A non-profit organization, owned either by private or government sectors, which contributes to the growth of arts is known as arts council. An arts council accomplishes its goals via different methods such as by funding small-scale artists, felicitating prizes as well as organizing various art events.
Arts councils are uniquely variated on the basis of the domain in which they function. Based on their mission, goals, and domain of the legal function, a particular arts council could choose to serve a:
- Community
- City
- County
- City-County
Traditionally, an arts council works in close contact with the government. Not only does this help them to receive the numerous Government grants, but they also have the added benefit of not running into any hindrances in their day-to-day affairs.
Contents
The Arts Council Budget
Similar to other organizations, art councils, too, require a budget plan as a part of their management functions. In a gist, the budget prepared by the arts council budget keeps a track of all the finances and highlights important details such as the cost of the project and means of payment to be employed.
A well-defined budget reflects the scope of the project and supports the proposals of the art council. Therefore, it should provide a clear picture of all the revenues and expenses to support your proposals.
The budget statement prepared for an arts council should have equating sections. This simply means that both the sections of the budget statement i.e. the revenues and the expenditures column should have equal values.
It is these values which actually convey the actual story of how well you have utilized your funds. And it is this utilization of funds which actually show how successful you have been in accomplishing the goals and missions of your council.
Sample Arts Council Budget Template
Mentioned below is one of the most basic ways of mapping out a budget template for an arts council. It employs all the essential characteristics should be present in a traditional arts council budget. Such a budget template mainly prioritizes on displaying how and whether the funding is received in form of cash or other in-kind contributions.
It is also advised that the councils include copies of any actual quotes on these budget items along with the actual application package. Also, if these quotes include items which are included as estimates, the councils should also include a clause so that the people reading the budget statement are made aware of this fact.
Expenses
Particulars Details Amounts
- Artist’s Sustenance Costs x amount per month * number of months xxxxx
- Mentor Fees x amount per month * number of months xxxxx
- Professional Fees x amount per month * number of months xxxxx
- Materials & Supplies xxxxx
- Rental Costs for
Gallery Space x amount per day * number of days xxxxx
- Event Marketing Charges x advertising material * number of ads xxxxx
- Event Hosting Costs Details of the hosting xxxxx
Total Expenditures xxxxx
Incomes
Particulars Details Amounts
- Rental Income from Gallery Artist’s Gallery xxxxx
- Funds Generated from Details about the fundraising event xxxxx
Fundraising Events
- Material Costs Received from Artists and Mentors xxxxx
- Exhibit Hosting Expenses xxxxx
- Sponsorships xxxxx
- Individual Donations xxxxx
- Government Grants xxxxx
Total Incomes xxxxx
Amount Requested from Grants xxxxx
Individual Artists Arts Council Budget Template
The foundation of imagination and creativity is usually built by the independent, individual artists. It is by working on further projects that these artists advance through the various stages of their art form. And with the help of this, the projects take form into a development activity which the musicians use to breathe new life into the ecosystem.
To help such promising individual artists, art councils often support individual artists and help to shine a spotlight on their careers. These Artist Project Grants are created specifically for this purpose. They are the intended investment in the projects of individual artists to receive the greatest returns.
Included below is the example of an art budget, developed for the purpose of an Individual Artist Support program.
Name of Art Council
Name of Artist:
Name of the Project:
Particulars Column 1 Column 2
- Expenditures (Cash Amounts) (In-Kind Amounts)
(if any) (if any)
- Fees Charged for Conferences xxxxx xxxxx
- Costs of Lodging/Hotel Bookings xxxxx xxxxx
- Transportation Costs xxxxx xxxxx
- Rent xxxxx xxxxx
- Costs of Production xxxxx xxxxx
- Artist’s Fees xxxxx xxxxx
- Equipment Charges xxxxx xxxxx
- Rent xxxxx xxxxx
- Marketing Costs xxxxx xxxxx
Total Expenses xxxxx xxxxx
Amount Eligible for Grant xxxxx xxxxx
(If total amount is less than xxx, then
project is ineligible for funding)
- Incomes Cash In-Kind Confirmed/
Amounts Amounts Anticipated
(if any) (if any) Incomes
- Direct Incomes xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx
- Fundraising Events xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx
- Donations from Large Organizations xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx
- Sponsorships xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx
- Contributions from Small Business xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx
- Grants Received from Government xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx
- Contributions from Individual Donors xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx
Total Incomes xxxxx xxxxx xxxxx
The above-mentioned template is a highly traditional form of council budget template. Such templates have been used for a long period of time. Although not obsolete, the template fails to mention numerous important details. A newer, more dependable version of the Individual Artist Support templates which is being heavily used in recent times is given below:
Name of the arts council
Individual Artist Support Program
Grant To Support Individual Artists
Particulars Projected Amount Actual Amount
- Expenditures
- Production Expenses
- Artist’s Fees xxxxx xxxxx
- Wages for Supporting Workers xxxxx xxxxx
- Material required (e.g. paint, blank media) xxxxx xxxxx
- Rentals for bookings xxxxx xxxxx
- Other Production Expenses xxxxx xxxxx
Subtotal of Production Expenses xxxxx xxxxx
- Presentation Expenses
- Rental Costs for the Gallery or Hall xxxxx xxxxx
- Wages Paid to Technicians xxxxx xxxxx
- Rental Costs for Equipment xxxxx xxxxx
- Marketing and Promotion Cost xxxxx xxxxx
- Other Presentation Expenses xxxxx xxxxx
Subtotal of Presentation Expenses xxxxx xxxxx
- Miscellaneous Expenses
- Costs for Artist Sustenance xxxxx xxxxx
- Administration Costs xxxxx xxxxx
- Other Miscellaneous Expenses xxxxx xxxxx
Subtotal of Miscellaneous Expenses xxxxx xxxxx
Total Expenses xxxxx xxxxx
- Revenues
- Project Grant for The Individual Artist xxxxx xxxxx
- Foundation Received for Arts xxxxx xxxxx
- Donations Received from other Art Councils xxxxx xxxxx
- Grants Received from Government xxxxx xxxxx
- Other Revenues Received xxxxx xxxxx
Total Revenues xxxxx xxxxx
Summary
Total Expenses Incurred xxxxx xxxxx
Total Revenues Received xxxxx xxxxx
Surplus or Deficit xxxxx xxxxx
Arts Council Theatre Project Budget Template
A lot of art councils actively support and encourage theatre projects. These projects help artists to explore and develop their creativity, production and presentation skills. Theatre projects allow professional artists to pursue a one-time project which can help in the development of the theatre community.
Apart from this, a lot of art councils, such as the Toronto Arts Council, also engage in long-term projects with their professional artists. These projects help the artists to present a new variety of work over an extended period of time.
There are usually five categories of theatre projects undertaken by artists under the arts council. These include:
- Idea Development – These projects involve the contribution of fees during the period of idea development and production.
- Residence Idea Development – These projects involve the same things as that of Idea Development projects. However, the funds, in this case, are contributed to the artist for a residence. A residence idea development involves idea development for playwriting apart from the other forms of creation.
- Workshops for Idea Development – These projects involve a contribution to workshops which invest in idea development.
- Productions – These projects involve contributions for single production as well as shared-production models.
- Festival Initiatives – Such initiatives involve a contribution to the cost of festivals in which artists or art professionals take part in. Usually, such festivals initiatives are conducted for the benefit of the art theatre community.
Arts councils tend to prepare a theatre project based on a different format than the ones aforementioned above. Given below is one variety of the arts council theatre project budget template:
Arts Council Theatre Project Budget Template
Name of Applicant:
Name of Project:
Numbers Values
Number of Performers x
Number of Stage Managers x
Numbers of Weeks for Rehearsals x
Number of Weeks for Performance x
Total x
Earned Incomes
Particulars Amount
Public Funding xxxxx
Funds Received Internationally xxxxx
Partners in Production xxxxx
Incomes from Fundraising xxxxx
Fees Received/ Guaranteed Income xxxxx
Box-Office Sales xxxxx
Programme Sales xxxxx
Artist’s Royalty xxxxx
Rentals Received xxxxx
Other Incomes xxxxx
Total Earned Incomes xxxxx
Expenditures
Particulars Amount
- Production Costs
- Director’s fees xxxxx
- Costume Designer fees xxxxx
- Stage Visual fees xxxxx
- Production Manager’s fees xxxxx
- Other fees xxxxx
Total Production Costs xxxxx
- Wages
- Cast Wages xxxxx
- Stage Director’s Wages xxxxx
- Assistant Stage Manager’s Wages xxxxx
- Other Wages xxxxx
Total Wages xxxxx
- Technical Costs
- Rehearsal Venue Cost xxxxx
- Materials xxxxx
- Painting Fees xxxxx
- Stage Crew Fees xxxxx
- Other Technical Costs xxxxx
Total Technical Costs xxxxx
Summary of Expenditures
Total Production Costs xxxxx
Total Wages xxxxx
Total Technical Costs xxxxx
Total Expenditures xxxxx
Revenues and Expenditures
As aforementioned, every arts council is unique in their own way. This clause applies in their budget creation methods as well. In spite of this, there are a few sections which are mandatorily present in each and every arts council. The prime example of this is the revenues and expenditures column.
Tens of factors go ahead in affecting these two sections. Due to this, every arts council should invest immensely in researching the budget statement. Researching the costs will help you plan your activities as well help in knowing more about factors such as artist contacts, standards, and the fees.
The expenses surrounding the budget consist mostly of:
- Artist’s fees
- Material Costs
- Equipment Charges
- Costs of Production
- Rent
- Travel Charges
- Marketing Costs
Similar to the expenses, there are multiple sources of revenues as well. And it should be so. No arts council should ever depend only on a single source of income.
A few sources from whence an arts council could earn their income are:
- Income earned
- Fundraising events
- Contributions or donations received from large organizations
- Sponsorships
- Contributions from small businesses
- Grants from the government
- Individual donors
- Membership received
One of the most prominent ways which an art council earns their revenue are the fundraising events hosted by them. However, it all depends on how much prioritized these fundraising events are by the council. All the revenues which flow into the council’s coffers are performed under the complete supervision of the board of directors. Due to this, they are completely accountable for all the funding sources.
Arts Council Festival Funding
People who require festival funding from a particular arts council are normally required to provide a budget statement. The budget is an important part of the application form for a festival funding. Due to this, it is crucial that the artist correctly fills out the income and expenditure columns as well as include any supporting documentation.
An example of a budget template for an art council festival funding is given below.
Expenditures
Particulars Amount
- Artist’s Fees xxxxx
- Project Management xxxxx
- Contingency xxxxx
- Administration Costs xxxxx
- Fees Related to Engagement of Team Members xxxxx
- Operational Costs xxxxx
- Training and Development Costs xxxxx
- Marketing and Promotion Costs xxxxx
- Costs Relating to Festival Showcasing xxxxx
Total Expenditures xxxxx
Incomes
Particulars Amount
- Sponsorships xxxxx
- Planned Revenues xxxxx
- Private Contributions xxxxx
- Other Public Funds xxxxx
- Crowd-funding xxxxx
- In-Kind Donations xxxxx
Total Incomes xxxxx
Summary
Incomes xxxxx
Expenditures xxxxx
Surplus/Deficit xxxxx
Amount Requested from ACM as Funding xxxxx
(Usually, the funding amount is 80% of the requested amount)
Goals of Art Councils
Art communities are also diversified on the basis of the type of goals that they set. These goals are formulated to be in accordance with the of the characteristics of the domain that they serve.
A few such goals include:
- Delivering tours
- Workshop organization
- Organizing classes
- Providing gallery space
- Functioning as a powerhouse for small-scale artists and organization
