Bognor Beach #1 - Viewpoint, colour photograph, ©2001, by Timothy Atherton, Canada Council Art Bank.

The Canada Council for the Arts

The Canada Council for the Arts is a national arm's-length agency created by an Act of Parliament in 1957. Its role is “to foster and promote the study and enjoyment of, and the production of works in, the arts.” The Council offers a broad range of grants and services to professional Canadian artists and arts organizations in music, theatre, writing and publishing, visual arts, dance, media arts, and interdisciplinary and performance art.

The Council awards more than 100 prizes every year. It administers the Killam Program of scholarly awards, the Governor General's Literary Awards and the Governor General's Awards in Visual and Media Arts. The Canadian Commission for UNESCO and the Public Lending Right Commission operate under its aegis. The Canada Council Art Bank contains 18,000 works of contemporary Canadian art which are rented to the public and private sectors.

The Canada Council is overseen by an 11-member Board. The Chairman, Director and Board members are appointed by the government. The Council relies heavily on the advice of artists and arts professionals from all parts of Canada. The Council also works in close co-operation with federal and provincial cultural agencies and departments.

The Canada Council for the Arts reports to Parliament through the Minister of Canadian Heritage. Its annual parliamentary appropriation is supplemented by endowment income, donations and bequests. Its accounts are audited by the Auditor General of Canada and included in the Annual Report.

In 2003-04, the Council awarded 6,147grants to artists and arts organizations and made payments to 14,435 authors through the Public Lending Right Commission. Grants, payments and awards totalled $137 million.