Request for Proposals: Graphic Facilitator / Live Illustrator
RFP Release: September 9, 2026
RFP Submission Due: September 18, 2026
Event: October 12-13, 2026 (approximately 100-125 in attendance)
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana
Application Contact: Audrey Jones; audrey@cityrising.org
The Opportunity
City Rising seeks a graphic facilitator / live illustrator to visually document and interpret a two-day, conference-style gathering in Indianapolis on October 12 and 13, 2026.
The selected artist(s) will create original visual material in real time throughout the event, translating ideas, conversations, themes, questions, and moments of connection into drawings, diagrams, words, symbols, and other visual forms.
The artist should use their own visual judgment and creative practice to identify what is meaningful, make connections visible, and create an engaging visual record of the gathering.
Event Schedule
The selected artist should be available for the following event hours:
Monday, October 12: 11:00 AM–4:30 PM
Tuesday, October 13: 9:00 AM–4:00 PM
The event will take place in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Scope of Work
The selected artist will provide live graphic facilitation/illustration throughout the two-day event.
Depending on the artist's practice and the structure of the gathering, this may include:
Live visual interpretation of presentations and conversations;
Illustrations of key ideas, themes, and questions;
Visual mapping of relationships or connections between ideas;
Pulling out memorable language, concepts, or moments and documenting these experiences using plain language;
Use of accessible typography, diagrams, symbols, icons, imagery, and other visual techniques;
Creating a cohesive visual language across the two days; and
Other forms of visual interpretation that help capture the experience and substance of the event through compelling and accessible visuals and plain language.
The artist will have substantial discretion over the visual approach!
We are interested in an artist who can listen actively, identify what matters, and make those ideas visible.
Artistic Approach
The artist's individual style is an important part of this commission.
City Rising welcomes a range of approaches to graphic facilitation, including illustration, hand lettering, diagramming, mapping, visual metaphor, collage, abstraction, humor, and other forms of visual interpretation.
The work may be highly illustrative or more restrained and diagrammatic. What matters most is that the resulting images are thoughtful, legible, engaging, and responsive to the ideas and people in the room.
The artist should be comfortable making creative decisions in real time. The work does not need to capture every conversation or statement. The artist should exercise judgment about what deserves emphasis and how different ideas might be connected visually.
Deliverables
The primary deliverable will be the original artwork created by the artist during the event.
The selected artist will provide City Rising with:
The original physical graphic facilitation artwork created during the October 12–13 event;
High-resolution digital scans or photographs of the original artwork;
Any agreed-upon individual images, panels, illustrations, or cropped elements derived from the larger artwork; and
Files suitable for future digital, print, web, presentation, and archival use.
The original artwork should be delivered to City Rising following the event according to a mutually agreed-upon timeline and method.
The artist's original artwork is an important part of the commission. City Rising intends to preserve and potentially exhibit, reproduce, photograph, digitize, and otherwise make use of the original images as part of the project's future communications and activities.
Rights and License
The artist will retain copyright in their original artistic work.
As part of the commission, the artist will provide City Rising and its assignees with a broad, non-exclusive license to reproduce, display, distribute, publish, digitize, adapt, crop, excerpt, and otherwise use the commissioned artwork and individual elements from it for organizational, educational, promotional, archival, digital, and related purposes.
This may include use on websites, social media, presentations, reports, publications, future events, exhibitions, and other communications associated with City Rising, its assignees, and the project.
The artist will be appropriately credited where practical and appropriate.
Who We Are Looking For
We welcome applications from graphic facilitators, visual practitioners, illustrators, designers, artists, and other creative professionals with experience translating complex ideas into visual form.
We are particularly interested in artists who demonstrate:
Strong visual communication skills;
Experience with live graphic facilitation, visual note-taking, illustration, or related practices;
The ability to listen, synthesize, and make visual decisions quickly;
An engaging and distinctive visual style that is accessible and easy to understand for individuals with intellectual and/ or developmental disabilities and their families;
Comfort working in a live, participatory environment;
Sensitivity to the people and ideas represented in the work; and
The ability to create original artwork while working within the time and spatial constraints of a live event.
Formal credentials are not required. Emerging artists are encouraged to apply. Selection will focus on the quality of the artist's existing work, visual judgment, and demonstrated ability to work effectively in a live setting.
How to Apply
Please email audrey@cityrising.org by September 18, 2026 with:
A brief statement of interest;
A portfolio or links to approximately 3–5 examples of relevant work, particularly live graphic facilitation, visual note-taking, illustration, or other work demonstrating visual synthesis;
A brief résumé or bio;
A quote for services and deliverables discussed in this RFQ; and
Confirmation of your availability for October 12–13 in Indianapolis.
Compensation
This is a paid professional artistic commission.
Compensation will be discussed with the selected artist prior to execution of an agreement. Applications should include a detailed estimate or quote for services.
Payment will be made in arrears upon receipt of an invoice, on a Net 30 basis.
A Final Note
Good graphic facilitation makes ideas visible in ways that words alone sometimes cannot.
We are looking for an artist who can be present in the room, listen carefully, notice connections, and translate what they hear into an original visual language. The resulting artwork should become a record of the gathering while also standing on its own as a creative interpretation of the ideas and people that shaped it.