WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR:

• projects of artists from the Ukrainian-Canadian community or artists whose work has a connection to Ukrainian heritage (i.e., you don’t have to be Ukrainian)

• projects that promote the inclusion of Ukrainian-Canadian cultural heritage and help shape the image of who we are as Canadians at home and outside our borders

• projects that have an aim/plan for presentation outside of the Ukrainian-Canadian community, nationally or internationally

• artists who reach out to established/renowned artists, arts organizations, and institutions for mentorship (i.e., those who seek ongoing support from mentors and expand networks with fellow artists)

• projects with a goal of artistic growth and professional development

• new projects that haven’t been started in advance of the application process. (Note: You can apply for funding if you’re taking an existing project in another direction or to a new level, e.g., turning your novel into a screenplay; incorporating previously completed research in a new art installation; turning a melody your wrote in high school into a full-blown classical composition.)

Mentorship

You choose a professional mentor in your field who will advance your art or craft through experiences that are imaginative, interactive, and transformative. Mentors don’t have to be Ukrainian Canadian or living in Canada, but they can be. Maybe you want to study story-telling with Alice Walker (not Ukrainian or Canadian), or maybe you want to learn how to take large-scale photographs with Edward Burtynsky (Ukrainian Canadian), or maybe you want to learn the art of the interview from George Stroumboulopoulos (Ukrainian heritage and Canadian). The key is reaching out to your potential mentor with a specific goal in mind and finding out what they need from us in order to make working with you possible.

Training

Maybe you have found an incredible VJ software developer in Europe and you want to undergo training with them to up your live video projection mapping game. Or you need certain qualifications/certificates to use machinery crucial to your art form. Tell us about it and convince us how this kind of training will help you reach your goals.

Residency

You choose an existing residency program or create one based on your ideal space and circumstances and tell us what you need to make it happen. Ideally, a residency is for artists working on a specific project with a presentation date/location in mind who have had previous experience developing large-scale work (either their own or that of other artists), so they know how to make the most of a residency.

Workshop

There is a classical singing workshop with Stefan Holmström or a combat photography workshop with Anastasia Taylor-Lind. You can apply for us to fund your reaching through workshops and even reach out to these people already equipped to teach to see if they would be willing to extend their lesson plan (see Mentorship, above).

Internship

There’s an amazing post-production company in Silicon Valley that you want to work with or the culture desk at CBC is looking for interns. Internship is sometimes the key to developing both the relationships and the skills necessary to take the next step in your artistic and professional career, but it’s not always possible for artists who are already stretched thin because of their dedication to their craft. We can subsidize this kind of reaching as well.

Research

Sometimes you just need to spend time in the stacks and not worry about working the night shift to make it feasible. Or maybe you’re working in fashion and want to research traditional embroidery and textiles from several different villages across Eastern Europe before developing your next line. Research is an important part of the reaching process, so we can help you there, too.

ASSESSMENT AND FUNDING

You can apply for up to $30,000. Our assessment will consider the full

amount you’re asking for.

If you need $5,000 to reach your goals, ask for $5,000; if you’re successful, you’ll get the $5,000. If you need $22,500 to reach your goals, ask for $22,500; if you’re successful, you’ll get the $22,500.

An Adjudication Committee, chaired by a member of the board of the Shevchenko Foundation, will manage the candidate application adjudication and the outcomes.

Next application deadline: February 1, 2024 at 5:00 p.m. Central Time.

We’ll send you notification and publish the results by the end of April 2024.

Please submit your application to:

admin@shevchenkofoundation.ca

Please submit any questions or comments to:

reach@shevchenkofoundation.ca

CAN I APPLY?

The Reach Mentorship/Residency for the Arts is open to any Canadian citizen or permanent resident.

Applicants must be connected to Ukrainian heritage through their background, art, culture, and/or language (i.e., you don’t have to be Ukrainian) and working actively within the Ukrainian arts community in Canada and/or worldwide.

Applicants must be 40 years of age or younger at the application deadline.

Applicants must have practised at a peer-recognized, advanced career level for a minimum of two years in visual arts, literary arts, performing arts, new media, or arts management.

REACH funding is intended for individuals, not groups/duos. We will consider one application per artist per year.

ELIGIBLE EXPENSES

• Travel

• Accommodation

• Subsistence per diem

• Artists’ fees (including mentors’ fees/honorarium)

• Production

• Venue rental

• Marketing, promotion, and administration

• Direct costs related to the project

CONTACT US

AND NOT AT THE LAST MINUTE!

Don’t wait until the week before the deadline to start your application. It takes time to visualize a course of action to drive your career, to reach out to potential collaborators/mentors, for them to respond, for you to put together an appropriate schedule and budget, etc. You may not submit your best application if you leave it to the last minute.

And contact us! We’re here to provide any information you need. We want you to craft your best application so we can help you build your best career. Bounce ideas off of us, ask specific questions if something is unclear, or check in to be sure your idea is in line with our vision for the program. Our correspondence doesn’t guarantee your application success, but a conversation with us will definitely help you wrap your head around what we’re after (and maybe better understand what you’re after.) Reach out.