About

About Us

CAAF-AGM-4The Calgary Allied Arts Foundation (CAAF) has a long and distinguished history in the Calgary Arts community. In partnership with the City of Calgary, CAAF’s vision is to promote Calgary as a leading visual arts centre.

Our mission is to promote the visual arts throughout Alberta – most directly in Calgary. We do this though the direct support of artists and the creation and promotion of exhibitions and events which give the general public access to the work of these artists.

CAAF is a not-for-profit organization which has maintained a strong voice for the promotion of Arts and Culture in Alberta for many decades. CAAF was, for many years, responsible for the stewardship of the Civic Art Collection, the development and implementation of policies and procedures, and advising the City on matters related to the visual arts. (Civic Art Policy approved by City Council, June 10, 1996)

For many years, CAAF has purchased works from local artists and donated these to the Civic Art Collection and this practice continues today. CAAF also continues to maintain an artist residency program designed to assist emerging visual artists in advancing their careers and obtaining exhibition opportunities.

CAAF’s Commitment to Diversity and Inclusion

CAAFprovides a diverse, inclusive, and equitable community where all staff, volunteers and artists feel valued and respected regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, national origin, age, sexual orientation or identity, education or disability.

CAAF is committed to a non-discriminatory approach and values diverse life experiences and heritages as integral to the foundation mission.

To provide informed, authentic leadership for cultural equity, CAAF:

  • Views diversity, inclusion, and equity as critical to CAAF’s mission.
  • Reviews, acknowledges, and restructures any inequities within CAAF’s guidelines, processes, programs, and services to ensure diversity and inclusion.
  • Explores potential underlying collective assumptions that interfere with inclusiveness and addresses them accordingly.
  • Implements Board-level thinking about how systemic inequities impact CAAF’s work, and how best to address that in a way that is consistent with CAAF’s mission.
  • Practices and encourages transparent communication in all interactions.
  • Leads with respect and tolerance.

CAAF commits to the following operational actions to help promote diversity and inclusion:

  1. Pursuing cultural competency by creating non-discriminatory residency and exhibition opportunities, and transparent guidelines.
  2. Improving our cultural leadership message by supporting/encouraging programs that reflect the diversity of Canadian society.
  3. Partnering and connecting with other arts organizations committed to diversity and inclusion in an effort to expand CAAF’s purview.
  4. Developing Board recruitment and jury selection processes that mitigate bias.

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We acknowledge the generous support of Calgary Arts Development, the Province of Alberta through Alberta Foundation for the Arts, and our endowment funds at the Calgary Foundation: the Marion and Jim Nicoll Bequest, Douglass Motter Fund, Wesley Irwin Fund and H.B. Hill Trust.