Community Arts Programmer - City of Vancouver, Vancouver

AI Summary

This role is for a Community Arts Programmer with the City of Vancouver, based in Vancouver. The successful candidate will develop, coordinate, and implement comprehensive community cultural development-based Arts and Culture programs, with a significant focus on Indigenous initiatives. Key duties include overseeing skill-building arts programs and community-engaged artist-in-residence projects. Top requirements include university graduation in Fine Arts or a related discipline, demonstrated experience with community-engaged, Indigenous, and diverse community arts projects, and experience working with Indigenous communities.

About the City of Vancouver and the Opportunity

The City of Vancouver is celebrated globally for its liveability and commitment to environmental sustainability, and is recognized among BC’s Top Employers and Canada’s Greenest Employers. With a strong dedication to being a City of Reconciliation, the organization actively seeks colleagues who can help advance its core commitments to exceptional public service, sustainability, equity, and an outstanding quality of life for all residents. A career within the City of Vancouver offers meaningful work, playing a key role in ensuring equitable access to services, upholding ethical governance, and supporting citizens with integrity.

The Community Arts Programmer is a specialized position designed to assist a community recreation coordinator or recreation supervisor in the comprehensive development, coordination, and implementation of community cultural development-based Arts and Culture programs. A significant aspect of this role prioritizes work with an Indigenous focus, ensuring cultural sensitivity and relevance. These vital programs and projects are primarily situated at Britannia Community Services Centres and extend into the vibrant Grandview-Woodlands and Strathcona neighbourhoods of Vancouver. The portfolio encompasses overseeing a diverse range of skill-building arts programs, including music, dance, visual arts, and performing arts courses, alongside fostering community arts partnerships and facilitating impactful community-engaged artist-in-residence projects. This position is deeply rooted in community development strategies, emphasizing authentic consultation and robust involvement of residents and community stakeholders in the co-creation, administration, and delivery of all arts programs and community-engaged arts projects.

Key Responsibilities and Collaborative Engagement

This position is central to coordinating and supporting a wide array of community-engaged arts programs and projects. The Community Arts Programmer will supervise and facilitate various initiatives, which may manifest as special events, conferences, artist-in-residence projects, exhibitions, and workshops, all designed to enrich the cultural landscape of Vancouver. A crucial aspect of this role involves working cooperatively with Society staff and partners, Society Committees, professional artists, arts and culture organizations, and the broader community. This collaboration aims to deeply understand community needs and interests regarding community-engaged arts, and to effectively coordinate and support arts partners who present performances, exhibitions, and festivals.

Furthermore, the role entails conducting proactive outreach and developing and maintaining effective partnerships with diverse community groups, arts organizations, post-secondary institutions, libraries, artists across a broad array of disciplines, and various service and recreation organizations. These partnerships are instrumental in the successful delivery of community-engaged arts programs. The Community Arts Programmer will also assist Britannia’s Manager of Organizational Change with supervision and programming for šxʷqʷeləwən ct Britannia Community Services Centre’s Carving pavilion, in partnership with the VSB and in consultation with the local Indigenous community. This includes the significant responsibility of developing and facilitating Indigenous artist-in-residence projects, leveraging deep knowledge of Indigenous protocols. The position also oversees the Britannia Art Gallery and its contracted curatorial staff, ensuring the gallery continues to be a vibrant space for community arts.

Qualifications and Essential Expertise

To be successful in this role, candidates must possess a university graduation in Fine Arts or a related discipline, complemented by some related experience, or an equivalent combination of training, education, and experience. Demonstrated experience with community-engaged, Indigenous, and diverse community, inter-cultural, and intergenerational arts projects and programming special events is essential. Furthermore, education or some equivalent training and experience in Indigenous people’s history and culture, alongside practical experience working with Indigenous communities and knowledge of the inner city, are critical qualifications.

The ideal candidate will demonstrate a strong ability to develop programs and projects in consultation with community arts and cultural groups. Considerable knowledge of the Vancouver arts community, including current and emerging trends in community-engaged arts, environmental art, and social practice, is required. Knowledge of current and emerging trends in Indigenous art is considered a valuable asset, as is considerable knowledge of the urban Indigenous communities in Vancouver, including the ability to successfully outreach to the community and implement urban Indigenous protocols. Familiarity with provincial and national legal standards and requirements in the arts (such as copyrights and fees) is also important. The role demands the ability to organize and direct others in a variety of community-engaged arts projects, provide supervision and guidance to support staff, artists, and volunteers, and exhibit strong written and verbal communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills. The capacity to work effectively as part of a team, deal tactfully with the public in a diverse community, and collaborate with a multi-agency organization is paramount. Good computer skills, including the ability to learn and adapt to current and new software applications, with a working knowledge of ActiveNet, Point of Sale, and Excel, are preferred. Good digital camera and social media skills are also beneficial. Finally, knowledge of Indigenous knowledge-sharing practices, programming, and protocols is a significant asset. A Police Record Check is a mandatory requirement for this position.