Deadline: 23-May-24
Applications are now open for the Project Assistance Program: Visual Arts Organizations to support organizations and arts or curatorial collectives in the development, expansion, enhancement, or creation of new or unique public programming and community engagement initiatives in contemporary and traditional visual arts and craft.
BC Arts Council grant programs supports a wide variety of practices within the visual arts, including (but not limited to):
- Independent critical and curatorial practice.
- Studio-based practices, such as drawing, painting, photography, printmaking, and sculpture.
- Multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary, and other visual arts practices, such as installation, video art, performance art, and public art.
- Contemporary and traditional craft practices, such as beading, carving, ceramics, and weaving.
- Community-engaged practices led by arts and cultural practitioners.
Funding Information
- Maximum request amount is $25,000.
Eligible Projects
- Applicants are encouraged to discuss the eligibility of their project with a Program Advisor before applying. Applications for projects that do not meet eligibility criteria in these guidelines will not be forwarded for assessment.
- BC Arts Council project assistance grant programs provide one-time grants for specific projects or distinct phases of projects. Project grants are not meant to cover operating expenses or ongoing expenses.
- Grants are available in this program to support specific projects for the development, enrichment, and creation of new or unique public programming and community engagement initiatives in contemporary and traditional visual arts and craft.
- Projects that include creation or commissioning of work should be embedded within or in support of programming and engagement initiatives.
Eligible Activities
- Examples of eligible activities include but are not limited to:
- Exhibitions, including development and installation.
- Publications, documentation and dissemination of artistic works and exhibitions.
- Skill development for artists, including workshops, artists’ residencies, and activities that develop the arts sector.
- Exploration of new artistic or curatorial practices, including practice-based research, collaboration, experimentation, and creative development.
- Audience development, collaborations, exchanges, and activities that creatively engage communities.
Ineligible Activities
- Examples of activities that are not eligible for support in this program:
- Ongoing multi-day festivals and projects embedded within ongoing multi-day festivals, and other activities eligible within the Project Assistance: Professional Arts Festivals grant program.
- Purchase of equipment or capital assets or maintenance expenses.
- Projects or activities that do not involve or benefit artists or arts and cultural practitioners.
- Projects or activities that do not have a clearly defined arts and culture focus.
Eligibility Criteria
- Designated Priority Groups
- The BC Arts Council has committed to targeted investment in underserved and equity-deserving organizations and the development of equity support initiatives, including a policy to support designated priority groups. These identified groups will be the focus of BC Arts Council strategic measures, through dedicated programs, funding prioritization processes, partnerships, and outreach.
- The BC Arts Council’s designated priority groups include applicants and arts and cultural practitioners who are:
- Indigenous (First Nations, Métis, or Inuit) Peoples
- Deaf or experience disability
- Black or people of colour
- Located in areas outside greater Vancouver or the capital region
- Visual Arts Organization Eligibility
- To be eligible, organizations must be:
- A professional visual arts organization registered and in good standing as a nonprofit society or community service co-op in B.C. for at least one fiscal year prior to application with:
- The majority of key staff (paid or volunteer) and board members based in B.C.
- Creative control and decision making for programming and engagement primarily maintained within the organization and by leadership based in B.C.
- A purpose or mandate dedicated to arts and culture programming and activities. or
- A purpose or mandate to provide services to the arts and culture sector in B.C.
- Operations and activities that reflect this dedicated purpose or mandate.
- An Indigenous (First Nations, Métis, Inuit) community organization registered and in good standing as a non-profit society or community service co-op in B.C. for at least one fiscal year prior to application with:
- The majority of key staff (paid or volunteer) and board members based in B.C.
- A commitment to offering regular arts and culture activities.
- An Indigenous (First Nations, Métis, Inuit) government in B.C. that offers regular arts and culture activities.
- A professional visual arts organization operated by a local government in B.C. for at least one fiscal year prior to application, that:
- Maintains an ongoing arm’s length, community-based board of management or advisory structure that sets policy for the organization’s programs and services.
- Holds a dedicated programming space and has at least one dedicated staff person in an artistic, curatorial, or administrative leadership position who is responsible for programming and engagement.
- A professional visual arts organization operated by a public post-secondary institution in B.C. for at least one fiscal year prior to application, that:
- Holds a dedicated programming space and has at least one dedicated staff person in an artistic, curatorial, or administrative leadership position who is responsible for programming and engagement.
- Offers ongoing public programming by arts and cultural practitioners, the majority of which is not programming of faculty or student works.
- A professional visual arts organization registered and in good standing as a nonprofit society or community service co-op in B.C. for at least one fiscal year prior to application with:
- An eligible organization must also:
- Not currently receive Operating Assistance grants from the BC Arts Council.
- Provide public arts and cultural programming (or service to the arts and culture sector) in B.C., as a primary activity, and have done so for a minimum of one year prior to the application closing date.
- Provide programs that benefit the community at-large and not solely the interests of its nonprofit society members.
- Engage and compensate skilled artistic, curatorial, editorial and/or administrative leadership (volunteer or paid) for project or service delivery.
- To be eligible, organizations must be:
- Arts or Curatorial Collective Eligibility
- To be eligible, an Arts or Curatorial Collective must:
- Be established and readily identified as a collective of a minimum of 3 independent artists, curators, or arts and cultural practitioners who are active in their field of practice and who meet the criteria. Note: The collective may include additional members who do not meet the criteria below as long as at least 3 eligible core members have been identified and meet the following:
- Have a minimum of two years of practice in their field following basic training, with roles that hold creative control of projects.
- Have a demonstrated body of previous work as an individual practitioner, including at least one public presentation of work for which an artist fee or equivalent was received.
- Be a Canadian citizen or Permanent Resident.
- Have been a resident of B.C. for at least 12 months immediately prior to the application deadline, and ordinarily reside in B.C. See Determining B.C. Residency page.
- Have a demonstrated history of creating or presenting work as a collective and have a clear commitment to a current practice. At a minimum, the collective must have:
- A demonstrated body of previous work by current members of the collective.
- At least one public presentation of work by the current collective, for which artist fees or equivalent were received.
- Intention to continue working together with current members as a collective on future projects.
- An eligible Arts or Curatorial Collective must also:
- Engage skilled artistic, curatorial, and administrative leadership for project or service delivery.
- Not be applying on behalf of the activities of a for-profit business.
- Fairly compensate artists, arts and cultural practitioners, technicians, Elders, and Knowledge Keepers. Compensation must align with project and community contexts and industry standards within the field of practice.
- Be established and readily identified as a collective of a minimum of 3 independent artists, curators, or arts and cultural practitioners who are active in their field of practice and who meet the criteria. Note: The collective may include additional members who do not meet the criteria below as long as at least 3 eligible core members have been identified and meet the following:
- To be eligible, an Arts or Curatorial Collective must:
Ineligible
- Grants are not available to support:
- Operating expenses.
- Project phases or activities that begin before the application closing date (May 23, 2024).
- Project deficits, budget deficits or contingency funds.
- Capital expenses (for example, construction, renovation, or purchase of property or equipment).
- Feasibility studies, start-up costs, or seed money.
- Projects or activities that are not based upon artistic or curatorial decision making, or where arts and culture is not the primary focus.
- Activities that require payment from artists to participate; fundraising activities; conferences and conventions; family, religious, anniversary, or community celebrations.
- Contests and competitions, except if competition is integral to the art form or cultural practice, for example: hip-hop and street dance, poetry slams, powwows.
For more information, visit BC Arts Council.