Creative Spark Vancouver Grant – Canada

Deadline: 23 April 2024

Small projects can make a big impact. Emerging artists across all artistic and cultural disciplines living in the City of Vancouver who have an interest in building their careers and working with young people in an arts or culture-based capacity are invited to apply for Creative Spark Vancouver.

The artist’s project must engage young people (ages 5-18) and focus on arts-based learning in any artistic discipline. Creative Spark Vancouver enables emerging artists to gain experience on small projects that could lead to new career opportunities, new community relationships, different perspectives on arts and education, future learning opportunities and exciting multi-faceted projects.

If you relate to the statements below, then this grant is for you:

I’m an Emerging Artist in any artistic or cultural discipline and I am interested in exploring my career opportunities
I’m interested in working with young people (ages 5-18) and need support to start
I have a project idea but don’t have the funds to cover the required materials and supplies

Goals of this Grant

Before you apply, please make sure your application meets the Creative Spark Vancouver goals:

To build the capacity and confidence of emerging artists working with young people and art and culture-based learning;
To provide young people opportunities to engage actively in art and culture, particularly artists and young people from equity-seeking communities; and
To critically engage with reconciliation, decolonization, equity, and accessibility.

Grant Amount

Creative Spark Vancouver offers up to 100% funding for projects!
Individual artists can apply for up to $3,000.
Collectives or groups of emerging artists working together can apply for up to $5,000.
Projects with budgets over those amounts will need to secure additional funding to balance their budgets. Grant funds are intended to cover artist fees, project materials and supplies, rentals and honoraria.

Who Can Apply?

Emerging artists who are residents of the City of Vancouver or members of the Musqueam, Squamish, or Tsleil-Waututh First Nations and live in that Nation’s unceded territories or the City of Vancouver. Emerging artists can be of any age in any artistic or cultural discipline (e.g. community arts, dance, disability arts, Indigenous arts or culture, interdisciplinary, literary, media, multidisciplinary, music, textile/fiber art, theatre, visual arts). Registered organizations and businesses are not eligible to apply.
For the purpose of this grant, an emerging artist is defined as one who:
- is enrolled in, or has specialized training in arts and culture (university graduation or equivalent, self-training, or training in a culturally-specific tradition);
- is in the early stages of their career, usually within the few first years of pursuing a career in their field;
- has a small history of presentation, production, or publication;
- is looking for support and resources to build confidence in their practice;
- is committed to devoting more time to artistic activity, when possible financially; and
- self-identifies as emerging.