Opportunity

Waterfront Toronto is seeking a professional artist or artist team to create a temporary floating artwork for Harbour Square Park Basin for summer 2027.
Open to Canadian professional artists and/or Canadian artist teams, the commission will activate the basin and engage local communities and waterfront visitors. Selected artists must use Ontario-based contractors, with local subcontractors strongly encouraged.
Located on Lake Ontario, Harbour Square Park is part of the Great Lakes system, which holds one-fifth of the world’s surface freshwater. These waters have long supported Indigenous Peoples, ecosystems, trade, settlement, migration and recreation. Today, they face increasing pressures from climate change, pollution, invasive species, wetland loss and other environmental challenges.
Theme: OUT OF SCALE; Larger than Life on the Water
Artists are invited to explore the creative possibilities of scale and water through a bold, unexpected floating artwork.
What happens when something familiar is distorted, exaggerated or reimagined? When an everyday object becomes a landmark, or a small idea takes on an iconic presence?
Scale may be physical, emotional, cultural, historical or temporal. Proposals may begin with a familiar form, object, story or experience and transform it through scale, context and its relationship to water.
Water should be more than a platform. It may act as a mirror, canvas, changing field of light and colour, or force that creates movement. Waterfront Toronto is particularly interested in works that create wonder and curiosity, spark conversation and become a temporary waterfront landmark, while encouraging photography, video, storytelling and repeated viewing.
Proposals must balance artistic ambition with marine conditions, public safety, durability, feasibility, budget and sustainability, including consideration of reuse or responsible repurposing after the exhibition.

Budget

$100,000 + HST

The total budget must cover all project costs, including, but not limited to; artist fees, design and drawings, technical consultation and marine engineering approval as required, permits, anchoring, insurance, materials, fabrication, shipping, installation, signage, maintenance, removal, travel and related expenses.
Required insurance includes $2M professional liability and $5M commercial general liability for water installations.

Key Dates

• RFP Launch: October 22, 2026
• Questions Deadline: November 26, 2026
• Submission Deadline: December 3, 2026, 5:00 p.m. ET
• Artist Selection: December 2026
• Artist Notification/Contract: January 2027
• Design Development & Fabrication: February to May 2027
• Installation: Late May to early June 2027
• Removal: Early October 2027

How to Apply

Questions should be sent to [email protected], referencing 2027 Floating Art.

This posting is an introduction only. Applicants must review the complete Call for Proposals on the Waterfront Toronto Public Art website for submission instructions, evaluation criteria, site and technical requirements, and terms and conditions. Please check the Public Art page regularly for addenda while the RFP is live.