Building Arts Equity: BPOC Program

• Any artists, collectives, groups, or cultural leaders within Saskatchewan who are of African, Black, Asian, Latin American, Caribbean, and Middle Eastern descent (BPOC).
• Applicants must have been Saskatchewan Residents for at least one year. Canadian citizens and Permanent Residents are automatically eligible; Temporary Residents of Canada are also eligible to apply if they filed an income tax return in Saskatchewan respecting income earned in the year preceding the year in which they apply.
• Applicants must not have received more than $10,000 of SK Arts funding in the past. Partners, mentors, and collaborators may have previously received grants.
• Organizations are not eligible to apply.

Building Arts Equity provides support for BPOC artists, collectives and groups to connect to the arts and cultures of origin and share through:

• Create and Develop New Artwork: opportunities for first-time and underserved BPOC artists to create and develop new work
• Mentorships: opportunities to learn and work with an experienced BPOC artist or cultural leader
• Performance, Exhibition and Presentation Development: initial support to bring BPOC art to the public
• Partnerships: initial support for BPOC artists to develop and lead arts activities in partnership with other BPOC and non-BPOC communities or organizations.

A Note on Cultural Appropriation: SK Arts encourages and supports the creative freedom of all artists, but we insist that it is done respectfully and truly honours the right of all peoples to cultural sovereignty. We ask the artists applying for projects that use ideas, symbols, artifacts, images or objects not their own to explain why they are being used and how the material is being used it in a respectful, culturally authentic, sensitive way. SK Arts believes that the engagement and presentation of different perspectives contributes to a greater understanding of our humanity and of what is taking place in the world, but if these proposed artistic works are culturally insensitive, if they strengthen stereotypes, or present a negative view towards a minority culture by a dominant one, they cannot be supported by SK Arts.

• Applications that are not BPOC-led
• Projects that do not compensate artists, cultural leaders, or mentors for their work
• Projects that are not primarily artistic or cultural
• Projects that promote hatred or intolerance
• Activities that contravene provincial or federal law

$500 to $5000

Applications are reviewed by applicants in a voluntary, collaborative, consensus-building review process that makes the funding decisions. Even if you choose not to participate, you can observe portions of the process. Volunteer reviewers at the final stage of assessment will receive a small honorarium for their time and effort.

The Reviewers will consider applications based on the following:

• Connection: Does the activity or project connect to the artist's or community's needs and experiences? Does it increase access to artistic and cultural activities for people in the artist's or other communities?
• Respect: Does the activity or project value and build the applicant’s and community’s artistic and cultural knowledge and experience? Is the artist, mentor, or cultural leader being paid in a respectful way?
• Realistic: Will the project work as described? Are the expenses appropriate?
• Impact: What difference will it make to the individual or communities? What can they learn or gain? Are there opportunities for artistic experiences and cultural knowledge to be shared throughout the project?

Applicants are typically informed of grant decisions by email no later than 60 days after the application closing date.

If your application is successful, you will receive an email that includes terms and conditions of funding. The lead applicant must sign and submit the Request for Grant Payment Form. A cheque for the approved grant amount will be released no sooner than 30 days before the beginning of the project term.

Note: A Building Arts Equity: BPOC Program grant issued to an individual is taxable income and may affect payments from the federal and/or provincial government, such as pension, social assistance, or disability payments.

Recipients are required to acknowledge the support of SK Arts and Sask Lotteries, particularly on all print material and at openings, receptions, performances, events, or other public functions. SK Arts will provide grant recipients with access to logos on our website.

Recipients of funding are required to submit a final report no later than 60 days after the project end date. As a Crown agency, SK Arts reports to the Government of Saskatchewan on how we use public funds. Final reports from grant recipients like you are an important way for us to illustrate the positive impact of public funding for the arts on communities throughout our province.

More importantly, SK Arts is interested in how your project turned out and the benefits of the grant on you and your communities. There are multiple ways to do the report:

• Complete the form online in the SK Arts portal.
• To honour oral traditions, create a video for uploading to the SmartSimple report or for sharing with the program consultant, or call the Program Consultant for a recorded conversation.
• Invite the Program Consultant to attend the final event, performance, or exhibition. If the consultant can attend in person, their attendance may even replace the need for a final report for this program.

If your application was recommended for support by the Review Committee but not ranked high enough to be funded, apply again. The Review Committee saw merit in your project idea and would have awarded your project a grant, but the funding ran out. Every closing date is unique: different people apply, and you can learn from the experience. Before applying again, be sure to take the following steps:

• Reread and reconsider your application components and support material.
• Call the Program Consultant. If you didn't observe the review process, the Program Consultant can often provide helpful comments and help you present your project more clearly or strengthen your application for next time.

No. Lead artists must be BPOC. However, non-BPOC artists or groups may be project partners or participate as members of a BPOC-led collective.

No. Organizations are not eligible. But if the lead applicant is either a BPOC artist or a BPOC group, a non-BPOC organization may be included as a project partner.

No. Only Saskatchewan-based individuals or groups are eligible to apply.

Yes. A third-party person can be compensated for their work, including writing the grant and supporting the project through the SK Arts Accessibility Fund. Contact the program consultant for details well before the deadline, or read about it here.

Yes. Applicants may make more than one application at any submission closing date, up to a maximum amount of $5000 for any one application, or an overall individual program maximum of $10,000 for multiple applications. If you are unsure of how much you can apply for, contact the consultant.

A public presentation or exhibition can take place outside of Saskatchewan, but only if there is at least one public presentation or exhibition in Saskatchewan.

Yes, but be sure to contact the Program Consultant no less than two weeks before the closing date. Because consultants get busier as the deadline approaches, they are not able to provide detailed feedback in the final two weeks.

If you submitted your online application in error, please contact SK Arts by phone, or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Your application can be re-opened, so you may continue to edit it right until the deadline.

If you don't participate in or observe the review process, contact the Program Consultant after you receive the results if you would like feedback. The consultant can often provide helpful comments from the assessment process and suggest how you can strengthen your next application.