The Placemaking Project, from community-building arts organization Art Starts, animated Ellesmere Skate Park in Scarborough in 2018. (Photo courtesy Art Starts)
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Featured Story: Aiming for equity
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Diversity in Toronto comes in many forms. Women, people with disabilities, people living with mental illness, Deaf people, immigrants and refugees, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons, youth, people who experience socio-economic disadvantage, and people of different faiths all contribute to the city’s makeup.
Toronto Arts Council values and recognizes the unique contributions of all members of Toronto’s arts community both to the cultural life of the city and to its own operations, aspirations and vision.
As the City of Toronto’s funding body for Toronto artists and organizations, TAC is committed to ensuring that our services remain equitable and accessible.
TAC has long played an active role in promoting equity and inclusion in the arts for many years, says Andrew Suri, Director of Grants and staff lead on the
Equity Steering Committee
at Toronto Arts Council.
“In the early 1990s, TAC recognized the great potential for cultural development in Toronto and the central role and responsibility that TAC plays in removing barriers to access City arts and cultural resources,” Suri notes. “TAC has renewed and expanded its commitment to the advancement of equity in granting and in how we operate as an organization.”
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Toronto Arts Council board president Nova Bhattacharya, making a deputation to the City's budget committee on Feb. 7.
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Toronto City Council approved its 2019 budget with a total increase to Economic Development and Culture's 2019 Operating Budget of $1.0 million, allocated as follows:
- Toronto Arts Council - $0.421 million;
- Local Arts Service Organizations - $0.112 million;
- Youth Arts Incubation Program - $0.300 million;
- Museum Maintenance Services - $0.112 million;
- Film Sector Development - $0.055 million
In addition, Council approved a motion to direct the General Manager, Economic Development and Culture, to consult with the community on priorities for further investment in the arts, heritage and creative industries outside the core, and report back through the 2020 Budget Process.
TAC Director & CEO Claire Hopkinson and board president Nova Bhattacharya both presented deputations to the Budget Committee emphasizing the transformative power of the arts on the entire city.
"We know that Toronto is the most diverse city in the world and strong arts programming gives us the opportunity to bridge divides," Bhattacharya told the committee.
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2019 TAC Leaders Lab Fellows
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Toronto Arts Council and Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity are pleased to announce the 2019 Leaders Lab fellows, a group of 18 talented Toronto arts and cultural sector leaders who have demonstrated the potential to lead change.
The
TAC Leaders Lab
program is a unique partnership between Toronto Arts Council (TAC) and Banff Centre, bringing together a select group of mid- to senior-level arts professionals to collaborate over a one-year period to help enhance leadership capacity in Toronto’s arts and culture sectors.
The program kicks off with a one-week intensive leadership retreat in Banff, followed by monthly programmed activities in Toronto.
The new cohort of fellows are a highly accomplished group of leaders from across arts disciplines whose experiences range from arts advocacy, curation, programming, community engagement and much more, at many of the city’s key arts institutions.
Click
HERE
to find out more about this dynamic group of arts leaders who will help forge the future of our creative city.
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TAC's Rupal Shah is a 2019 DiverseCity Fellow!
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We're delighted to announce that TAC's Strategic Programs Manager
Rupal Shah
has been
named one of the 2019 DiverseCity Fellows by the CivicAction Leadership Foundation.
The DiverseCity Fellows program brings together rising leaders in the GTHA who are interested in creating change in their communities.The free year-long program provides participants with opportunities for personal leadership development while also growing a strong network of civic-minded peers.
Read all about the program in this
Toronto Star
article
(which also features Rupal), and learn more about the 30 new 2019 Fellows
here
.
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TAC-FCAD Digital Solutions Incubator applications due April 16
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Is your arts organization turning to technology for new creative possibilities or innovations that could help the sector? Then the
TAC-FCAD Digital Solutions Incubator
might be for you
–
and the deadline is coming up fast: applications are due
April 16
!
Toronto Arts Council’s TAC-FCAD Digital Solutions Incubator program provides funding to arts organizations and collectives to address organizational challenges using digital technology.
This partnership between TAC and Ryerson University’s
Faculty of Communications and Design (FCAD)
to encourage arts organizations to consider the creative possibilities unlocked by the use of technology. For more information, contact
Rupal Shah
, Strategic Programs Manager.
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PHOTO: Botanicus Art Ensemble, part of the 2018 Digital Solutions Incubator
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Indigenous Arts Program information session
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Want to learn more about TAC's Indigenous Arts program grants?
Come meet
Tash Naveau
, TAC's Indigenous Arts Program Manager, for a "tea and talk" one-on-one information session on Tuesday, April 9 from 2 to 5 p.m. at imagineNATIVE Film & Media Arts Festival's office at 401 Richmond St.
The session is open to Indigenous artists or representatives from arts organizations and collectives, and offers information on eligibility, grant writing tips, or any questions participants may have about the Indigenous Arts program application and adjudication process.
Please contact Tash in advance to book a 30-minute session and regarding any accessibility requirements.
Light refreshments will be provided.
For more information on the Indigenous Arts Projects program, visit the TAC site
here
.
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Newcomers and Refugees
– Open to professional newcomer and refugee artists, organizations, and collectives – May 1, 2019
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New staff at TAC and Toronto Arts Foundation
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Toronto Arts Council and our affiliate, Toronto Arts Foundation, recently welcomed new staff members to the team.
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Tash Naveau, Indigenous Arts Program Manager
Tash is an independent artist and media maker, with an MFA from Ryerson University in Documentary Media, who is keenly interested in collaborative processes within her own art-making and the combining of mediums in projects.
From the Deer Clan, she is from the Anishinaabe community of Mattagami First Nation, Ontario, and is of mixed Dene and eastern European heritage.
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Tabassum Siddiqui, Interim Communications Manager
Tabassum is a multimedia journalist who has written, edited and produced for most of the leading local and national media outlets over the past 15 years, and has worked in senior communications and publicity roles, including for York University and Dundurn Press. She has deep roots in Toronto’s arts and culture scene, particularly as a longtime music writer and critic.
She will be filling in for TAC Communications Manager Sarah Gladki, who is on parental leave through to early 2020.
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Eliot Feenstra, Community Outreach Coordinator, Arts in the Parks
Eliot is a facilitator, teaching artist, farmer, and theatre-maker who is passionate about stories and histories of places, bringing people together, and creating spaces of civic engagement and dialogue through the arts.
Eliot holds an MA in Performance Studies from York University; he also studied social practice at Portland State University and holds a BA in interdisciplinary studies from the University of Chicago.
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Norma Garcia, Digital & Education Coordinator, Neighbourhood Arts Network
Norma is an arts adminstrator, grants consultant and independent filmmaker. Her previous work experience includes serving as a program coordinator for the National Film Board, as a senior grants assistant for the Toronto Arts Council and as a content coordinator for BravoFACT.
Norma is excited about sharing narratives that speak about the positive impact that artistic work has in Toronto's communities.
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Toronto Arts Foundation News
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Toronto Arts Foundation is a charitable organization that supports our city’s arts and cultural sector through its initiatives, awards portfolio and research.
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Creative Champions Network workshop
–
April 4
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Do you serve on an arts board in Toronto? Join the
Creative Champions Network
, which offers free membership and opportunities for the city's 2,000+ board members to come together, share experiences, and learn from leading experts about the art of good governance.
Don't miss the next CCN workshop,
How the Best Boards Function
, featuring Ellen Cole, board chair of Studio 180 Theatre and former executive director of the Miles Nadal Jewish Community Centre.
Date:
Thursday, April 4
Time:
5:30 - 7:30 pm
Venue:
Pierre Leon Gallery, Alliance Française Toronto (24 Spadina Road)
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About Toronto Arts Council
Toronto Arts Council (TAC) is the City of Toronto’s funding body for artists and arts organizations. Since 1974, TAC has played a major role in the city’s cultural industries by supporting a very broad range of artistic activity. From the emerging artist to the most established, from celebrated institutions to arts that challenge convention, TAC is typically the first funder to offer support. Today, TAC grants lead to exhibitions, performances, readings and workshops seen annually by over 9.5 million people. Through its ongoing funding of over $18 million annually, TAC cultivates a rich engagement between artists and audiences. It is proud to reflect Toronto’s vibrancy through the diversity of the artists, arts communities and audiences that it serves. For more about Toronto Arts Council, visit
www.torontoartscouncil.org
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