Back to All Grants CREATIVE ENQUIRY LAB Encourages arts organizations and collectives to consider the creative possibilities unlocked using an exploratory design process alongside students in the Creative School’s Design Solutions Super Course at TMU. Application Deadline August 14, 2025 Grant Category Strategic Apply Guidelines Reach out to a Grant Manager Liza Mattimore Program Manager, Strategic Initiatives 416-392-6802 x 231 liza@torontoartscouncil.org What does this program support? This program encourages arts organizations and collectives to consider the creative possibilities unlocked using an exploratory design process alongside students in the Creative School’s Design Solutions Super Course at TMU. The Super Course challenges students from different programs to work with external partners to conceive and brainstorm ideas using a design thinking process (a creative, user-focused way ofsolving problems.) The program provides arts organizations/collectives access to design thinking knowledge and the combined expertise of students from various academic backgrounds (transdisciplinary collaboration), to explore an organizational challenge and prototype solutions.Successful proposals will articulate a challenge or pose a question pertaining to a current organizational problem or issue. The identified challenge may pertain to any aspect of operations including programming, administration, outreach, marketing, etc. Applications must acknowledge the relevance of their identified challenge to other members of their community, other arts organizations, or the arts sector. Organizational leadership (if different than project leads) must be actively involved in the project, attending, and participating when appropriate.The grant amount is $15,000. Applicants are not required to submit a budget. As guidance, please plan for approximately 2/3 of costs in fees for the project leads and 1/3 for any materials and expenses related directly to implementing the project.The goal is to address a significant organizational challenge using design methodologies, to give students hands on experience and enhance arts organizational knowledge and skills. We are seeking to foster innovative ideas for the creation of new capacity within Toronto arts organizations and collectives. When Can The Project Happen? The Creative Enquiry Lab funds an 8-month experience between January and August. The program is divided into two stages. Participants will receive a program schedule after notification in November.New to the program will be an introductory in-person session for grant recipients with course instructors, to gain a foundational understanding of the concepts students will explore. This session will be scheduled with recipients and conducted in December, in advance of the program start.From January, successful applicant organizations will work 10-15 hours a month, meeting regularly with a team of Design Solutions Super Course students to address their identified problem, with the aim of creating a first version or draft (prototype) of the proposed solution. Participants will be invited to class sessions at various intervals including the first day, to meet students, build understanding and pitch theirprojects to student groups. In April, the prototype will be shared with the wider community during a “demo day” at TMU’s Creative School (CS).From April to August, organizations will continue development of their prototypes independently. As a pilot for 2026, recipients will be invited to form a working group (cohort,) managed by the Program Manager with several peer-to-peer sessions exploring their projects’ next steps and supporting one another with implementation. Dates for cohort meetings will be determined together with participants.Successful applicants are required to sign an agreement with Creative School before beginning the project and may be asked to attend a program evaluation session in 2026. Please see the program page for an FAQ and a video description of the Design Solutions Super Course, past projects, and terms of intellectual property. Who Can Apply? All applicants are required to contact the Program Manager, Strategic Initiatives, before applying. To be eligible for this funding, an applicant must:1 Be either an incorporated non-profit arts organization or an unincorporated artist collective operating on a not-for-profit basis. A collective is defined as two or more artists working together under a group name, either on a single project or on an ongoing basis. Organizations and collectives must be located in the City of Toronto. A Post Office Box address cannot be used to meet this requirement. Organizations with a regional Toronto office must have operated in the City of Toronto for at least one year prior to the deadline. Collectives must have a bank account in the name of the collective. For collectives of two artists, both must be City of Toronto residents. For collectives of more than two artists, the majority of members must be City of Toronto residents. Artists must be professional. A professional artist is someone who has developed their skills through training and/or practice; is recognized as such by artists working in the same artistic tradition; actively practices their art; seeks payment for their work; and has a history of publicpresentation. TAC recognizes that due to systemic barriers within the broader arts community (e.g. limited mainstream presentation opportunities for artists from equity-seeking communities) that some flexibility may be required in interpreting eligibility criteria to take into account equivalent professional experience and contexts. Potential applicants from equity-seeking communities are encouraged to discuss their eligibility with the Program Manager in advance of submitting an application. Applicants may receive a grant through the Creative Enquiry Lab once every two years. Applicants are not eligible if they have an outstanding Final Report in any other program within the Strategic Category (e.g. Animating Historic Sites, Animating Toronto Parks, Artists in the Library, etc.) If Toronto Metropolitan faculty or staff (full or part-time) are employed by/members of your organization or collective, you are not eligible to apply. This Program does not fund: Activities included in TAC operating grants Activities included in other TAC project grants Projects previous funded through another TAC grant Video Explainer In this video, Course Instructor Richard Lachman from Toronto Metropolitan University talks about applying to, and participating in, the Creative Enquiry Lab program. Additional Information How do I apply? Applicants register and submit the application through TAC Grants Online. Applications must be submitted no later than 11:59 pm on the deadline dates. TAC does not accept applications by any other means of delivery. You will receive a confirmation email when your application is submitted. Check your spam/junk mail folder if it doesn’t arrive in your in-box. TAC Accessibility Grant Projects involving Deaf artists and artists with disabilities may apply for an additional TAC grant by completing the Accessibility Expenses section of the application and including the requisite information in their budget. A TAC Accessibility grant will provide up to a maximum of $5,000 towards accessibility costs for artists incurred during the project. Accessibility costs include but are not limited to: ASL interpretation, audio description, closed captioning, communications assistants, attendant care (including helpers for Elders), support workers and equipment rentals or other supports required to meet artists’ accessibility needs. Application Accessibility Support Applicants who are Deaf or have a disability and need support to complete their grant applications can apply for funds to cover the costs of assistance from Application Support Service Providers. Up to $500 is available per eligible applicant in each calendar year. Please contact your Grant Program Manager at least six weeks before the grant program deadline to determine eligibility, request application support funding, and to review the process for payment to be made to your Service Provider. Requests for application support require approval from the Grant Program Manager. Additional information here. Can I apply to other TAC grants? Toronto Arts Council has two Grant Categories:1. Discipline (e.g.: discipline-specific project grants and operating grants in Theatre, Dance, Music, etc.)2. Strategic (e.g.: Animating Toronto Parks, Artists in the Library, Animating Historic Sites, Artreach, Open Door, etc.) Creative Enquiry Lab is a Strategic program. Applicants may receive a maximum of one Strategic grant per calendar year. Applicants may not apply for more than one Strategic grant at a time. However, we offer other types of granting opportunities through our Discipline Category, and you may be eligible to apply to one of these programs. Please note: if you apply for a Creative Enquiry Lab grant you cannot also apply to another TAC program for the same project. For more detail on our granting categories, go to our About Our Grants page. about our grants Frequently Asked Questions for this program download the faqs TAC recognizes that due to systemic barriers within the broader arts community (e.g. limited mainstream presentation opportunities for artists from equity-seeking communities) that some flexibility may be required in interpreting eligibility criteria to take into account equivalent professional experience and contexts. Potential applicants from equity-seeking communities are encouraged to discuss their eligibility with the Program Manager in advance of submitting an application.