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Deadline: November 12, 2026
Program Summary:
The BC Arts Council Indigenous Arts Program Pilot provides funding to Indigenous artists and arts and culture practitioners, Indigenous groups, Indigenous collectives, Indigenous-led organizations, and First Nations governments throughout British Columbia. The program is designed to improve access to funding, reduce barriers for Indigenous applicants to BC Arts Council grant programs, and support Indigenous artistic and cultural practices throughout the province.
Developed by the Joint Indigenous Arts Advisory Circle — who advise BC Arts Council on Indigenous arts strategy and programmatic responses aligned with Indigenous priorities, perspectives, and cultural practices — the program responds to priorities identified by Indigenous artists, Indigenous-led organizations, Indigenous service organizations, and the broader arts and culture sector.
The program supports a range of Indigenous artistic and cultural practices including traditional, contemporary, interdisciplinary, experimental, and community-engaged work.
The Indigenous Arts Program Pilot – Indigenous-Led Organizations and Collectives supports Indigenous organizations and Indigenous collectives in British Columbia that are leading artistic and cultural activities in their communities.
The Indigenous Arts Program Pilot – Individuals, Groups, and Collaborations supports First Nations, Inuit, and Métis artists, cultural practitioners, Knowledge Keepers, Knowledge Holders, and Culture Carriers in British Columbia.
Grant Amount:
Applicants may request funding through the grant category that best aligns with the scale, scope, and objectives of their project. Applicants may apply to one funding category only and may submit one application per intake.
- Microgrants: Up to $5,000 — intended for small-scale, emerging or time-sensitive activities. Examples include:
- Individual artistic or cultural projects
- Pilot or exploratory projects
- Professional development
- Rapid-response initiatives or projects where funding is needed quickly
- Mid-scale grants: $5,001–$15,000 — designed for projects of moderate scope. Examples include:
- Artistic creation, production or presentation
- Collaborative projects
- Community-based artistic and cultural programming
- Cultural knowledge sharing and learning initiatives
- Capacity-building activities
- Large-scale grants: $15,001–$25,000 — intended for complex or multi-phase initiatives. Examples include:
- Major artistic or cultural productions
- A series of connected activities or events
- Long-term community engagement initiatives
- Projects that strengthen sector vitality, resilience, and sustainability
Applicants may request up to 100% of eligible project costs.
Eligible Applicants:
Indigenous-led Organizations and Collectives:
Organization eligibility
To be eligible for the Indigenous Arts Program Pilot, an organization must be:
- A First Nations government, band council, or tribal council in B.C. that offers regular arts and culture activities.
OR - An Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit, Métis) organization listed below that demonstrates:
- A primary purpose, mandate, or constitution to serve, support or provide resources and opportunities to First Nations, Inuit or Métis
- A board of directors, independent advisory structure, or shareholders (book publishers only) made up of at least 60% Indigenous People
- Leadership and decision-making authority are held by Indigenous People
- The majority of expenses directly benefit Indigenous People
In addition to the points above, eligible Indigenous organizations must also be one of the following organization types:
- An Indigenous arts organization registered and in good standing as a non-profit society or community service co-op in B.C. for at least one fiscal year prior to application with:
- The majority of key staff and board members based in B.C.
- Creative control and decision making for programming and engagement primarily maintained within the organization and by leadership based in B.C.
- A purpose or mandate dedicated to arts and culture programming and activities OR
- A purpose or mandate to provide services to the arts and culture sector in B.C.
- Operations and activities that reflect this dedicated purpose or mandate.
OR
- An Indigenous community organization registered and in good standing as a non-profit society or community service co-op in B.C. for at least one fiscal year prior to application with:
- The majority of key staff and board members based in B.C.
- A commitment to offering regular arts and culture activities.
OR
- An Indigenous arts organization operated by a local government in B.C. for at least one fiscal year prior to application, that:
- Maintains an ongoing, arm’s length, community-based board of management or advisory structure that sets policy for the organization’s programs and services.
- Holds a dedicated programming space and has at least one dedicated staff person in an artistic, curatorial, or administrative leadership position who is responsible for programming and engagement.
- Offers ongoing public programming by experienced arts and culture practitioners.
- Primarily operates with autonomy, holding creative control and decision making for programming and engagement within the organization, with separate financial records for operations. See Financial Statement Requirements section below for more details.
OR
- An Indigenous arts organization operated by a public post-secondary institution in B.C. for at least one fiscal year prior to application, that:
- Holds a dedicated programming space; or offers ongoing public programming; or publishes work by experienced arts and culture practitioners, the majority of which is not faculty or student works.
- Has at least one dedicated staff person in an artistic, curatorial, editorial, or administrative leadership position who is responsible for programming and engagement.
- Has an independent advisory board that sets policies for programs and services offered.
- Primarily operates with autonomy and outside of curriculum, with creative control and decision making for programming and engagement, and separate financial records for operations. See Financial Statement Requirements section below for more detail.
OR
- An Indigenous owned book publisher or Indigenous owned arts periodical publisher that meets the eligibility requirements for BC Arts Council’s Project Assistance: Literary Arts, Operating Assistance: Literary Arts, or Operating Assistance: Book Publishers grant programs.
OR
- An Indigenous cultural centre or museum that meets the eligibility requirements for BC Arts Council’s Project Assistance: Museums and Indigenous Cultural Centres or Operating Assistance: Museums and Indigenous Cultural Centres grant programs.
Arts or curatorial collective eligibility:
Collectives are strongly advised to contact the Program Advisor to confirm the eligibility of their collective and proposed project.
Collectives with only two members, ad hoc collectives, collectives comprised of Indigenous and non-Indigenous members, and collectives who otherwise do not meet the eligibility outlined below may be eligible to apply to Indigenous Arts Program Pilot – for Individuals.
To be eligible for the Indigenous Arts Program Pilot – for Organizations and Collectives, an arts or curatorial collective must be composed of all Indigenous members and:
- Be established and readily identified as a collective of a minimum of 3 independent Indigenous artists, curators, or arts and culture practitioners who are active in their field of practice and who meet the criteria below. NOTE: The collective may include additional members who do not meet the criteria below as long as at least 3 eligible core members have been identified and meet the following:
- Have a minimum of two years of established practice in their field, following basic training, with roles that hold creative control of projects.
- Have a demonstrated body of previous work as an individual practitioner, including at least one public presentation of work for which an artist fee or equivalent was received.
- Be a Canadian citizen or Permanent Resident of Canada.
- Have been a resident of B.C. for at least 12 months immediately prior to the application closing date, and ordinarily reside in B.C. See Determining B.C. Residency webpage.
- Have a demonstrated history of creating or presenting work as a collective and have a clear commitment to a current practice. At a minimum, the collective must have:
- A demonstrated body of previous work by current members of the collective.
- At least one public presentation of work by the current collective, for which artist fees or equivalent were received.
- Intention to continue collaborating with current members as a collective on future projects.
- Apply under the name of an individual member of the collective who acts as the key contact person and is listed as the submitting representative or “Primary Contact” within the online grant system. If the application is successful, this person will:
- Be responsible for submitting the final report.
- Designate a member of the collective as Payee who is registered with an Individual Practitioner account. Their name and email address (that is associated with their system account) must be listed in the application. If the application is successful, this person will:
- Receive payment of the grant on behalf of the collective.
- Be issued a T4A for the full grant amount.
Individuals, Groups, and Collaborations:
Individual applicant eligibility
To be eligible for the Indigenous Arts Program Pilot, an individual must:
- Identify as Indigenous to what is now known as Canada: First Nations (status or non-status), Inuit, or Métis Peoples
- Be legally allowed to work in Canada as a Canadian citizen or a Permanent Resident
- Ordinarily reside in B.C. and have lived in the province for at least 12 consecutive months immediately preceding the application deadline. Applicants may be required to provide documentation to verify residency. For more information, please refer to the Determining B.C. Residency page
- Be 19 years of age or older at the time of application
- Follow the Criminal Records Review Act which requires that people who work with or may have unsupervised access to children or vulnerable adults must undergo a criminal record check by the Criminal Records Review Program.
- Not have any overdue final reports on previous BC Arts Council grants. Applicants with overdue reports should contact a Program Advisor for assistance before applying.
- Not be the project lead for more than one application to this intake of the Indigenous Arts Program Pilot but may be involved in more than one project if they are in a different role.
Eligible applicants should demonstrate that they:
- Have past experience in, or a personal commitment to their artistic and cultural practice.
- Have the capacity and readiness to complete the proposed project or activity.
- Hold artistic authority and creative control over the proposed project or serve as the artistic lead within a community-led initiative.
- Respect and uphold Indigenous cultural protocols, community permissions, and appropriate practices relevant to the project or activity
Eligible applicants may include, but are not limited to:
- Emerging, early career, mid career, established and senior artists
- Artists working in any discipline including, but not limited to, carvers, weavers, sculptors, painters, printmakers, dancers, choreographers, singers, musicians, storytellers, media artists, regalia makers, writers, and interdisciplinary artists
- arts and culture workers, including but not limited to arts administrators, curators, producers, and production personnel
- Elders
- Knowledge Keepers / Knowledge Holders
- Culture Carriers / Cultural Practitioners
Group applicant eligibility
For the purposes of this program, an eligible group is:
- Two or more eligible Indigenous individuals, as defined above, who come together to undertake a project as an unincorporated group.
- Groups must identify a primary contact who will be responsible for submitting the application and administering the grant on behalf of the group.