More than 350 artists and arts workers attended the Canada Council’s Collab sessions this past June. The Council designed these free sessions to help new and early-career artists and groups apply for their first grant or improve their next grant application. In partnership with the City of Toronto and the Toronto Arts Council, the Collab sessions took place at Ryerson University’s The Catalyst Learning Centre, and at several arts service organizations across the city.

 

Mana Rouholamini and Megan Leduc, Canada Council for the Arts

What did attendees discover at Collab?  

The Collab sessions explored the Council and aspects of an artist’s career, and included:

• Grant writing workshops
• Information sessions on the Canada Council for the Arts
• Roundtable discussions with local artists
• Mock peer assessment committee meetings
• Open forum break-out sessions

 

Workshop participants

Collab sessions also gave participants the opportunity to explore the Canada Council’s online portal for grant applications, and to meet with staff from the Council to discuss specific questions.

Each day of the Collab session was tailored to address the specific needs of the various attendees. This included sessions for new and early career artists, and for artists who were familiar with the Council but wanted to prepare for  a future grant application. Collab also included a day dedicated to Indigenous artists.

The Canada Council is grateful to the many artists who presented at Collab and shared their experiences with new  and early-career artists. These presenters included:

Jesse Wente, Board Member,
Canada Council for the Arts

• Cole Alvis
• Thirza Jean Cuthand
• Kotama Bouabane
• Deanna Bowen
• Jaron Freeman-Fox
• Anique Jordan
• Pamila Matharu
• Tasha The Amazon

 

Thirza Jean Cuthand (artist, presenter),
Cole Alvis (artist, presenter)

Future Canada Council Outreach      

The Council’s program officers will continue to give information sessions across Canada this fall—and beyond. Follow us on Facebook for details about our outreach activities.