Summaries of Cultural Capitals of Canada 2004 special projects

Regina, Saskatchewan

Winner for population over 125 000 category - maximum contribution of $500,000

Special Project: Celebrating the Regina Arts Commission's 25th Anniversary
The events surrounding the Regina Art Commission's 25th Anniversary celebration include initiatives such as Art at Work, which will encourage the development of artworks created by professional artists using materials produced by local businesses; the newly created Regina Art Awards; and Talking Circles, a summer-long multi-media exhibit featuring young Aboriginal artists. A heritage awareness project will highlight Regina's rich diversity of natural, built, and social heritage. Regina's municipal government has played an important role in the development of the arts community, providing strong financial support for the arts and culture and implementing an innovative Municipal Arts Policy.

Kelowna, British Columbia

Winner for population between 50 000 and 125 000 category - maximum contribution of $500,000

Special Project: Kelowna's Cultural Legacy Program
Kelowna's Cultural Legacy Program highlights activities leading up to the city's 100^th anniversary in 2005. Events for all seasons include winter outdoor theatre and sculpture events and summer arts-based programming in city parks. An educational program for students will highlight the culture of the city's First Nations, French, Chinese, and Japanese residents. Kelowna has demonstrated a clear vision for the arts and culture as a means of improving quality of life through its cultural development work.

Owen Sound, Ontario

Winner for population under 50 000 category - maximum contribution of $250,000

Special Project: People and the Land
In anticipation of the city's 150^th anniversary in 2006, People and the Land presents a broad program of activities that will involve the residents and visitors in their community and reach out to areas beyond provincial borders. Owen Sound will partner with the M'Wikwedong Native Cultural Resource Centre in a cultural exchange with First Nations youth from British Columbia. It will also partner with the neighbouring Saugeen First Nation in a community theatre project, and with other partners in a wide range of interdisciplinary artistic activities from the traditional to the contemporary. New and significant exhibits at museums in the area will reflect the contributions of Black Canadians to the dynamic cultural life of the region and Canada.

Powell River, British Columbia

Winner for population under 50 000 category - maximum contribution of $250,000

Special Project: Qathet - Celebration, Creation, Connection and Continuation
The Coast Salish word Qathet, meaning together, is an apt description of Powell River's ambitious project to work with professional artists, community residents, and First Nations to celebrate its cultural achievements. From major landmark celebrations of the 60^th anniversary of the Festival of the Performing Arts and the 50^th anniversary of the Powell River Chorus to the establishment of a new bilingual Summer School, Powell River will showcase and develop its many talented artists and cultural workers. Despite its small population and remote location, Powell River has an exciting history of cultural activity.

Lethbridge, Canmore, Drumheller, and Crowsnest Pass, Alberta, and Fernie, British Columbia

Winners for Innovative Cultural Bridges - maximum contribution of $500,000

This is awarded to a group of two or more municipalities (in at least two provinces or territories) who submit a joint application to develop innovative cultural exchanges and partnerships that celebrate the community identity of each partner and help to build a lasting legacy for the arts and culture in both.

Special Project: Celebrating Canada's Coal Culture
Celebrating Canada's Coal Culture centres around several anniversaries which highlight the coal mining history of the region and provides a theme for arts and heritage development in large and small communities. Exhibitions and touring productions will portray aspects of life as a coal miner and, in particular, the lives and work of Italian immigrant coal miners. Canadian authors who have written about coal mining will be profiled. The partners will also host conferences on museums, rural tourism, and preservation of industrial heritage. This proposal is an outstanding collaborative submission.