Three high-profile Vancouver artists are waiting to hear whether they have won a national sculpture competition to mark the Confederation Centre of the Arts’ 50^th anniversary. Douglas Coupland, Myfanwy MacLeod, and Althea Thauberger are among five Canadian artists selected as finalists after submitting public art proposals for the contest.

Coupland’s proposal is a walkable plaza area studded with large, colourful steel panels in the shape of the Canadian provinces and territories; MacLeod wants to create a bronze sculpture of a man in a top hat crawling on all fours; and Thauberger, working with Vancouver architect Annabel Vaughan, has proposed a glass mural featuring life-sized photographs of Prince Edward Island residents.

Established in 1964, the Confederation Centre of the Arts is a national memorial to the founders of Canadian confederation located in Charlottetown, P.E.I. The centre includes several theatres and an art gallery.

A national advisory panel is set to select the winning proposal from the shortlisted entries in late January. The commissioned sculpture is to be installed by summer 2014, in time for the centre’s 50^th anniversary.