Grants for Artist-Driven Organizations in Canada

Eligible Activities

• You can apply for a contribution towards:
  • Artistic development
  • Creative research
  • Creation
  • Production
  • Dissemination

Eligibility Criteria

• Types of potential applicants to this component include:
  • artistic organizations
• Your eligibility to apply to this component is determined by the validated profile created in the portal.
• To be eligible, your organization must create, produce, present or exhibit the work of artists and be driven by the vision and voice of an artistic leader or group of artists. Your organization must support the development and dissemination of works by Canadian artists and meet the following basic administrative, programming and financial criteria:
  • presently receive core (operating) support from this component.
• If your organization is presently receiving core support from another component, or has undergone a recent change in key artistic leadership, you must contact your Program Officer to confirm your eligibility before you apply. An Artist-Driven Organization that has undergone a change in key artistic leadership, and that is currently receiving core support from this component, may be treated as a new applicant with no commitment to maintaining the organization’s current level of funding.
• Have received 1 composite grant or 2 Canada Council project grants in the last 5 years. This excludes grants from the following components: Travel, Representation and Promotion, Translation, Small-Scale Activities, Creation Accelerator, Frankfurt initiatives, Digital Originals, Digital Now, Digital Generator, the COVID-19 Emergency Support Fund, Grow Stage 1 and the Canada-Korea Connections Fund:
  • Be an incorporated not-for-profit arts organization
  • Work with a professional staff
  • Have at least 5 years of continuous professional artistic activities that are accessible to the public
  • Have had total revenues exceeding $75 000 in each of the last 3 years (some exceptions may be considered)

Application Requirements

• You will need to provide information about your organization’s:
  • Artistic vision and the context for your plans in relation to your artistic or regional community
  • Past cycle of funding, including highlights, challenges and knowledge gained
  • Upcoming artistic activities and public outreach
  • Professional working conditions for artists
  • Key partnerships, if any
  • Operations, including administrative structure, planning and financial health
  • Aims and objectives for your next funding cycle
  • CADAC data, including recent financial statements
• You will also need to include:
  • samples of your recent work and public artistic activities.

For more information, visit Canada Council for the Arts.