NaAC Case for Support

Support

The Context

In the past few years, the National accessArts Centre (NaAC) has grown to become Canada’s largest disability arts organization – and we’ve grown for a reason.

Guided by our strategic plan – Reset. Refocus. Reimagine. – the NaAC has invested this growth in exploring and answering the question:

How do we design and roll out programs that authentically reflect the ambitions of our community of 350+ Canadian artists living with disabilities – and how do we do it in a way that is accessible and puts the artist in direct control over their creative vision?

We come to you without fully answering this question, but with a growing track record of developing unprecedented opportunities that are launching our artists and their works to new local, national, and global audiences.

If you believe – as we do – that the disability community has been underrepresented and undervalued in our arts and culture ecosystem in Canada, and that we need to do more to change that, then join us in this journey that will present more questions than answers, but will make important progress nevertheless.

Quick Note from Ankur Gupta, Director, Development

Dear prospective partner:

I’m excited to be a part of the NaAC team, where I see firsthand the impact of the NaAC’s programs on our community of 350+ Canadian artists living with disabilities. My job as the NaAC’s fundraiser is to try and connect you to some of the many opportunities where your gift can have a very noticeable impact. Like me, I hope that you will be able to see why the programs at the NaAC matter – more importantly, why the community of artists we support at the NaAC matter.

Despite our 48+ year history, our President and CEO often shared with us that we are, in many ways, a start-up. We’ve launched a new multidisciplinary, national mandate in 2020, opened a new venue in Toronto, and developed a new partnership with the Government

of Canada through the Canada Arts Training Fund – all endeavours that will open a new world of opportunity for artists living with disabilities.

When was the last time we thought about providing such opportunity for the disability arts community? Or to think of its potential? The NaAC is at the forefront to change all of this – and to do it right, we need your help. Your investment.

Please call me any time at 403.253.3174 x 8 or email ankur.gupta@accessarts.ca if you have any questions or would like to learn more. I’m always open to grabbing a cup of coffee with you, showing our NaAC space, and sharing our wonderful story with you.

Thank you for your support.

Yours sincerely,

Ankur Gupta Director, Development

Artistic Training

Total Budget: $1.3M annually

Government Funding: $600,000

Confirmed Grants: $50,000 (TD Group)

Funds Required: $600,000

Visual Arts Open Studio

Our visual arts studio will continue both in person and online throughout the year. Weekly open Studio Sessions engage NaAC artists in self-governed explorations of their creative practices, with an emphasis on community building and collaborative participation. These sessions give artists the opportunity to provide and receive feedback about ongoing projects, and establish interpersonal connections through a shared love of art. Stay tuned for more exciting ways that we will better support our artists including workshops and other creation opportunities.

During summer 2023 NaAC is gearing up to offer an exciting free workshop series that will take place during open studio sessions. NaAC Studio Facilitators will lead artists through new and experimental processes in painting, drawing, ceramics, and fibre arts. Additionally, we will be hosting a daily demo table that will teach NaAC artists foundational technical skills that will bolster and diversify their artistic practices.

OUTCOMES:

• Increased skills in visual arts across all mediums.

• Increased confidence and communication skills.

• Income generating opportunities through artist fees and commissions.

• Increased interpersonal and networking skills through collaborative projects and learning opportunities.

NOTABLE HIGHLIGHTS:

• In 2021, the Government of Canada acquired 13 works by the NaAC’s visual artist community – the first partnership between our government and a disability arts organization.

• Since 2019, our visual artists and/or their works have been exhibited in Dubai, Guadalajara, Seoul, Osaka, Tokyo, New York, Baltimore, Hong Kong, and Glasgow.

Performing Arts Programs

Total Budget: $400,000 annually

Government Funding: $120,000

Confirmed Grants: $50,000 (TD GROUP)

Funds Required: $200,000

Jazz Dance Skills Development

Get those jazz hands ready – it’s time to dance! In this session, we will explore some jazz-based movement suitable for all participants including isolation of certain body parts, rhythm and storytelling through dance. Together, we will choose a collection of our favourite musicals and retell these musicals through dance and movement! At the end of each session, there will be a casual final presentation.

Hip Hop Skills Development

Groove, move and express with us as we discover Hip Hop movement, music and history. Originating in the Bronx, NYC during the 1970’s, Hip Hop is one of the most popular styles of dance and music today. Through movement and foundations, hip hop boosts personal expression and style. In these sessions, dancers will discover their own movement style, explore freestyle, connect with fellow dancers and enjoy music from the 70’s, 80’s and 90’s! Each session will end in celebration of their learnings with a final, casual presentation.

Animation + Movie Making Skills Development

Make some moving art with NaAC Animation & Movie Making Community Classes! The NaAC offers a variety of film and video making classes to introduce and develop media practices, such as Super 8 Filmmaking and Stop Motion Animation. These classes aim to inspire artists to share their unique stories through moving image art.

Songwriting Skills Development

The NaAC is excited to introduce Songwriters, a series of Music Community Classes for all artists interested in creating their own music. Whether you want to create your own songs, perform, connect to community through music, or learn about songs you love, Songwriters is designed to guide artists through all aspects of accessible music-making. With no music experience required, each Songwriters workshop series will introduce participants to activity-based methods of music-creation.

OUTCOMES:

• Increased skills in performing arts, particularly for a community that may not have had exposure to these skills development opportunities before.

• Increased confidence and communication skills.

• Income generating opportunities through artist fees and commissions.

• Increased interpersonal and networking skills through collaborative projects and learning opportunities.

NOTABLE HIGHLIGHTS:

• In 2023, the NaAC’s Animation + Movie Making projects premiered [insert number] films at the [insert name] Film Festival. This marks the first serious endeavour by filmmakers with developmental disabilities to present their works –and opens the door for showcasing at film festivals around the world.

Professional Track Programs

Total Budget: $1.0M annually

Government Funding: $200,000 (Government of Canada – Canada Arts Training Fund)

Confirmed Grants: $50,000 (TD Group)

$25,000 (ATB Financial) $150,000 (Canada Council for the Arts)

TBC Grants: $250,000 (NAC Creation Fund)

Sponsorship opportunities are also available.

Funds Required: $500,000

Performing Arts

Musical Theatre

Professional Ensemble

Originally founded through our partnership with the Calgary Opera in our Storytelling Through Opera: Act One and Two programs, the Musical Theatre Ensemble is a group of five artists who have continued to explore storytelling in the performing arts. This group meets weekly creating and discovering all aspect of a production including theatrical performance, script writing, scene and character development, stage direction, set design, lighting, costume and musical/ audio elements. The first program of its kind in Canada, we are looking forward to our presentation through the New Work, New Ways project and continuing this work towards future productions.

Music Professional Ensemble

NaAC Music Ensemble artists have expressed interest in furthering their audio and music skills, and often participate in large-scale projects similar to their 2021 album release, Robot Revelations. Artists in the Ensemble will examine and refine their individualized approach to music creation while the NaAC provides the tools, space, and guidance to create and explore new works. Currently, the Ensemble meets weekly to create to co-create a podcast as a part of the NaAC’s CADA funded project: New Work, New Ways.

Music: sound.colLAB

Building on the success of our first sound.colLAB initiative which led to the composition of Canada’s first classical music piece developed by a community of seven neurodiverse artists, the NaAC is planning to launch the next phase of sound.colLAB to continue this exploration of the intersection between classical music, composition, and disabilities.

NaAC Professional Dance Ensemble

Through the practice of improvisation and style specific dance, the seven-member NaAC Professional Dance Ensemble is a collective of dance artists who are committed to pushing the boundaries, conceptually and physically, of dance as we know it. Formerly Momo Movement, over the past 14 years, this Professional Dance Ensemble has performed in numerous venues presenting original work such as The Mind Palace (2018-19) and the film Moving Pictures, Pictures Moving (2022). In 2022, the Ensemble worked with Daniel Vais (Culture Device, Drag Syndrome) igniting their future work, ICONIC, to be premiered in 2024 at Tangente Danse in Montreal – and featured as part of the Opening Ceremonies of the 2024 Special Olympics National Winter Games Opening Ceremonies (TBC).

Visual

Arts NaAC Craft Guild

The NaAC’s Fibre Arts Guild will support artistic development and exploration of fibre arts practices. The NaAC Fibre Arts Guild will be a welcoming and adaptable community that provides technical training in an accessible studio where large, ambitious works can be realized. Artists will be focusing on technical training in quilting, weaving, and tufting practices while creating individual and collaborative works for everything from traditional craft guild showcases, to markets, to fine art exhibitions.

Conference of the Birds Professional Ensemble

The Conference of the Birds ensemble has been collaborating since May 2021 and completed an exhibition of photographs and video work that has since traveled internationally. The ensemble presented and travelled with this exhibition to the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland. They engaged the local community through exhibition tours and a panel discussion. In 2022, their photographs were presented at the Embassy of Canada Prince Takamado Gallery in Tokyo, Japan and at the What Works Summit in Banff, Alberta.

Film and Digital Media Film + Media Professional Ensemble

The NaAC Film & Media Ensemble gathers weekly to support film and video art practices. Working collaboratively, this ensemble explores moving image art through discussion and creation. The Film Ensemble’s work includes storyboarding, screenwriting, costume and production design, digital video, analog Super 8 filmmaking, animation, editing, and even film curation. Work created by the Film Ensemble has been selected to screen at film festivals and continues to gain momentum in the Calgary film scene. Selected work will be showcased in partnership with Yonge and Dundas Square in Toronto as well as international presentation opportunity (funding dependent) at the 2023 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Dubai.

Intersection with Community

Ways of Knowing Professional Ensemble

Since 2022, the Ways of Knowing artist ensemble has been examining the ways artists with disabilities can enter into conversations about Indigenous histories and learnings about Indigenous artistic practices. The ensemble meets weekly where they participate in discussions, research and shared resources of Indigenous knowledge. They have been working with guest faculty to explore various themes including local Indigenous histories, the importance of representation, artistic practices, and issues of cultural appropriation. This ensemble will produce an online publication from their learnings, sharing experiences and resources including plain-language guides and best practices.

artShare Professional Ensemble

Blending explorations in art history, critical thinking, and experimentation, the artShare ensemble has been developing alternative approaches to conceptualizing and making original artworks. Weekly meetings combine studio production with group critiques and studio visits from guest artists. The artShare ensemble has been working hard to cultivate their ideas through multiple stages of creation, articulate their processes, and learn in a collaborative group setting. The NaAC is excited to present a selection of their works at the Grand Theatre in May 2023 that will be truly experimental in nature.

Queering Spaces

This cohort will explore the ways we make spaces and processes our own. Through art-based activities and discussions this cohort will explore the ways we “crip” or “queer” and reclaim those terms to mean something that makes space for more ways of doing things and ways of identifying. Working with peer artists in the Won Lee Community Arts Hub in Toronto, we will grow connections and relationships between artists from the disability and LGBTQA+ communities.

Development

NaAC Practicum Program

This program builds the capacity of NaAC artists to move further in their professional careers. With a focus on technical training and studio operations, practicums will gain skills that will increase their understanding of their artistic medium, confidence, and employability in the arts.

Each practicum will work directly with a mentor who will teach them skills in their chosen medium. In the first half of the program, the focus will be on shadowing their mentor and assisting in the studio with hands on learning. In the second half of the program, practicums will focus on assisting and applying their skills to their independent studio practice.

OUTCOMES:

• The only multidisciplinary program in Canada where participating artists are connected to professional-grade learning and presentation opportunities.

• Artists in this track are provided with income generating opportunities. Since 2019, the NaAC has disbursed more than $600,000 in artist fees and commissions to participating artists in this professional-tier program.

• Artists develop and build their artist CV, securing individual grant and commissioning opportunities.

NOTABLE HIGHLIGHTS:

• In 2021, the NaAC’s Conference of the Birds ensemble presented their film/photography/visual arts interdisciplinary project as part of Canada’s cultural presentation at COP26 in Glasgow.

• ICONIC is set to tour nationally, with a premiere at Montreal’s Tangente Danse in early 2024.

Event Sponsorship rare

The NaAC’s largest annual fundraising event, rare is an event unlike any other in Calgary, where guests are walked through a journey of extraordinary works from the NaAC, paired with some of the rarest wines from around the world.

Sponsorship Range: $5,000 to $25,000 (Title Sponsor Confirmed)

Audience Metrics: 200+ in-person attendees

OUTCOMES:

Business and community leaders gather to celebrate the multidisciplinary works of the NaAC, helping to raise anywhere between $50K-$100K as part of the organization’s largest single fundraising event.

LAUNCHPAD Series

The NaAC’s largest community event, LAUNCHPAD – now in its sixth year in 2024 – features works that will be featured as part of the organization’s ongoing international outreach and exhibition endeavours.

Sponsorship Range: $5,000 to $25,000 (TITLE)

Audience Metrics: 100+ in-person audience members, 2,500+ media and social media outreach

OUTCOMES:

Professional gallery and presentation event connects the broader community to the NaAC’s ongoing successes as Calgary’s most globally prominent arts organization.

Exhibition + Presentation Series

As the NaAC’s artist community continues to create extraordinary new works, the challenge is for our organization to create opportunities to showcase these works and connect them to new audiences. On an annual basis, the NaAC hosts 6-8 community-based art shows and presentations, and are now seeking sponsors that help recoup our costs, while highlighting the community investment being made.

Sponsorship Range: $5,000 to $50,000 (TITLE)

Audience Metrics: Community events attract anywhere between 50-100+ attendees, with a wider reach virtually through earned and social media.

OUTCOMES:

Professional gallery and presentation event connects the broader community to the NaAC’s ongoing successes as Calgary’s most globally prominent arts organization.

For more information, please contact Ankur Gupta at 403.253.3174 x 8 or ankur.gupta@accessarts.ca accessarts.ca

CALGARY

NaAC Visual Arts Studios

8038 Fairmount Drive SE, Calgary

Most of our programs currently operate out of the NaAC Visual Arts Studios, across both levels.

CALGARY

Decidedly Jazz Danceworks

111 12 Ave SE, Calgary

Dance and movement programs operate out of Decidedly Jazz Danceworks.

TORONTO

NaAC x Won Lee Community Arts Hub

1594 Queen Street West, Toronto

Some programs will have workshop and exhibition opportunities at our NaAC x Won Lee Community Arts Hub in Toronto.