Ontario Arts Council Exhibition Assistance 2026-27

About this call

The Ontario Arts Council's Exhibition Assistance program supports Ontario-based artists and artist collectives in visual arts, craft and media art with the costs of presenting their work in a confirmed public exhibition, in Ontario, elsewhere in Canada or abroad. It is a third-party recommender program: artists apply through Nova, the council's online system, to one of the galleries and organizations designated as recommenders, which assess applications and recommend grants to the council. Eligible costs include framing, display structures and installation supplies, exhibition photo printing, audio-visual equipment, technical and installation fees, crating and shipping, venue rent or booth fees, promotion and insurance. Solo and group shows in public galleries, artist-run centres and commercial galleries, self-presented shows, alternative public venues, art fairs, collective studio tours and exhibits at trade fairs all qualify.

Who can apply

• Limited by country or region
• Medium: Ceramics / Drawing / Installation / Mixed Media / New Media / Painting / Photography / Printmaking / Sculpture / Textile / Video
• Entry fee: See official site
• For professional visual artists, craft artists and media artists who reside in Ontario, and Ontario-based visual, craft and media artist collectives (unincorporated groups of two or more artists who create collaboratively and exhibit together), with a confirmed public exhibition; in a group show where artists present their own work, each artist applies individually. Not eligible: full-time undergraduate or graduate students, incorporated not-for-profit or for-profit organizations and curators. Apply in Nova to a recommender in the zone where you live, or to a specialized recommender. The 2026-27 program runs until January 15, 2027, 1 p.m. ET, but each recommender sets its own deadline or assesses on an ongoing basis until its budget is spent; check the Recommenders for Exhibition Assistance page before applying. Results come up to two months after the recommender's deadline or your submission, possibly after the exhibition, in which case a grant is awarded retroactively. The exhibition must start on or after January 15, 2026 and be completed no more than two years after the grant notification. Not eligible: venues not open to the public, theatrical-style screenings, exhibitions presented for credit in a secondary or post-secondary program, self-presented online exhibitions and online shops (online exhibitions presented by a gallery, museum or other professional platform are eligible). Up to three applications at a time, one exhibition each; at most $2,000 in total in the program year, and grants may be smaller than requested. Only costs that are the artist's responsibility and not covered by the gallery count; art materials, studio costs, artist fees, travel (except for performance art and site-specific installation), accommodation, catalogues and documentation of artwork and hospitality are not funded. The application includes an exhibition budget, answers to the application questions, up to 8 images or 8 minutes of video, a résumé and a document confirming the exhibition (dates, organizer contact, venue address). Artists with a conflict of interest with a recommender may not apply to it. Recipients submit a final report in Nova and recognize OAC funding (OAC and Government of Ontario logos, a social media post tagging OAC and their MPP). Program details may change until the program opens in Nova.