Protecting our Communities Together Traffic Signal Box

The City, in partnership with the FBI, is accepting submissions for a special traffic signal box design representing the theme “Protecting our Communities Together.” 

Every October, the FBI focuses on raising awareness of hate crimes and how a community can properly report them. They have reached out to the City of Bedford to further promote this by hosting a traffic signal box design competition. 

Theme

Submissions should portray themes of community, connection, and love; the winning design will be located at the Forest Ridge Drive and Lincolnshire Drive intersection.

The original work can be from any medium such as painting, graphic design, photography, or printmaking, but it must be able to be captured in a high-quality digital image for reproduction into the wrap. 

graphic showing a traffic signal box in Bedford with text over it saying "Your Design Here"

Artist Stipend

The winning artist will be paid a stipend of $300 for their work being selected for inclusion in this project. Payments will be made once approved works have been received by the Cultural Arts Manager. 

Signal Box Dimensions

The dimensions of the signal box are: 55” high x 44” wide x 26” deep with an attached UPS Cabinet of 48” high x 16.5” wide x 16.5” deep.

Selection Process

The competition is open to artists of all ages residing in Tarrant County, with preference given to Bedford residents. Artists may submit one design. Proposals will be screened for completeness and the winner will be selected based upon appropriateness, creativity, craftsmanship, and adherence to the theme. The winner will be chosen by a selection committee and will be notified via email and/or phone.

The winning design will remain on the assigned traffic signal box for a minimum of three years. Should damage occur to the box prior to that, the same design will be reinstalled. After three years, should the integrity of the wrap start to fade, damage to the box occur, or a new box be installed, a new design will be added to the box.

Submissions

Artists should email the completed submission form and design to Cultural Arts Manager Krissi Oden at Krissi.Oden@bedfordtx.gov. The deadline for submissions is 5 p.m. on Friday, September 8. 

Entries can be in the form of a photograph, photograph of a painting or drawing, or a digital artwork. Entries should be submitted in one of the following formats:

  • Photographs of paintings or work created by hand should be at least 4,000 pixels.
  • Digital work should be sent in vector files.
  • High resolution PDFs are preferable.
  • If the design is completed using InDesign on a PC, please send a packaged .idml or .inx file with all linked images and fonts. If it was built on a Mac, please outline all type, and send a packaged. idml or .inx file with all linked images.

Design Criteria

  • All designs should be the original work of the artist.
  • Designs should not include any trademarks, brands, or any sort of advertisements.
  • The design should be created to flow across all faces of the box and reflect a unified work of art. Please note, designs that include large patterns and/or bright, bold colors tend to work best on the boxes. 
  • The design should include little to no print, as it is distracting to drivers to try and read.
  • Artists will be invited to sign their work once the wrap is installed.