Chicago does not run a single, one-size-fits-all public art process. Instead, the city operates several distinct channels, and the right one depends on where your project idea sits. City-funded artwork on municipal buildings flows through the Percent for Art ordinance, administered by the Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE). Artwork at transit stations runs through the CTA's Arts in Transit Program. And proposed donations of artwork are evaluated by DCASE itself. For artists, the two official entry points are the Chicago Artist Email Registry and the juried Chicago Public Art Prequalified List.
Understanding Chicago's Public Art Landscape
Chicago's public art collection is one of the most visible in the country, spanning Cloud Gate and Crown Fountain in Millennium Park to works at O'Hare and Midway, the Harold Washington Library, and neighborhood pieces like Alison Saar's Monument to the Great Northern Migration. The Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, known as DCASE, is the steward of this system. According to the department's guidelines, DCASE is dedicated to preserving and expanding the collection, and it administers both the Chicago Public Art Program and the city's Percent for Art projects.
That administrative role matters for anyone with a project idea. DCASE is not just a funder; it also maintains the hundreds of artworks already installed in the collection and decides whether to accept proposed donations, where donated works should be installed, and how they should be displayed. In practice, nearly every official pathway for public art in Chicago runs through this one department, with the CTA as the notable specialized exception.
The Percent for Art Program: Funding City-Owned Projects
The Percent for Art ordinance is the engine behind most new city-commissioned artwork. Under the ordinance, 1.33% of the construction budget for the construction or major renovation of a City-owned or City-financed building or structure, or for certain outdoor improvements, must be used to commission art at that site. The eligible buildings include libraries, police stations, fire houses, senior centers and others.
Two details are worth noting. First, the 1.33% applies specifically to the construction or renovation budget, not to a project's total cost. Second, the program is designed to be, in the department's own words, "both project-specific and community-based." Once an eligible project is identified, program staff determine how the artist will be selected. For projects with a budget of no more than $10,000 — including the artist's fee, fabrication and installation — the work is usually awarded as a direct commission rather than through a competitive process. Larger projects follow a more competitive route.
