Craft Council of British Columbia is a charitable arts service organization supporting all stages of artistic practice in the craft sector and creating opportunities for artists to produce, exhibit, and sell their art. We also work to develop active communities around craft, provide a voice for artists and craft organizations, and increase the audience of contemporary craft in BC.
Since 1973, CCBC has been making craft more significant in the cultural life of British Columbians and Canadians. Through our public gallery and social enterprise shop on Granville Island, we exhibit and interpret contemporary objects in ceramic, glass, fibre, metal, and wood. These exhibitions celebrate materials and processes, and honour innovation in art, craft, and design.
As a membership-based organization, CCBC welcomes all those with an interest in craft. This includes craft artists, teachers, scholars, collectors, gallery owners, professionals in related fields, and supporters of craft, as well as craft guilds and arts organizations. This diversity is well represented in CCBC’s governance through its Board of Directors, which is elected annually by the members.
A key aspect of our vision is to make CCBC a fully inclusive arts organization and to ensure that our organization is a welcoming space for all material-based artists. To this end we use the following equity statement to guide us in all governance, programming, hiring, and space decision making.
Equity Statement of Craft Council of BC
The Craft Council of British Columbia wishes to acknowledge that we are located and operate on the ancestral, unceded territories of the Coast Salish peoples—Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), Stó:lō and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh), and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Nations.
Given that we are indebted to the rightful landowners, we recognize a severe lack of diversity in our member profiles that should undoubtedly be corrected. As it stands, the CCBC represents few artists from marginalized communities—this includes, but is not limited to, BIPOC and LGBTQ2+ artists.
We recognize and are acting on our privileged position in the arts by making an increased effort to champion unrepresented artists in British Columbia. Moving forward, any effort to procure consignment vendors, members, exhibiting artists, and community relations will be guided by the inclusion of artists from marginalized groups.
As we move forward, we intend to act with care and compassion. We are thinking of ways that we can prioritize the needs of our community, measure our progress, and maintain healthier member relations. These priorities are subject to constant renegotiation as the needs of our community change, and we hope to continue to discuss and correct our faults.
This effort, it should be stated, is not an attempt to fulfill a quota or promote sales but comes in response to a heightened awareness of the inequities that are present not only in our institution but systemically embedded into institutions within and outside the Canadian context. These efforts are only a small step in rectifying an issue that deeply impacts marginalized artists.
We encourage all artists to review the Canadian Crafts Federation’s brief overview discussing the cultural appropriation that Indigenous people of Canada continually experience.