Assistance To Professional Canadian Contemporary Art Dealers (Pilot Program)
Deadline
15 January 2008
Program Description
In the context of its mandate to foster the production and enjoyment of the arts in Canada, the Canada Council for the Arts provides financial support to professional Canadian contemporary art dealers to offset costs for the national and international promotion of professional Canadian contemporary visual artists, including photographers and fine craft artists.
The primary goal of the program is to assist professional Canadian contemporary art dealers to undertake one or several initiatives, over the course of one year, that will increase public awareness of Canadian contemporary visual art nationally and internationally and encourage the general public, private corporations and public institutions to purchase work by living Canadian artists. Priority will be given to innovative projects that are strategically targeted and that are not part of the applicant’s current ongoing activities.
Further objectives of the program are to increase public awareness of Canadian contemporary visual artists and their work, to raise their profile nationally and internationally, and to confirm and promote the dealer’s role as mediator between artists and those interested in acquiring Canadian contemporary art. In this regard, priority is given to projects that are aimed at the Canadian contemporary art market.
Eligibility
Applicants must meet all of the following criteria. They must:
- be registered as businesses in Canada;
- be majority-owned and operated by Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada;
- have been in operation for at least three years and have established a national and/or international reputation;
- maintain a permanent exhibition venue which is open to the general public on a regular and ongoing basis;
- have a record of fulfilling all contractual obligations to artists.
In addition, 75 percent of the artists that they represent must be Canadian contemporary artists.
All Canada Council for the Arts programs are accessible to Aboriginal artists or arts organizations, and artists or arts organizations of diverse cultural and regional communities of Canada.
Grant Amount
Professional Canadian contemporary art dealers may apply for a one-year grant of up to $20,000. However, considering the limitations of the available budget, only applicants with an exceptional artistic and administrative track record may be awarded the maximum available.
Eligible costs include:
- the production costs for catalogues, promotional kits and other printed material for distribution to the national and international art market;
- costs incurred in mounting a national or international advertising strategy;
- expenses related to the dealer’s attendance at international art fairs and the promotion at the event of artists represented by the applicant;
- Website development;
- costs incurred for special initiatives aimed at the general public, private corporations and public institutions to increase their awareness and knowledge of Canadian contemporary art and to encourage the purchase of works by professional Canadian contemporary visual artists.
Ongoing operating and administrative costs, including the printing and mailing of invitations, are not eligible.
Retroactive funding is not available.
Assessment of Applications
Applications to the Assistance to Professional Canadian Contemporary Art Dealers program are assessed once a year by a peer assessment committee set up for each competition. Committees are composed of professional art dealers, artists, collectors of contemporary art and other professionals from the field selected for their expertise. Members are also selected to ensure fair representation of gender, Canada’s two official languages, Aboriginal Peoples, the various regions, and culturally diverse communities.
Applicants will be notified of the competition results, by letter, approximately three months after the deadline date. Results are not released over the telephone.
Application Form
Assistance to Professional Canadian Contemporary Art Dealers (Pilot Program) (pdf, 267 KB)
This form can only be printed and cannot be filled out on-line.
Further Information
This program summary provides an outline of the Assistance to Professional Canadian Contemporary Art Dealers program. For further details or to obtain an application form, contact Doug Sigurdson, Visual Arts Section Officer.
Telephone: 1-800-263-5588 (toll-free) or (613) 566-4414, ext. 5268
TTY (TDD) machine, for hearing-impaired callers: (613) 565-5194
Fax: (613) 566-4332
Visual Arts Section
Canada Council for the Arts
350 Albert Street, P.O. Box 1047
Ottawa ON K1P 5V8
November 2005