Submissions open for Artist in Residence Program (Canada)

This program would involve the artist:

• Engaging with the community in the context of arts and culture;
• Creating a temporary work(s) of art for the City;
• Addressing, in some manner, the topic of the environment and/or climate change through community engagement and the work(s) of art.

Objectives

• Promote fair wages for arts professionals and support strategies aimed at attracting skilled creative workers and enterprises to Kelowna
• Animate community spaces with quality and accessible public art
• Increase the number of new and innovative artistic experiences offered in Kelowna
• Build broader and deeper relationships with audiences
• Encourage participation in the arts as a method of provoking thoughtful conversations about local issues
• Support cultural programing that promotes social inclusion and addresses important social issues
• Facilitate dialogue and collective action between people with similar interests

Funding Information

• The Artist will be an independent contractor of the City and will invoice the City for an all inclusive fee of $12,000, in a timely manner as laid out in a Memorandum of Understanding. This is not a live-in residency. This fee will be inclusive of housing, workspace, insurance, supplies, installation and removal fees (if necessary), and artist fees. A recommended amount of $8,000 of the project budget should be attributed to artist fees.
• The Artist will be expected to commit to an average of 20 hours a week for 10 weeks or a similar commitment.

Uses of the Funds

• The artist agrees to undertake the project and use project funds as described in the project proposal, project budget and in a Memorandum of Understanding with the City of Kelowna.
• The Artist in Residence must submit written notification to Cultural Services staff of a fundamental change in the project and/or use of funds and the new proposal – including the usage of funds unexpectedly remaining – prior to spending any of the funds on a new or revised purpose.
• If the project cannot be completed as proposed, and a suitable alternative cannot be reached between the artist and the Cultural Services staff, the remaining funds must be returned.

Expected Deliverables

• Develop and showcase one or more works of art (of any discipline);
• Incorporate the topic of the environment and/or climate change in both the community engagement and the work(s) of art;
• Clearly identify project outcomes including a defined start and end.
• Incorporate the community in the program through a unique and creative way. The community engagement can be part of any aspect of the project and may be done in a variety of different ways, it is at the artist’s discretion at which stage(s) it occurs.

Eligible Projects

• Be definable with clear objectives and deliverables;
• Have the community engagement occur in Kelowna;
• Have a distinct start and end to the project;
• Have the work(s) of art accessible by citizens of Kelowna (the means of accessibility can be based on artistic discipline chosen, i.e. in person, online, print, etc.);
• Address the topic of the environment and/or climate change.

Ineligible Projects

• A project that is ongoing and/or considered part of the artist’s normal course of employment;
• Expenses for capital purchases, such as buildings or property, or for capital development such as studio renovations;
• Activities or projects undertaken to fulfill credit or thesis requirements;
• Fundraising activities;
• Expenses incurred prior to the contract start date.

Eligibility Criteria

• To be eligible, the artist must:
  • Be legally entitled to live and work in Canada for the duration of the residency;
  • Be an individual emerging or professional artist or a group or collective of emerging or professional practicing artists, who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents;
  • Have their primary residence in the Regional District of the Central Okanagan for at least 1 full year before applying and for the duration of the contract (Lake Country, Kelowna, West Kelowna and Peachland).
• Depending on the nature of the community engagement activities, the selected artist may be required to provide a Criminal Record Check including a Vulnerable Sector Screening at the artist’s expense. The results of the check must be acceptable to the City of Kelowna at its sole discretion.
• This program welcomes submissions from under-represented artists of all backgrounds including, but not limited to, Indigenous, Black and racialized persons; refugee, newcomer and immigrant persons, two-spirit, LGBTQ+ and gender non-binary persons, persons with Disabilities and those on low-incomes or living in poverty.

Selection Criteria

• The selection process will work in two phases.
• In Phase 1, artists will submit their Expression of Interest Form and supporting documents through the City of Kelowna online platform for review.
• The artists selected to advance to Phase 2, will prepare a full project proposal and budget, as well as an interview with the selection panel.
• Artists selected to advance to Phase 2 will receive an honorarium of $500 for the project proposal.
• From Phase 2 Project Proposals and interviews, the Selection Panel will make their recommendation to the Divisional Director of Active Living and Culture for final approval.

For more information, visit City of Kelowna.