Project Proposal Application: Letters to Our Future Time Capsule

The Johnson Heritage Post Art Gallery is a non-profit art gallery operating as part of the greater Historic Cook County. As such, we curate our exhibitions and feature artists with the goal of furthering our mission to collect, preserve and share our material, cultural and artistic heritage. We will prioritize applications submitted by working local artists, with consideration given to regional artists after this has been done.

Project Summary:

The Cook County Historical Society (CCHS) and Johnson Heritage Post (JHP) Art Gallery invite North Shore artists to submit proposals for a physical time capsule. This time capsule is a continuation of CCHS’s Letters to Our Future writing project, in which community members have documented (and continue to record) their thoughts, feelings, and hopes for the future, as well as what life was like in 2026 in response to specific events.

Proposal Submission Deadline: November 30, 2026

Project Completion Deadline: May 01, 2027

Background:

The Cook County Historical Society (CCHS) first launched Letters to Our Future at the beginning of 2026, as a way to document our community’s response to Operation Metro Surge. CCHS invited visitors and community members to document any and all experiences or responses so future generations could look back and understand what people were thinking and feeling during this unprecedented time.

Since it began, the project has grown. Other historical organizations have adopted the project (or a similar version of it). To accommodate the growth, CCHS created a toolkit, providing materials free of charge for other entities to implement their own version of the project.

As time moves forward, CCHS has expanded the project to capture responses through letters of what life was like in 2026 - in general, or a specific event, including but not limited to:

Summer wildfires, closure of the BWCAW
Operation Metro Surge
Elections
Mining ban reversal
United States Semiquincentennial
Artemis II lunar flyby
World Cup
Winter Olympics

Letters can also contain words of advice or hopes for future generations. Letter writers have the opportunity to record their responses in a public journal, submit their letters into our archives (for view upon request), or to be locked in the time capsule for 20 years.

Art Project Description:

Thanks to a grant from the Arrowhead Regional Arts Council, and in partnership with the Carlton County Historical Society and Oldenburg Arts and Cultural Community, CCHS is expanding the project to include the local arts community.

What: CCHS is looking for an artist or group of artists to create a physical time capsule that involves the community and will hold all the Letters to Our Future materials that CCHS acquires throughout the project.

A sample of letters that have been received so far can be viewed at: https://drive.google.com/file/d/16yGrCLUZ39eqoTPxu8yO2LdRvhQOByv9/view?usp=sharing

Public journals are also available to view at the Johnson Heritage Post and the History Museum.

Artist Eligibility:

The selected artist(s) must meet the following:

A strong connection to the North Shore, with preference given to Cook County and Grand Portage links
The artist must present an idea that meets all project specifications and goals, including archival stability
The art piece must show alignment with the Letters to Our Future program
The artist must incorporate community involvement as outlined in the goals

Project specifications and goals:

The time capsule should be able to hold a 15” x 12” x 10” archival storage box and fit on a 24” x 20” pedestal.
The exterior materials should be able to hold up well over time (20+ years) in archival storage.
The time capsule should be able to easily be lifted and carried, weighing no more than 50lbs while empty.
The design should be representative of multiple community members’ thoughts of the present or hopes for the future.
Artist(s) must work with community members in some capacity (ex: workshops). There can be a component of community collaboration that can be done from home. (ex: a take home packet of supplies that can be completed in community participants’ own time).

Art Display Location: The time capsule will be displayed in the left corner of the Center Gallery at the Johnson Heritage Post. The approximate maximum size of the display, including the time capsule, related interpretative text, and any other supplementary information is two 8”x 8” walls and 3sqft of floor space.

Budget: $1,000 to cover cost of materials and compensation for artist(s) time and instruction leading community workshops or similar programming.

Name (If applying as a group, please enter a single artist's contact information)

First NameLast Name

Name of any additional artists (if applying as a group)

Email

example@example.com

Mailing Address

Street Address

Street Address Line 2

CityState / Province

Postal / Zip Code

Phone Number

Please enter a valid phone number.Format: (000) 000-0000.

Website (if applicable)

Do you currently reside in Cook County or Grand Portage?

Describe your connection with the North Shore.

Provide an artist statement (max 800 words).

Describe in detail your proposed project including what materials will be used and construction techniques.

Describe your plan for community-oriented programming.

Describe the estimated cost for your proposed project.

List your experience (if any) in leading workshops, public art projects, and any other relevant projects.

Has AI been used in any part of developing your concept? If so, describe how it was used.

Upload images, sketches, or other supplementary materials that illustrates your proposed concept for the time capsule project.

Upload 3-5 images of examples of past work.

Terms and Conditions:

Works must be entirely the artist(s)’ own creation, or the product of a public workshop led by the artist in the context of this program. The artists must disclose any use of Artificial Intelligence in the creation of their work.
The completed artwork of the selected project will become part of the Cook County Historical Society collection. The Cook County Historical Society will have complete authority and discretion to store, exhibit, lend and care for the work as a collection item.
Cook County Historical Society will be free to take and publish photos or videos of the work and any related workshops or events, including but not limited to use in press releases, flyers, social media and the CCHS website.
All flyers, press releases and other promotional materials must include the logo of or otherwise mention funding by the Arrowhead Regional Arts Council.
Payment shall be made to the selected artist(s) as follows:
- Artist(s) will recieve equal to cost of supplies plus 25% of time and workshop costs following approval of design.
- Artist(s) will recieve payment of the remaining portion of fund following the completed artwork's arrival at the gallery.
- If a group of artists are selected payments for time and workshops will be split equally unless otherwise agreed upon by all parties.
Final artwork becomes the property of Cook County Historical Society. While Artist(s) retain copyright, the Cook County Historical Society will receive permission to use images of the artwork for publicity and marketing purposes.

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