Toronto’s city-wide charity for the arts

Founded in 1995, Toronto Arts Foundation proudly calls itself Toronto’s city-wide charity for the arts. Over the past thirty years, with the support of our donors, we’ve championed our city’s artists and arts organizations, responding with agility, care, and vision to the challenges and opportunities that shape Toronto’s cultural life and identity.

Our programming supports and amplifies our city’s creative ecosystem

Our ArtWorksTO program fills a vital need in Toronto’s creative economy, providing paid work opportunities, training, and mentorship to youth and newcomer media artists; 

• Our Creative Champions Network connects arts leaders to one another, offering skill and community-building workshops and opportunities; 
• The Mayor’s Arts Lunch celebrates the talent of our city’s artists by providing cash awards and widespread recognition; 
• The Mayor’s Evening for the Arts brings community to the forefront and raises funds to support artist careers, foster connections, and increase access to the arts citywide. 

Since the Foundation’s inception, we have worked closely with the Toronto Arts Council, supporting and enhancing the infrastructure of its granting programs. TAC grant recipients create an economic leverage of $15 for every $1 of grant funding provided—we are proud to help facilitate this vital work: 

• Through Arts in the Parks, we animate public greenspaces in Toronto, bringing discoverable arts opportunities to parks beyond the downtown core and providing artists with the funds and resources to realize their vision; 
• Our Mentorship Program provides support in career planning, project development and entrepreneurial skills, as well as application support for TAC grants through consultation with industry professionals; 
• Likewise, our Neighborhood Arts Network supports the TAC’s Black Arts Projects with pre-application support, Mentorship grants, as well as the Black Arts Connect and Black Futures programs; 
• Our Research and Evaluation Team helps us to tell the story of our creative city through invaluable data insights and advocates for the value of the arts. 

ChangeMakers and Visionaries

We consider our partners and donors to be among our community of changemakers and visionaries. We are immensely grateful to you for sharing in our ambition and for investing in the future of our creative city.  

Together we have created meaningful change by: 

Responding directly to the needs of our communities: 

• In its 2023/24 season, 815 artists were impacted through the Black Arts Program, with 40% of applicants accessing at least one wraparound support. 

Empowering artists to make a living making art: 

• In 2024, we facilitated $220,000 in industry contracts though our ArtWorksTO program. 

Animating public space and engaging communities: 

• Arts in the Parks draws 88,000+ audience members annually across 21 City Wards; 
• Creative Champions Network includes 853 members from 377 arts organizations, hosting an average of 5 events per year. 

Celebrating artists and the power of their work: 

• In 2025, we awarded $157,000 to 30 artists through our awards program 
• A bold reimagining of the Mayor’s Evening for the Arts raised over $1 million to support artist careers, spark connections, and expand access city 

Thank you

None of this would be possible without you. No matter the amount, we thank you for your transformational support. 

For more information on how to make a donation to Toronto Arts Foundation, contact: 

Courtney Fiddis, Senior Manager, Development 
courntey@torontoarts.org