SWAMPSCOTT — Town officials are searching for artists to paint murals on four Humphrey Street utility boxes this summer as part of the town’s Inspired by You art project.
The Town of Swampscott put out a call for applications last week, seeking artists to paint creative and community-centered artwork on four of the town’s 10 utility boxes for a $500 stipend.
After all applications are in by the April 27 deadline, Executive Assistant to the Town Administrator and Select Board Diane Marchese will form a committee to select the right artists for the job.
Marchese said that although the project currently only has enough Mass Cultural Council funding to paint four utility boxes, she hopes to have all 10 town-owned boxes painted next year.
“I have funding right now for four and I’m hoping to raise funding to do two more for the $500 stipends,” Marchese said. “It’ll be so much nicer sitting at a red light looking at a painted box instead of those plain, boring, steel gray ones.”
Inspired by You is a joint effort between the town administrator’s office, Mass Cultural Council, the nonprofit ReachArts, the Department of Public Works, the Police Department, and the Fire Department. One Swampscott firefighter, Marchese said, already expressed interest in the project.
Selected artists will have from May 15 until June 30 to complete their murals. While murals must be completely original, trademark-free, and family-friendly, artists will otherwise be free to paint whatever they like.
“It would be nice to see things about Swampscott history, things that might be relevant to contemporary issues, or things that really would help us to celebrate our sense of community, but we were looking for the artists to inspire us,” Marchese said. “We don’t want folks to have to color within any lines. We want them to really use their creativity and energy to really create some public art.”
Town Administrator Sean Fitzgerald said he hopes that the project will highlight the talent of Swampscott’s local artists, and bring an added sense of vibrancy and community pride to the town.
“We’ve got a lot of wonderful artists in Swampscott and it would be great to brighten up a few of the utility boxes, and just celebrate Swampscott history and some of the creative energies that we have in town,” Fitzgerald said.
