Cambridge's Freedom Well has first been proposed at Dimensions Variable, Site Fixed, an exhibit at the Cambridge Arts Council, Cambridge, Massachusetts, in November of 2005. Nineteen international artists created proposals for projects with these parameters:

"The dimensions for the proposed creation can be variable, ranging from inches to meters from two to four dimensions; but the site is fixed--Cambridge, home of the Cambridge Arts Council, known for its commissions of public work." - organizer Mary Sherman