Connecting Perspectives: A Cross-Border Art Initiative | Applications open January 6
Selected artists will receive $1000 for participation in the project 

Canada’s diplomatic missions in the United States are proud to partner with the Toronto-based Social Distancing Festival to present a new collaborative, interdisciplinary series called Connecting Perspectives: A Cross-Border Art Initiative, which will bring together artists who identify as Black, Indigenous and/or People of Colour in Canada and the United States to create collaborative projects that draw inspiration from the theme “Art Today”.

Like so much else, the art world has been shaken by the COVID-19 pandemic. Artists and creatives, particularly artists who identify as Black, Indigenous, and/or People of Colour (BIPOC), have been severely impacted by the turbulence and uncertainty of the crisis.

Connecting Perspectives aims to reflect this time of change, loss, and hope— and will spotlight BIPOC visual artists, choreographers, composers/musicians and spoken word artists who are enthusiastic about collaborating on new art and who can embrace the digital exhibition of their work.

PROCESS

After being screened to ensure that eligibility and submission requirements are met, applications will be reviewed by a jury of professional BIPOC artists. A total of 26 artists (13 artists in Canada and 13 artists in the United States) will be chosen to participate, and each artist will be paired with another artist (1 artist in Canada with 1 artist in the United States).

All chosen artists who complete a collaborative art piece for the project will receive USD $1000, as well as USD $200 for expenses.

Applicants must live in the United States, have a minimum of 2 years professional experience, and be available to work on this project between February and the end of April 2021.

For more information about the process and eligibility requirements, see https://www.socialdistancingfestival.com/connectingperspectives.

The deadline for submissions is January 22, 2021. Given that the project seeks to include participants from across the United States and Canada, we may need to stop accepting applications from certain regions if we have received a large amount of submissions. We encourage artists to apply quickly!

We look forward to receiving your applications!