They loomed large over Cork City since the 1980s.

Now the huge Toyota letters that once hung at the top of Cork Opera House are going to be repurposed in a very cool way.

As part of Cork Midsummer Festival, Cork Opera House and the National Sculpture Factory have joined forces to commission a unique piece of art using the 1.5m high red perspex and aluminium letters.

The commissioners are inviting local artists to carefully consider the material make-up of the signs, their context and social history as well as the Cork Opera House building as a location for installation of the final artwork.

The winning proposal will be given the remaining letters from the TOYOTA signs (roughly 14 letters and one logo) as well as a €2,500 production budget and one month’s free studio space at the National Sculpture Factory to use as a base for the project.

The letters have been in storage since last year, when they were replaced with a new sign, which reads “Creating Together” as part of an eight-year partnership between Cork Opera House and UCC.

Fancy getting your creative mitts on them? The chosen artist will be informed ten days after the closing date for applications, Friday, March 29th, 2019 (12 noon). All the details are available here.