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Deadline: April 22, 2026
Program Summary:
The York Wilson Endowment Award enables non-profit art museums and public art galleries to purchase original works by living, contemporary artists from Canada working in painting or sculpture.
This award can be used to purchase an original artwork or a series of artworks by the same artist, and is intended to enhance an organization’s collection of contemporary Canadian art.
Background
This award is provided thanks to investment proceeds from the York Wilson Endowment. The endowment was established at the Canada Council for the Arts in 1997 by a generous donation from the late Lela Wilson and the late Maxwell Henderson to honour the contribution of painter York Wilson (1907–1984) to the field of visual art by encouraging and promoting works of art created by painters or sculptors from Canada.
Eligible Activities:
You can apply to acquire artworks in the fields of painting or sculpture that are purchased:
- directly from the artist OR
- from a Canadian art dealer with whom the artist has placed the works on consignment
Grant Amount:
Up to $30,000 per award. In 2026, two awards will be exceptionally presented.
Eligible Applicants:
To be eligible, your organization must:
- be a Canadian non-profit art museum, public art gallery, or university art gallery
- have professional curatorial staff
- have demonstrated a commitment to collecting, displaying and maintaining a contemporary Canadian art collection for a minimum of 5 years
- plan to exhibit the newly purchased work(s) within 2 years of acquisition
- ensure that the artist will receive either:
- either full payment OR
- a minimum of 50% of the acquisition costs (if purchased through a Canadian art dealer).