City of Kingston Arts Fund
The City of Kingston Arts Fund (CKAF) provides grants to local arts organizations and projects to foster creativity at all levels and enrich how Kingston residents experience and engage with the arts.
CKAF’s objectives are to nurture the capacity of the arts, artists, and arts sector in Kingston while fostering creativity, encouraging social cohesion, enhancing the quality of life, and stimulating economic development through direct investment.
CKAF is comprised of two funding categories,
70% of the available funds are allocated to Operating Grants and 30% are allocated to Project Grants.
Plan for Administration
Information on all policies and procedures related to the administration of CKAF can be found in the Kingston Arts Council Plan for Administration of Arts Funding for the Corporation of the City of Kingston in 2022.
CKAF Celebrates Kingston's Arts Community.
In 2007, Kingston City Council established the City of Kingston Arts Fund, comprised of $100,000 from the then Healthy Community Fund Program and an additional $400,000 in new funding. The Kingston Arts Council was contracted to administer CKAF and Kingston City Council has continued to invest in its growth each year as part of its commitment to supporting the arts and culture in Kingston.
Since its inception in 2007, CKAF has given close to $7.4 million to organizations and collectives.
Photo by Sandbox Photovideo, with Erin Ball, owner of Kingston Circus Arts, at Electric Circuits, 2020.
2021 Operating Recipients
Agnes Etherington Art Centre | $75,000
Cantabile Choirs of Kingston | $28,630
Centre culturel Frontenac | $15,000
H’art Centre | $12,803
Kingston Canadian Film Festival | $46,000
Kingston Symphony Association | $75,000
Kingston WritersFest | $43,500
Modern Fuel Artist-Run Centre | $50,000
Reelout Queer Film Festival | $22,555
Theatre Kingston | $42,230
Union Gallery | $13,000
2021 Projects Recipients
Abolition City
Abolition City | $8,000
Drumming Connections
Sistema Kingston | $8,520
Electric Circuits Festival of Electronic Music, Performance, and Digital Art
Electric Circuits Collective | $12,000
Festival of Live Digital Art (FOLDA) 2022
SpiderWebShow | $11,250
Homegrown Live Concert Series
Homegrown Live Music Productions | $7,314
KPP at 20
Kingston Punk Productions | $7,200
Shortwave Theatre Festival
CFRC 101.9FM | $13,500
Skeleton Park Arts Festival
Skeleton Park Arts Festival | $14,300
The GroundUP Dance Festival
Movement Market Collective | $7,500
The Juvenis Festival 2022
Blue Canoe Productions | $12,000
The Longest Night Midwinter Celebration
Calliope Collective | $12,750
The Makers and Shakers Society Audio Drama
Radioland Media Collective | $11,250
The Storge Project
SweetnFab Collective | $11,250
Tone Deaf 2021-2022 Festival and Satellite Concerts
Tone Deaf Collective | $12,000
We're All in Jeopardy!
PeerLess Productions | $10,500
Past Year Recipients
2020 Recipients
2019 Recipients
2018 Recipients
2017 Recipients
2016 Recipients
Livestream Still, 2021. Ciel performs live at Electric Circuits Festival, presented at the Isabel Bader Centre for the Performing Arts.
Photographed by Virginia Maria Photography, featuring a live recording of the KPP @ 20 Album at The Spire.
Application Process
CKAF grant recipients must meet the following objectives:
I. Engage Kingston artists with professional opportunities and industry-standard compensation;
II. Nurture creativity and arts engagement for all Kingston residents;
III. Address current needs in the Kingston community;
IV. Strengthen and expand access to the arts;
V. Create inclusive activities and equity practices that reflect the diversity of artists, arts communities and audiences in Kingston;
VI. Foster collaboration between emerging and established artists and arts organizations across disciplines;
VII. Build capacity in the arts and culture sector through professional development, mentorship and investment in sustainable, relevant, high-quality artistic work; and
VIII. Cultivate community partnerships across private and public sectors.
2022 CKAF Grants
CKAF Operating Grants support incorporated non-profit arts organizations located in the City of Kingston who exhibit high achievement in arts programming and fulfill a significant role in the Kingston community through the arts.
$10,000 - $75,000 for a period of one year.
CKAF Project Grants support arts projects from individual professional artists, collectives, and incorporated non-profit organizations that meet the CKAF objectives. Projects must demonstrate engagement with the Kingston community and engage professional artists and pay artist fees. Applicants are evaluated on artistic contribution, benefit to community, viability, and innovation.
$5,000 - $15,000 for a period of eighteen months from July 2022 to December 2023.
CKAF Covid-19 Response Plan
2021 Covid-19 Response Consultation
In 2020, the City and the KAC recognized the unprecedented impact of COVID-19 on Kingston and, in particular, the arts and culture sector. As a result, the KAC implemented an expanded consultation process in the fall of 2020 to understand the impacts of the pandemic and identify any necessary responsive changes to the 2021 CKAF program. Participants identified a number of challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, including decreased revenue, increased costs, uncertainty, reduced capacity and loss of collaboration. They also identified a number of opportunities, including improved accessibility with digital programs, reaching new audiences and renewed local focus.
Three key areas of the CKAF program were identified for review and potential changes in 2021:
Key Changes to the 2021 Program
- The objectives have been revised to better reflect the priorities of the program and impact of the pandemic. Additionally, the objectives have been rephrased to emphasize: hiring Kingston artists at industry-standard rates; addressing community needs; fostering collaboration and cultivating partnerships; expanding arts access; and devoting effort to improving diversity, equity, and inclusion.
- The jury’s requirements for allocating Operating grants have been rephrased to match the objectives with new emphasis on sustainability, viability, and accountability.
- The minimum Project grant is now $5,000 with a maximum of $15,000. The jury’s requirements for allocating Project grants have been rephrased to match the objectives with new emphasis on viability, accountability, and response to community need.
- Eligible costs now include costs related to accessibility as well as minor equipment purchases to meet new health and safety standards.
- The adjudication criteria have been revised to match the new program objectives.
- The application forms have been streamlined and the questions have been revised to align with the program objectives and adjudication criteria.
- All grant recipients must secure $5-million liability insurance coverage that names Kingston Arts Council and the City of Kingston as additionally insured. Recipients may now submit either proof of this policy or a quote for this policy before grant funds are released. Grant funds may be used to cover insurance costs.
- All grant recipients must secure $5-million liability insurance coverage that names Kingston Arts Council and the City of Kingston as additionally insured. Recipients may now submit either proof of this policy or a quote for this policy before grant funds are released. Grant funds may be used to cover insurance costs.
Additional Funding in 2021
In 2021, Kingston City Council allocated $200,000 in one-time funding to support individual artists and non-profit arts organizations in recognition of the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. This investment was in addition to the City’s annual contribution in support of the fund’s Operating and Project Grants. This funding was made available through two new grant streams; Resiliency and Adapt, administered by the KAC on behalf of the City of Kingston.
Resiliency Grants supported individual professional artists to continue to work and work safely in their artistic practice.
Total available funding for the Resiliency Grant was $100,000. Individual professional artists of any discipline applied for grants of $1,000 or $2,000.
This program supported individuals, collectives, ad-hoc groups, and non-profit arts organizations for new projects that directly addressed the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Total available funding for the Adapt Grant was $100,000 and applicants applied for grants of $4,000 to $10,000.
Contact Us
If you have questions about CKAF, please contact the Kingston Arts Council Grants Officer, Felix Lee, at grants@artskingston.ca.