Phoenix Arts & Culture Announces Nine Artists Selected for its ¡Sombra! Public Art Project

​Artists to create shade and cooling installations in public parks as part of City's efforts to address extreme heat

The Phoenix Arts & Culture Department has announced the selection of nine artists for its "¡Sombra!" public art project. Funded by a $1 million Public Art Challenge grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies, the artists will create temporary shading and cooling installations in response to Phoenix's extreme urban heat. Throughout the projects, the City of Phoenix Arts & Culture Department and the Office of Heat Response and Mitigation seek to demonstrate scalable solutions and inspire community dialogue about urban heat.

Chosen from nearly 80 submissions from across the U.S., the artists were selected by a diverse panel of specialists from the City of Phoenix's Office of Heat Response and Mitigation, the Office of Innovation, the Arts & Culture Department, as well as local and national artists and design professionals. The winning artists were chosen for their public art concepts' use of effective, experimental and innovative materials and processes, creative themes, and community engagement activities.

The "¡Sombra!" temporary installations will be unveiled in Spring 2025 at nine public locations identified as those of high need by community partners, including contributors to the Nature Conservancy-led Heat Action Planning Guide for Greater Phoenix. Each artist has been paired with City parks in these neighborhoods to collaborate with residents, the Parks and Recreation Department, the Office of Heat Response and Mitigation, and the Office of Innovation to finalize design concepts.

The winning "¡Sombra!" artists and their corresponding temporary installation locations are as follows:

• Jessica Arias - Sunnyslope Park
• Shomit Barua* - Los Olivos Park
• Jose Benavides & Joe Ray* - Cielito Park
• AZ(Land)* - Steele Indian School Park
• Josie Davis & Jenny Boehme - Roesley Park
• Kira Dominguez-Hultgren - Maryvale Park
• Luke Haynes - Sereno Park
• Feng-Feng Yeh* - Eastlake Park
• Bobby Zokaites* - Cortez Park

*Indicates Arizona based artist

"As climate change continues to intensify our summer heat, Phoenix is harnessing and deploying unique and innovative ways to cool our city and make it more comfortable. That's why we are so excited for the support of these nine artists who will turn their beautiful art into shade," said Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego. "I am looking forward to seeing what these talented artists design for our city parks and to the positive impact their projects will have on Phoenicians!"

"We know innovation comes from creative thinkers and collaboration," said Stephanie Dockery, Bloomberg Philanthropies Arts Team. "The Bloomberg Philanthropies Public Art Challenge brings together mayors, artists, nonprofits, the private sector, and residents to develop innovative solutions that address critical issues facing cities. We believe the impacts of the "¡Sombra!" project will live beyond the scope of these temporary art installations and enhance the quality of life for Phoenix's visitors and residents."

The "¡Sombra!" temporary installations will be installed in the Spring of 2025 at each of the selected City parks and will then be relocated to Steele Indian School Park in September of 2025 for a one-day, family-friendly festival featuring activities for children, food and music.

"¡Sombra!" will include workshops, educational activities and festive events for artists, civic leaders and residents to discover new, creative ways to adapt to Phoenix' extreme urban heat.

To sign up for updates and to learn more about "¡Sombra!" visit sombraphx.org.

About Phoenix Arts & Culture Department

The City of Phoenix Arts and Culture Department champions, promotes, and supports the City's arts and culture community and educational and cultural opportunities for all, making Phoenix a great place to live, work, and visit. The department manages an award-winning public art program; grants funds to artists and nonprofit arts organizations; oversees a dozen cultural facilities, including the S'edav Va'aki Museum, the gateway to the cultural history of the Phoenix area; supports programs and events for students to help develop their personal, social, and intellectual skills that are critical to success in life, school, and work; assures that the City complies with all laws and regulations regarding the identification and proper treatment of historic properties, objects, and other archaeological resources; and participates in national studies and research that make a strong case for arts, culture, and youth development to demonstrate their economic, social, practical, and educational benefits. Learn more about the department at Phoenix.gov/Arts.

About the Bloomberg Philanthropies Public Art Challenge

The Bloomberg Philanthropies Public Art Challenge brings together mayors, residents, and artists to develop temporary public art projects that address important civic issues in their communities. In 2022, Bloomberg Philanthropies invited mayors of U.S. cities with 30,000 residents or more to apply for up to $1 million in funding to create temporary public art projects that address important civic issues and demonstrate an ability to generate public-private collaborations, celebrate creativity and urban identity, and strengthen local economies. More than 150 cities from 40 U.S. states applied. Bloomberg Philanthropies selected eight winning cities to develop projects focused on challenges related to climate change, equity, food insecurity, gun violence, homelessness, public health, and revitalization. Since launching in 2014, the Bloomberg Philanthropies Public Art Challenge has spurred more than $100 million in economic benefits for participating cities and action across a range of civic issues. For more information, please visit publicartchallenge.bloomberg.org. ​

Public link

Please use the above public link if you want to share this noodl on another website.