The Public Art Fund is Tauranga City Council’s dedicated fund for public art.
What is the Public Art Fund?
Public art is any artwork that is in the public realm and is accessible to the general public. This is regardless of whether it is situated on public or private property.
Public art comes in many forms, including but not limited to, sculpture, murals, mahi toi, integrated architectural or landscape architectural work, community art, mosaics, digital new media, lightworks, sound art, land art, installation, and more transitory forms like performance art.
Funding round dates are advertised in advance. If your full project budget is $50,000 or less, decisions will be made on a quarterly basis. If your full project budget is $50,001 or more, decisions will be made bi-annually. There is no limit to how much you can apply for.
To help you with your application, please read the Public Art Framework (to be provided shortly) and the Public Art Community Toolkit (10.6mb PDF). You can also watch our video from our April 2025 Public Art Wānanga which gives you advice and tips on how to develop a public art proposal.
What can get funded?
- All applications must demonstrate contribution to one of the strategic outcomes:
- World-leading public art grows the distinctiveness of the city
- Infrastructure projects integrate art and design from the outset
- A programme of community and temporary public art brings vibrancy to the city
- A programme of interpretation and promotion enriches the public art experience
- All costs associated with the creation, installation and engagement of the public art project can be applied for.
- Applicants may be awarded the amount requested, or may be awarded partial funding.
What can’t get funded?
- Costs associated with launch events
- Costs associated with an organisation’s BAU, e.g. wages/salaries
When can I apply?
For the next financial year, the Public Art Fund will have set round dates; therefore applicants need to apply within the relevant timeframe.
Who can apply?
- anyone can apply for the Public Art Fund! Artists, commissioners, community organisations, we welcome applications from anyone interested in creating or commissioning a public artwork
- you cannot apply for the Public Art Fund if you have received other Tauranga City Council funding or sponsorship for the same project
- applicants should actively seek additional funding, sponsorship, or in-kind support for their project. Demonstrating support from other sources strengthens an application, as the Public Art Fund is intended to contribute towards projects rather than be the sole source of funding.
Round dates for July 2026 – June 2027
You must submit your application during the round dates to be assessed at the next panel meeting.
Decision dates and payment dates are not pre-determined and will vary between rounds.
*Please note dates may be subject to change.
- Round 1 - Large-scale art
- Round 2 - Murals and community projects
- round opens 12 October - closes 15 November
- please note, decisions will be made in December. If applicants are successful, payments may not be made until after the Christmas break.
- Round 3 - Open Round (subject to funding availability)
- opens 1 February - closes 28 February 2027
Please contact us if you are unsure which round your project aligns with, and whether, if successful, your project will be funded in time for your project start date.