Arquivo F1348 - Kingston Arts Council fonds

The Kingston Arts Council adopted its constitution in January, 1962 and was incorporated on February 18th, 1963 as the Kingston Regional Arts Council, making it Ontario’s oldest arts council.

When Kingston’s Grand Theatre faced demolition in the early 1960’s, a group of concerned citizens united people interested in the arts and determined that there was a need for an arts council. After assuming the leadership role in this endeavour, The Kingston Arts Council (KAC) was formed.

The mandate that became the heart of the organization in the sixties— to sponsor, encourage and foster excellence in the arts—still holds true today. An umbrella organization that represents all of the artists in Kingston and the surrounding regions , the KAC has been devoted to nurturing regional artists of all disciplines and skill levels, and advocating on their behalf for nearly half a century.

Operating with a small staff, dedicated volunteer board and committee members from a variety of backgrounds and disciplines, the Council acts as an artistic hub, channelling information and ideas to (and from) the wider community. All of the programmes and services of the Kingston Arts Council are aimed at creating this vital, ongoing engagement between community members and the region’s arts and artists.

The KAC and its volunteers have been particularly successful in developing community partnerships. It worked closely with the City of Kingston to develop and implement its cultural policies, strengthening the voice of the arts through active planning, promotion and communication. The KAC was the driving force behind the establishment of the first Kingston Arts Board in 1982 and has always remained closely aligned with efforts to maintain arts support from the municipal government. One of the major operations of the Arts Council since 2007 has been the administration of the City of Kingston’s Arts Fund, a fund which distributes approximately $450,000 annually to eligible not-for-profit organizations. Numerous volunteers associated with the Arts Council worked behind the scenes for nearly a decade to help re-establish this critical funding source for arts activities.

The KAC was also given the honour of administering the Nan Yeoman’s Award for Artistic Development, an award to help young artists further their professional artistic growth through focused training and guided creation which has a monetary value of $2500.

The KAC currently has three main internal projects: The Kingston Prize, The Juried Art Salon, and The Fine Craft and Art Guide. Founded in 2004, The Kingston Prize is a biennial contemporary portrait contest that was inspired by the Archibald Prize in Sydney Australia (1921). Funding from the W. Garfield Weston Foundation provides a $10 000 prize, which helps to attract Canada-wide interest. In 2009, the KAC was awarded an $8000 grant from the Ontario Arts Council to take the Kingston Prize finalists to Wolfville, Nova Scotia and Calgary, Alberta as part of a nationwide tour. The Kingston Arts Council’s annual Juried Art Salon enables member artists from the region to enter up to two pieces in any medium and have their work judged by two professional artists. The winners and finalists are exhibited at the Wilson Room of the Kingston Public Library during the month of May. The Fine Craft and Art Guide promotes the best of Kingston region’s artisans, artists, and theatrical talent.