SAN FRANCISCO, CA.- The Harvey Milk commemorative sculpture is intended to be similar in scale and likeness to the bronze sculptures of past Mayors and other significant individuals from the City’s history. The proposed location for the sculpture is in the proximity to the Board of Supervisors Hearing Room on the second floor of City Hall, pending approval from the required parties. Interested artists may wish to view the other commemorative sculptures located on the first and second floors of City Hall to have a sense of the scale and format of the other works.

The Harvey Milk City Hall Memorial Committee will commission a permanent commemorative artwork of Harvey Milk to be placed in San Francisco’s City Hall, and has asked the San Francisco Arts Commission to coordinate the process. The Bob Ross Foundation and hundreds of individual donors from around the world have generously provided all of the funding for this undertaking.

Harvey Milk was the first openly gay person to be elected to public office in San Francisco. He has become an important national symbol of the struggle for human rights and freedom of expression. The Harvey Milk Memorial Committee website states, “Harvey Milk transformed City Hall and the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Community in the historic moment of his election then galvanized it with the tragedy of his death.” It is indeed time for his legacy to be commemorated with a place of honor and distinction in San Francisco’s City Hall.

Arts Commission staff will present the work of pre-screened artist candidates to a selection panel established for this project. Please do not submit a specific proposal or drawing at this time. The panel will identify three finalists, each of whom shall be awarded an honorarium of $2,500 to develop and submit a three dimensional proposal. Finalists will be notified in early September after Arts Commission approval of the selection panel’s recommendations. The finalists will then be given approximately six to eight weeks in which to develop and submit a maquette. The Arts Commission intends to place the maquettes submitted by the three finalists on public display in City Hall where the public may view and comment on the work. Public comments will be collected and shared with the selection panel prior to their final deliberation regarding the winning submission.