GET Involved
Hey! Are you interested in becoming a member? Yay!
We love the members of our community and we love that our membership grows a little more every day. We welcome everyone: individuals, students/youth, families, nonprofits, and businesses; if you want to be a part of our community, you can!
You may be wondering what it means to be a member of the Kamloops Arts Council, and what you get in return. Being a member means supporting and contributing to the local arts and culture community. We run a bunch of festivals, exhibitions, and workshops throughout the year, and being a member means that you are a part of these events and you contribute in attendance, participation, volunteer, and/or financial support. We are a grassroots organization and your involvement makes it all worthwhile. You also get regular information on what we are running and how you can take part, and you help shape the organization at the AGM every year.
Benefits to Membership:
- Discounts for some of the workshops we host for artists and community members, and entry fees for Art Exposed
- Be included in our online directory of artists (coming soon)
- Advertise your artistic events and opportunities through our channels
- Get our weekly e-newsletter with information on what’s happening at the KAC and in the arts community
- Invitations to networking opportunities, and collaborations
- Exhibit and sell your art through Art in the Park, Art in Public Spaces, and our exhibition spaces
- Member of the Month opportunity
- Apply for funding opportunities
“I have grown in confidence & skill [by taking part in KAC events]… I know my art journey is just beginning. I am thankful to the KAC for being an inspiring, encouraging & welcoming springboard to move me forward.“
–Jasmine Rempel, visual artist
We have different memberships available for what you need. The individual membership is our most popular for individuals looking for exposure, networking, professional development, and taking part as an artist at our events! We also have a discounted membership for children/youth and students, looking to take part in our exhibitions and/or workshops. There is also the family/artist collective membership for those who want opportunities for a group up to five (5) people.
If you are a business looking for opportunities to support the arts community of Kamloops, you can also apply for membership! We have options for nonprofits and corporate memberships, and with these memberships you are able to take part in some of our events, show works by local artists, and get our weekly newsletter to understand what is going on in Kamloops!
Interested in Volunteering?
Kamloops Art Council relies on volunteers to help with our many festivals and events! It takes a lot of people to pull off Art in the Park, Children’s Arts Festival, and Art Exposed, and we cannot do it without the people helping to set up booths and the people behind the scenes who help with the planning.
What Kind of Volunteers Do We Need?
All kinds. We need people who can do the heavy lifting or booth assistance on the festival days, and we need volunteers who work around the year to help plan the events or to help shape the KAC itself. The big question is: what kind of volunteering do you want to do? What kind of commitment do you have time for?
The Board of Directors is responsible for the decisions impacting the Kamloops Arts Council, this is where we decide what kind of nonprofit society we want to be, and how we are going to move forward.
The time commitment involved with the Board of Directors is roughly 4-6 hours per a month, with one regular board meeting a month and one governance committee meeting (each board member is required to sit on one governance committee).
We have two types of committees at the Kamloops Arts Council and 3 committees for each type. We have governance committees and we have working committees. The governance committees are responsible for the policies, protocols, and operations of the organizations. They help us with our financial, outreach, and inclusivity goals. Do you want the KAC to be a safe space for everyone? Help us grow as an organization? Be one of the best nonprofit organizations in the regions? This is where the work is being done. Board members are required to be a part of one of these committees but you do not have to be a board member to join.
Working committees are for those who want to help us with the programs and projects that we run, and the committees run year round. They help us with the planning, the fundraising, and the running of our much loved events. Do you love our festivals? Are you good at fundraising? Can you inspire people to volunteer? This is the kind of work you will love doing. Each of these committees is led by a staff member and you do not have to be a board member to join.
Confused? Hopefully, this simplifies what it looks like.
- Internal Committee: Responsible for the policies, processes, and for human resources in the Kamloops Arts Council. These people help us shape the vision for diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility. They look after the safety and the legality of our organization.
- Finance Committee: Responsible for the budget, fundraising and sponsorship policies, and shaping the financial goals of the KAC. This group helps keep us in financial goodstanding and ensures that we remain fiscally responsible.
- Outreach Committee: Responsible for the membership, volunteer, program, and promotional goals. Outreach looks at how we are doing and how we can improve in these aspects of the organization. The members of the committee are required to volunteer at one major event to understand the work involved.
- Festival Committee: Responsible for the fundraising, sponsorship goals, volunteers and assisting with the planning of Art in the Park and Children’s Arts Festival. This committee meets once a month, year round to help keep these festivals safe, fun, and feasible. This committee is led by the Events Coordinator and the Executive Director.
- Exhibitions Committee: Responsible for the fundraising, sponsorship goals, volunteers and assisting with the planning of Small//works and Art Exposed. This committee meets once a month, year round to help keep these exhibitions safe, fun, and feasible. This committee is led by the Gallery Coordinator and the Office Administrator.
- Workshop Committee: Responsible for the fundraising, sponsorship goals, and assisting with the promotional opportunities for the two programs Crossing Bridges and Artistic Exchanges. These programs depend on a lot of funding and input from other organizations and artists for what can be done in them. This committee meets once a month, year round to help keep these programs running and beneficial to the community. This committee is led by the Outreach Coordinator and the Executive Director.
Event Volunteers are those who want to help out with specific events, exhibitions, festivals, and workshops. We have some diehard fans that want to take part in certain events each year and they usually do not have the time to commit year round to something. They help us with the opening of Art Exposed, the setting up of Art in the Park or Children’s Arts Festival. They do traffic control, sit as docents, provide information at the KAC booths, and help kids with making art. They are awesome.
