Mission & Values

Mission

To enrich the community by actively supporting and promoting the arts and artists as an essential part of life in Prince Edward County.

We do this by:

• Connecting 10,000 audience members with the arts, and hundreds of artists to potential supporters, each year through the PEC Studio Tour, Art in the County annual juried exhibition, The Maker’s Hand fine craft show, and Art of the Possible speaker series.
• Increasing access to the social and health benefits of art-making through our community-focused programming at the County Arts Lab – Art for Well-Being, Youth Craft Academy, accessible community arts classes, and more
• Supporting artists’ career development through our Artist Fund grants, Indigenous Voices Fund, Student Arts Award program, Artist Residency program, Activate Arts rental program, and by providing teaching and professional development opportunities at the County Arts Lab
• Promoting the arts and artists through Artscene newsletter, Artscene on 99.3 County FM, What’s On event listing, and Member Profiles on countyarts.ca
• Incubating new arts events and initiatives, from the PEC Jazz Festival to County Kids Read and more, as they work towards independent charitable status
  
• Advocating for the arts and their benefits for our community, and working collaboratively with those who share a common interest in leveraging the arts for the economic and social development of Prince Edward County

Vision

Prince Edward County is recognized as one of Canada’s top arts destinations, where the arts thrive and all artists can reach their full potential, contributing to quality of life and sense of belonging.

Values

• Inclusion – welcoming all artists in the community
• Community – coming together as artists, arts-lovers and active participants
• Empowerment – of all artists to develop their artistic practice
• Exploration – incubating new ideas, programming, creativity
• Action – engaging in issues relevant to the arts and community

Land Acknowledgement & Our Role in Truth and Reconciliation

We express gratitude to all the First Nations, Métis and Inuit who have been traditional and contemporary stewards of this land. We acknowledge that we work, live, meet and create on the traditional territory of the Anishnaabeg, Huron-Wendat and Haudenosaunee peoples, who through migratory and settlement patterns, have been present in Prince Edward County for hundreds and thousands of years. We also recognize how fortunate  we are to be learning from and building relationships with our friends in the adjacent Kanien’keha:ka community of Tyendinaga. 

We are actively building relationships with Indigenous artists in the County and beyond through our Indigenous Voices Fund Program. We are committed to harnessing the power of art and storytelling to foster truth and reconciliation, and to the support and advancement of Indigenous artists in Prince Edward County and beyond. Our work is guided by the 94 Calls to Action proposed by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada, and also recognize the primacy of the 46 Articles of the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and in particular Articles 11 & 31 pertaining to Arts and Culture.

We invite you to read our complete Indigenous Land Acknowledgement statement.

Strategic Plan

2022-27 Strategic Plan Report

 

We invite you to explore our full Strategic Plan Report to learn more about our bold new vision for the arts in Prince Edward County, and for our role in the County’s creative ecosystem – and how we are ensuring this community-informed roadmap results in real and relevant actions responding to the changing needs of local artists, arts organizations, and the broader community.

Click to view Full Report