Explore Asheville, River Front Development Group, and the Asheville Black Cultural Heritage Trail (BCHT) Advisory Committee seek artists to submit qualifications for consideration for public art enhancements of the Asheville Black Cultural Heritage Trail. Public art is art utilizing any media such as murals or sculptures in public spaces that are free and open to the public.

Project Background

In 2018 Explore Asheville, powered by the Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority, supported the creation of the Asheville Black Cultural Heritage trail in partnership with River Front Development Group through a Tourism Product Development Fund Grant. The process included community engagement, the creation of an advisory committee, research, design, installation, and the creation of a digital version of the trail.

Twenty-one signs at 14 sites throughout downtown, Southside, and the River Area in Asheville were installed December 2023. The content of the trail informs the physical path that the trail takes through the historically Black neighborhoods that surround and include downtown Asheville. The four interpretive goals for this project are:

• Share the accomplishments and contributions of the Black community in Asheville.
• Celebrate individuals and groups that supported the community.
• Highlight Black people’s agency and the capacity to express individual power.
• Combat or correct misconceptions and preserve history for future generations.

Phase II of the project will include enhancement and placemaking through public art.

Artist Eligibility

Explore Asheville invites applications from professional artists or designers aged 18 or older who are eligible to work in the United States. Qualified artists should have experience working within communities in or around Buncombe County and/or a proven record of accomplishment using materials and methods appropriate for large format outdoor art installations. Explore Asheville encourages artists who only have one qualification to partner with an artist or maker who can fulfill the other qualifications. New artists and/or collaboration are encouraged. This call for qualifications is open to all, regardless of experience or size of portfolio.