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Creative Routes Student Artwork Call

photograph of bike sharrow installed; details follow in caption
Creative Routes Artwork, Bike Art, Timothy Acosta, August 16, 2024, Photo by Luan Teed

PURPOSE: Enliven campus commutes while increasing student involvement, beautifying campus, and strengthening students’ work beyond their majors. 

THE PROJECT:  The Department of Public Safety (DPS) is calling for design entries for Creative Routes, a program commissioning student artwork to encourage sustainable transportation on campus. The final project will see the installation of one, 48” x 132” (4’x11’), student-designed bike sharrow on Michigan Avenue.  Installation will be in thermoplastic by GAF and directed by DPS in cooperation with the artist.  Entries may be submitted by all current students using their Boise State email address. This News Article provides context.

image shows a redesigned bike shadow logo with blue and orange colors. dimensions are also given to highlight the artist's specifications of the design.
Holly Papa 2020

OBJECTIVE: Redesign the standard bike sharrow. Your final design may add, amend, exaggerate, whimsify the original design, but the original meaning must remain legible, i.e. cyclists and motorists have equal rights on the roadway. Submission must be the original design of the artist. 

Please email your entry with “Creative Routes 2026” in the subject line to the Director of University Art at fondaportales@boisestate.edu. Entry should include: 

  1. A brief statement of your interest in the project, your current relationship to Boise State, and a description of your experience completing projects (even if not in public art) successfully.
  2. One to three design proposals (handdrawn or digital) as hi-res image files.
    1. Please include dimensions and colors used. Designs can use up to 5 colors available to the printing company. Please see Appendix.  
    1. Attached file must be named in the following format: LastName_FirstName_Title.
    1. Work must suitable for all age groups.

Once awarded, applicant will be expected to:

  1. Provide a final CAD file (.DWG or .DXF). Assistance may be available if you do not have experience.
  2. Adhere to all deadlines of the project, even if no longer enrolled in summer courses.
  3. Sign an Artist Release permitting the University to display the redesign with full copyright. 

AWARDS: In addition to the artwork being placed on the roadway, artist will each be awarded $500.00 for Spring 2026. If teams submit a chosen design, the award will be split among team members. Award funds will be available in the form of a scholarship in the student’s financial aid account.If you have further questions, please contact Gabe Finkelstein, Assistant Director of Transportation, at GabeFinkelstein@boisestate.edu  or Fonda Portales, Director of University Art, at fondaportales@boisestate.edu.     

Deadline: Wednesday, April 1, 2026

Winner Announced: Friday, April 10, 2026
Recipient of award will be selected by a panel made up of representatives from the Department of Public Safety, the office of the Director of University Art, and Campus Operations Leadership Team. The panel’s decision will be made based on the originality of redesign and its adherence to the shared values of the University. 

Installation: Early June 2026 

Duration of Artwork: 7-10 years. Boise State reserves the right to remove artwork for any reason, at any time.

Award Disbursed: Spring Semester 2026    

this graphic shows the colors that street bond thermoplastic is available in and is meant to help applicants to this call for proposals know which colors they can use in their design of the bike sharrow

Design may include up to 5 colors. Neither custom colors nor gradient shadings are available at GAF.

FINAL SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS:

Details needed to quote pricing for a custom item:

  1. Vector design files using solid colors in CAD file (.DWG or .DXF) that includes your name and year of project (3-5 inches at bottom) 
  2. Listed Dimensions and Chosen Colors
  3. Your student ID No.  

GAF’S CAVEAT OF POSSIBLE ALTERATIONS:

Unless very large, design elements with sharp points will likely have the tip of the sharp point(s) rounded to prevent breakage during manufacturing and assembly.        

GAF will make every effort to replicate design as closely as possible; however, modifications may be necessary.

Every line, detail or space within the marking should have a minimum stroke width of 1/2” (12.7mm) wide or wider, but must be at least 3/8” (9.5mm) wide in order for us to manufacture, cut and assemble them into a complete marking. Note that these tolerances are for narrow areas of larger material pieces that make up a marking. 

Depending on the marking’s design and complexity, GAF reserves the right to require wider tolerances where necessary to manufacture certain markings.