaboration with The Village at Totem Lake, based on the total points scored in these following categories:

1. Responsiveness to the Project Call: Theme and Other Project Specifics—50 points

• How well does the submitted work respond to the specifics of the call, in terms of
  theme, feel, color and capturing the essence of Kirkland.
• Scale: not competitive (1-9); fair (10-19); good (20-29); great (30-39); excellent (40-45); exceptional (46-50).

2. Overall Alignment with City of Kirkland Public Art Policy Guidelines – 20 points

• Does the submitted work reflect Kirkland’s Public Art Vision to maintain a diverse public art collection that values and honors artistic endeavor and the creative process,
  recognizes the role of public art in a welcoming and inclusive community, invites
  interaction, fosters civic identity and community pride, inspires a sense of discovery,
  stimulates cultural awareness?
• Scale: not competitive (1-2); fair (3-6); good (7-10); great (11-15); excellent (15-19);
  exceptional (20).

3. Artistic Merit – 20 points

• How well does the submitted work show artistic value, including formal qualities,
  technical ability, relevance to the current historical context, and the creative expression of content?
• Scale: not competitive (1-2); fair (3-6); good (7-10); great (11-15); excellent (15-19);
  exceptional (20).

4. Artist’s Capabilities – 10 points

• Does the work submitted, including the artist’s statement, and submitted work
  samples, demonstrate the artist’s ability to meet the project requirements and fully
  realize the project?
• Scale: not competitive (1); fair (2-3); good (4-5); great (6-7); excellent (8-9); exceptional (10).

Timeline:

• Call to Artists Opens: October 1, 2026
• Submissions Deadline: October 30, 2026
• Submission Reviews: November 1 - November 20, 2026
• Finalists Notified: December 4, 2026
• Artist Under Contract: Winter 2027
• Mural Installation: Winter 2027 (Date TBD with Bryan Kozu at the Village at Totem Lake)

This call is for completed work.
The following application materials are required:

• Statement of interest (no longer than one page) describing why you should be considered for this opportunity, an explanation of your work's concept and how the concept, vision, and proposed work address this specific call.
  -- Artwork Dimensions: The statement of interest should also include a clear               description of the art/art design including:
        --Murals: provide a range of cost detail for materials for the wall that is about 26
        feet wide and can go about 12 feet high.
• Two (2) to five (5) digital images of proposed work.
• Brief artist's biography, resume or curriculum vitae (CV).

We strongly encourage submissions from artists residing or working in Washington, specifically the Kirkland area.
 

Artists who identify as women are strongly encouraged to apply, as the project seeks to uplift and reflect the voices of women within our community.
 

Emerging and established artists are welcome.