The opportunity is being provided by the Oakland Museum of California, which is in charge of distributing 450 tons of steel that formed part of the eastern span of the bridge between Oakland and San Francisco. “We want to give artists the chance to reconnect people to the old structure but also bring its meaning forward,” said Leslie Pritchett, an art consultant working with the museum. The idea instead was that portions of the old structure could have a creative second life, rising in parks and other civic spaces as a reminder of what existed before the new eastern span opened in 2013. The deadline for the first round of applications is Oct.