San Francisco Arts Commission Releases Shaping Legacy Audit Report and RFP for Temporary Public Art

(SAN FRANCISCO, May 19, 2025) — The San Francisco Arts Commission (SFAC) today announces two significant milestones in the Shaping Legacy: Monuments & Memorials initiative—a public release of the Audit Report on San Francisco’s Monuments and Memorials, and a Request for Proposals (RFP) for temporary public art projects citywide. 

Both releases are a response to the public’s call for adding historical and cultural framing to the City’s monuments and memorials, and for opportunities for learning, healing and inclusion. 

The Audit's extensive historical research, engagement, data collection and analysis serve as a significant resource to understand the current landscape of public monuments and memorials in the Civic Art Collection. It documents not only what’s present, but what’s missing. 

The Audit also makes a number of recommendations to the SFAC including specific guidance on planning for new monuments, engagement around existing monuments, and policies and programs in service to the public. 

The RFP is an open call for artists, collectives, and cultural visionaries to shape the next chapter. They are creative interventions—temporary works that center community, collaboration, local histories and stories. SFAC is calling on artists to dream bigger than tradition and to offer ideas for a reimagined commemorative landscape. 

“The Shaping Legacy Audit Report is a powerful step forward in reckoning with how we understand and tell our city’s stories through art in public spaces,” said Ralph Remington, Director of Cultural Affairs. “Too often, monuments have centered narrow perspectives and excluded voices. Our continued work with Shaping Legacy, building on the work of the Monuments and Memorials Advisory Committee, challenges us to imagine a more inclusive, honest, and democratic public realm where all communities see their histories acknowledged and their contributions celebrated.” 

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To learn more about Shaping Legacy and to read the full audit report, visit: www.sfartscommission.org/shapinglegacy

Apply to the RFP for Temporary Public Art Projects

(Image Credits: "Community unveiling of "Portrait of a Phenomenal Woman" monument," Photo by Fred Rowe Foto, "Carlos Villa: Roots & Reinvention Opening Celebration and Procession," Photo by Mido Lee, "The Continuous Thread: Celebrating Our Interwoven Histories, Identities and Contributions," Photo by Hulleah Tsinhnahjinnie)

For media inquiries, interviews, or additional background, please contact: Coma Te, Director of Communications