We are currently working with Cabaret Mechanical Theatre Ltd to bring a major exhibition Making Waves to Aberdeen Art Gallery in 2026.
To celebrate the exhibition and to make a lasting impact we would like to commission a number of automata artworks to act as donation boxes in some of our venues.
Our venues include:
Aberdeen Art Gallery; Aberdeen Maritime Museum; The Beach Ballroom;
Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire archives in the Town House; Provost Skene’s House (seasonal); and the Tolbooth Museum (seasonal)
Creative Brief
We would love to have unique pieces of art that were at home in one of these spaces, reflecting the building, the activities that happen in them, the collections they hold or the stories that resonate with the city and the people who visit us – quite a wide brief really!
The automata activation should be linked to a cash and tap-to-pay donation as a way of reinvesting any income into the activities we offer or the collections we care for.
The height of the final working piece should be low enough for small children to see clearly.
You can find out about our venues and our collections through our webpages and our online collections databases:
Aberdeen Archives, Gallery and Museums | Aberdeen City Council
Beach Ballroom | Aberdeen City Council
And lots of the stories connected with the city can be discovered in lots of different places including:
Museum from Home | Aberdeen City Council
Local History | Aberdeen City Council
Introduction to Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire Archives
As well as Wikipedia!
Details
We are asking for proposals that respond to Aberdeen Archives, Gallery, Museums or Beach Ballroom, and stories connected to the collections or the city – which are vast and can be surprising!
Proposals must include:
- An activation mechanism triggered by cash and tap-to-give donations (we currently use GoodBox across all sites)
- A clear link to the story you have chosen
- A plinth to ensure people can see the action, but low enough for small visitors to see clearly
- A cover to avoid enthusiastic interference by eager hands
The finished piece(s) will be displayed prominently in the appropriate venue, and may be brought together in one location to show the range of amazing machines.
Why we’re doing this
We are hoping to:
- Support the creative sector with the initial commission
- Enhance audience engagement with the creative community in many forms, and demonstrate that engineering and art are not mutually exclusive
- Amplify the special exhibition Making Waves (running May to October 2026)
- Reinvest income from donations in employing artists, makers and creative practitioners to deliver public engagement, education sessions, further commissions and adding to the collections
How to submit a proposal and quote
We need to see one proposal per automata donation box.
If you wish to submit more than one, we are aware that the timescales may need to be reviewed if you receive more than one commission. This should not deter you from submitting a number of proposals.
Whilst we have an aspiration to see the resulting pieces on display during the run of the Making Waves exhibition (10 May to 27 October 2026), we can be flexible.
The gold standard submission is one that presents a proposed outcome that is also illustrative of your practice and might show a development in your thinking or making. Not only do we want a beautiful result, we want to encourage you to take the opportunity to experiment, play or consider new ways of working.
If your proposal is commissioned we can also provide:
- access to the museums, gallery and archives’ collections
- hi-res images of buildings and/or collections
- connections to previously commissioned artists, including those who have created music and poetry for us
- check-ins with curators/archivist as stories develop
Timescales
Deadline for submission of quotes and outline proposal is 23:59 on 22 Feb 2026.
Your commission will not automatically enter the permanent collection. Instead, upon completion and transfer of title they become the property of Aberdeen City Council. Your commission will then be individually assessed by the Acquisition panel to determine whether they should be accessioned into the permanent collection.
If it does enter the collection, we would be keen to discuss further information that could accompany the piece, such as prep drawings, interviews with you, documentary photos, which would become part of the story always associated with the finished object.
Who can apply?
Applicants must be able to create, develop and present the commission to the programme timetable, or give a clear indication of an alternative timescale to which they will commit under contract.
Applicants should also be able to demonstrate their current practice, with “live” examples of finished works. The assessment panel may request a reference from a client or the option to see the finished piece.
Restrictions
Finished works which support or promote religious or political activity. If you plan to explore any of these themes please contact the Aberdeen Archives, Gallery and Museums team to discuss prior to application.
All costs including research, development, production, installation, travel and transport costs should be accounted for in the quote.
Any pieces made outwith the UK must comply with all import licences related to artworks. This must be considered as part of the quote.
How to submit a proposal and quote
Proposals should be in written format, preferably in a file format compatible with Microsoft Word or Adobe PDF.
They should address the following points (we suggest you use them as section headings!):
- Name
- Address
- Contact details
- Title of proposal for short reference (not necessarily the title of the final piece) if you are submitting more than one proposal
- Concept description or point of inspiration you will reference in the final pieces
- Approximate scale you will work to
- Timescale for programme from development to installation
- Quote broken down into key stages / elements based on your usual working practice
Completed proposals and quotes can be emailed to: AAGMInfo@aberdeencity.gov.uk
Please use “[YOUR NAME] Automata” as the subject of your email when sending the completed application.
For submissions over 5MB, please submit via www.wetransfer.com to the above email address
Support
If you would like further support in completing your proposal and quote we would be happy to offer guidance without opinion via AAGMInfo@aberdeencity.gov.uk
Selection process
A panel will assess and select preferred proposals. All decisions made by the panel will be final and not subject to appeal. Shortlisting will take place over three weeks, and artists/makers will be informed of panel decisions during the week commencing 23 Feb 2026.
Fees
The creative practitioners selected to complete their proposed commissions will receive an upfront fee. Our usual breakdown is outlined below.
Any payment will be subject to the terms and conditions of the contract which as standard is 30 days after receipt of an invoice and will require the commissioned creative practitioner to be registered on the council’s payment system. Please note that final contractual arrangements will be determined through discussion with the commissioned creative practitioner.
First payment 70%
Second payment 20%
Final payment 10%
Second payment will be released on submission of detailed design drawings ready for production
Final payment will be released on receipt and installation of the functioning work in our agreed venue in Aberdeen
Important dates
| 23:5922 February 2026 | submission deadline |
| w/c 23 Feb 2026 | panel reviews submissions and selects commissioned artists/makers; makers notified |
| March 2026 | Set up as a “supplier” and 70% of fee released |
| May 2026 | Making Waves opens |
| 25 October 2026 | Making Waves closes |
Rights
The copyright and all intellectual property rights in the works remain vested in the creative practitioner. Ownership of the finished work will remain with Aberdeen City Council once the project has been completed.
Commercial opportunities can be discussed on a case-by-case basis.
Important note
If the contract is not fulfilled Aberdeen City Council reserve the right to reclaim all monies paid to the awardee.
Background information you may find useful
Our current Collection Development Policy explores a number of themes:
Energy, environment & local economy
Well-being and future prosperity will be influenced by the inter-section between energy, environment, and economy. We will pro-actively collect to document the evolving experiences of society over the coming years of transition. We will look at Aberdeen city and its residents but also collect to reflect these experiences from further afield.
This might include:
- art that explores the Scottish landscape, created by living artists
- a focus on the North-East coastline and the presence of humans in the natural environment
- art that instils a sense of well-being, solace and refuge
- art synonymous with our time (climate of unrest and uncertainty due to pandemic, war, economic and environmental crisis)
- contemporary sculptures and installations by women artists
- contemporary work exploring art from a STEM perspective (science, technology, engineering, mathematics)
- work by contemporary artists and makers addressing themes particularly related to the North East’s experience of the climate crisis, energy transition and changing economy
- work that supports sustainability through use of recycled materials
- work associated with environmental and economic campaigning and/or opposing views
Identity and representation
It is important our collections fairly and equitably reflect the society they emerge from. We will actively acquire objects – associated with existing areas of the collection – that enable us to represent the many forms of identity and reflect social and political change.
This might include:
- contemporary and historic portraiture (including artist self-portraits) that shares underrepresented stories regarding race, religion, disability, sexual orientation and gender
- art inspired by/ exploring exclusion and a sense of being an outsider
- dialogue between “old white men” as artists and sitters, and a more diverse artistic landscape today
- work associated with political and social campaigning and opposing views
- work exploring and confronting perceptions regarding feminism, toxic masculinity, gender and family dynamics
Other sources of inspiration
Some of our teams working in our venues have also created mood boards, download pdf below:
Moodboards2.12 MB
