Last updated: 3/20/24

Public Meetings and the Boston Art Commission

First created in 1890, the Boston Art Commission advocates for public art in Boston’s civic spaces.

Page Sections

The Boston Art Commission (BAC) is an independent board of volunteers that approves and commissions innovative and transformative public artworks around the City in partnership with the Office of Arts and Culture.

Housed in the Mayor's Office of Arts and Culture, the BAC also holds contracts with artists, approves artwork on City land, and conserves the City of Boston’s collection of art and historical artifacts.

Curatorial vision

We commission and approve innovative and transformative artworks that:

engage communities
enrich and enliven the urban environment
are driven by a clear artistic vision
enhance the diversity of the existing collection
respond directly to a specific environment, and
possess durability appropriate to the lifespan of the work.

View our public art policy.

Upcoming meetings

Upcoming

Public meetings

Next Boston Art Commission meeting

Artworks proposed for City of Boston property are reviewed at public meetings held by the Boston Art Commission (BAC). Meetings are generally held the second Tuesday of each month. We review current public art projects sited on or proposed for City of Boston property.

You can submit public testimony to the Boston Art Commission through our online form.

Access to our meetings

If you have questions about submitting public comments or attending a meeting, please send us an email at BAC@boston.gov.

Meeting agendas are posted in the public notices section of the City's website.

View past meeting minutes

Watch past meeting recordings

Meeting Deadlines

Once you complete the public art and design application, the public art team will review it and follow up with you if more information is needed. If you are proposing a project for City property and need the BAC to review it by a certain date, please see the table below with the deadlines for submitting the Public Art and Design Application each month. If there are issues with your application, you may be asked to postpone and present at a later meeting.

Propose a Public Art Project

See Open Calls and Applications

Deadline	Meeting Date
January 2, 2024	January 16, 2024
January 30, 2024	February 13, 2024
February 27, 2024	March 12, 2024
March 12, 2024	March 28, 2024
March 26, 2024	April 9, 2024
April 30, 2024	May 14, 2024
May 28, 2024	June 11, 2024
June 25, 2024	July 9, 2024
July 30, 2024	August 13, 2024
August 27, 2024	September 10, 2024
September 24, 2024	October 8, 2024
October 29, 2024	November 12, 2024
November 26, 2024	December 10, 2024

Who we are

COMMISSION MEMBERS

We are an independent board of nine commissioners. All of our members are residents of the City and appointed by the Mayor. The commission includes:

a representative nominated by the Boston Society of Architects
a representative nominated by the Museum of Fine Arts
a representative nominated by the Trustees of the Public Library of the City of Boston
a representative nominated by the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum
a representative nominated by the Massachusetts College of Art and Design
a representative nominated by the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston
the Chief of the Mayor's Office of Arts and Culture, ex officio
the Head of Boston Planning & Development Agency, ex officio, and
one candidate who has demonstrated distinguished service to the arts, appointed at the discretion of the Mayor's Office of Arts and Culture.

TERM LIMITS

Members of the commission serve for a term of five years. If invited by the Mayor, commissioners may serve for an additional five years.

What we do

What We Do

RESPONSIBILITIES

We are responsible for the art collection owned by the City of Boston. This includes:

keeping a record of the art
commissioning art for the City, and
maintaining the City’s art, while keeping it safe.

ART FOR EVERYONE

We want everyone to have access to this art in the City. The goal is to enrich the lives of Boston’s diverse citizens and visitors. In our work, we:

collect and research
interpret and exhibit, and
preserve and care for the City's art.

This includes fine art, decorative art, and significant historical artifacts, according to museum standards.

We also examine equity and representation in the City's collection through public dialogue.

WHO WE WORK WITH

We advise, support, and consult with artists and communities, City departments, and others. We make sure that proposed projects on City property meet our standards.