Pump It Up Art Project

Wrapped utility box in Kawartha Lakes - Credit - Fish Hog Lake by Megan Henderson

The Dysart et al Pump it Up Art Project is a temporary public art initiative to wrap select control boxes for sewage pumping stations in the Village of Haliburton with artist created imagery. In 2025, the Cultural Resources committee worked with local artists to help beautify the landscape by wrapping its municipal control boxes with themed artwork.

Four boxes were completed in 2025 and a fifth one will be completed in the summer of 2026. Control boxes across communities of Fenelon Falls, Bobcaygeon, Argyle, Omemee and Lindsay have been wrapped.

The goal of the program is to enliven our municipal landscapes with eye-popping artwork highlighting the work of our local artists and enhancing the control boxes.

CALL FOR ARTISTS - Pump it Up Art Project Deadline June 26, 2026, 5:00 pm

Project Description

The Cultural Resources Committee of the Municipality of Dysart et al is seeking young artists (ages 12 to 25) to submit images of their original art work depicting nature or outdoor activity in the Haliburton Highlands. The selected images will be used to create an image wrap control boxes for sewage pumping stations located within Village of Haliburton. Submissions must be in a digital format.

These highly visible enclosures are ground and/or pole mounted, metal boxes.

The artist is responsible for the artwork only. Installation will be handled by the Cultural Resources Committee. All submissions will be juried using current Public Art evaluation rubric.

Risk + Responsibility

Artists should understand that the finished work will be installed onto functioning equipment which may at some time require repair or replacement. Therefore, the Municipality of Dysart et al cannot guarantee the duration of the work’s display, nor be responsible for any damages or modifications of the artwork due to required maintenance and wear and tear.

Artists should also be aware that sewage pumping stations can be targets for vandalism. The Municipality of Dysart et al cannot guarantee that vandalized works will be repaired, restored or replaced as this is dependent on available funding. Artists must accept this risk that their artwork may be removed/replaced if damage or vandalism occurs at the Municipality's discretion.

Eligibility + Criteria

Artist

Must be a year-round or seasonal resident of Haliburton County.
Must be 12 to 25 years of age at time of submission.

Artwork

Must be unique and original, (new or existing artwork is eligible).
Must be two-dimensional visual art.
Can be in any medium. Photography is not accepted.
Must not include promotion, branding, or content resembling traffic features or signs.
Must not include any vulgar or offensive words or explicit offensive imagery.
Must be able to be reproduced as high-res digital document.
Maximum submission of 2 artworks per artist. Artists may submit a max of 5 images per artwork with a maximum file size of 100 MB per image.

Artists whose artwork is selected

Must either submit a hi-res or vector, based format or high-resolution image of their artwork or provide the original artwork (for us to have photographed). Artwork will be returned.
Must sign (or if under the age of 18 have their parent or guardian sign) Municipality of Dysart et al copyright release form.
Provide a headshot for the artists bio which will be featured on the Municipal website.

Honorarium

Successful applicants will receive a flat fee of $400.00 for each artwork selected.

Selection Process

Eligible proposals will be selected by a jury using the following criteria:

Artistic Merit - artwork exhibits high quality artistic ability and execution within project scope.
Community Impact - artwork generates a positive and strong visual impact for the site location.
Viability – viability of artwork to translate onto a sewage pumping station control box.

How to apply

On-line application form.

Fill out the form and upload your images (and your CV - optional), maximum submission of two (2) artworks. Artists may submit a max of five (5) images per artwork with a maximum file size of 10 MB per image.

If you are not able to access the on-line form, contact us at dysartpumpitupproject@gmail.com.

What to include in your submission:

Official entry form
Digital image(s) of your artwork

Karen Gervais

Haliburton Fish

Karen Gervais has been painting, running, cycling, skiing and enjoying art in the wilds of Haliburton for the last 20 years. She teaches art at Haliburton Highlands Secondary School and encourages students to be active and enjoy the outdoors through her coaching pursuits in cross-country running, Nordic skiing and track and field. She is a mother, cat-lover and frequent visitor of the Sculpture Forest and Glebe Park.

Image of Karen Gervais - should length brown hair, smiling, wearing a black Red Hawks t-shirt.

Susan Hay

Sherborne Lake Rocks under water

Susan is a landscape artist, living in Haliburton County. Her training as an artist began when she taught herself to pain using Walter Foster "How to Paint" books. She eventually took courses at the Haliburton College of Art and Design. She has been devoting much of the past 25 years to painting. She is a member of The Studio Tour, Haliburton Highlands and exhibits her work at the Rails End Gallery in Haliburton.

Susan's landscapes are painted on texturized canvases and are mostly based on photos she has taken from the bow of her canoe. susanhay.ca

Image of Susan Hay, wearing dark rimmed glasses, short brown hair and a cheetah patterned scarf. Standing in front of her artwork.

Wendy Wood

Ethereal Forest

Wendy has been creating art all her life. She started out as an electrical draftsperson and the love of using a pencil led to a career in landscape painting. She was introduced to crochet at a very young age and that appreciation of fiber crept back into her life in woven forms.

Living in the Haliburton Highlands for over 20 years has proven to be a never-ending source of artistic inspiration. wendywood.ca

Image of Wendy Wood, sandy blonde hair, red framed glasses, wearing an orange woven scarf.

Al Van Mil Alphons

Sumac

Al Van Mil was born on the Isle of Texel, in the North Sea of the Netherlands. He grew up in a scholarly and artistic family. For most of the last 50 years, Al Van Mil has created visual artworks using a large variety of media, including acrylic or oil paint on large canvases. He spent his high school years in Haliburton. Al and his wife and fellow artist Annette Blady own a home on Miskwabi Lake in Haliburton County and are long-time participants in the Studio Tour - Haliburton Highlands.

bladyvanmil.com

Al Van Mil wearing a black t-shirt and black baseball hat, looking off to the side.