ICCA Partnerships
The Power of Partnership
Partnerships are at the core of the Indigenous Curatorial Collective / Collectif des commissaires autochtones (ICCA)’s mission to advocate, activate, and engage for Indigenous creative sovereignty. By fostering equitable collaboration and building reciprocal relationships, ICCA amplifies Indigenous voices, supports curators and artists, and advances cultural agency as an inherent right. Through curatorial projects, critical research, and programming, ICCA connects Indigenous communities with institutions and larger arts networks, ensuring future ancestors inherit the tools to preserve and share their stories with sovereignty and pride. We encourage all partner institutions to consider becoming an ICCA Institutional Member.
Active Partnerships
Debaser and the Indigenous Curatorial Collective (ICCA) partnered to support two emerging Indigenous curators through curatorial projects presented at Pique, an all-ages festival held at Arts Court in downtown Ottawa on Anishinaabe Algonquin territory. Each curator managed a single-day project for the summer (June 8, 2024) or fall (September 28, 2024) editions of Pique.
Projects spanned various artistic mediums, such as site-specific installations, exhibitions, live performances, screenings, workshops, or panels. Participants received mentorship and ongoing production and administrative support from Debaser staff.
ICCA and CARFAC SASK have partnered to empower artists through accessible professional development initiatives. This collaboration strengthens support for Indigenous and Saskatchewan-based artists by providing resources and workshops tailored to their needs.
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CARFAC SASK, in partnership with the Indigenous Curatorial Collective (ICCA), is proud to offer Indigenous and BIPOC mentees in the Art Writing Mentorship program paid opportunities to publish writing on Indigenous art through ICCA’s Digital Publishing Program. This collaboration fosters meaningful engagement and amplifies underrepresented voices in the arts sector.
Stay tuned for the publications produced by our emerging writers as part of this exciting mentorship program!
The upcoming free workshop, Digital Foundations for Artists, led by Justine Stilborn, focuses on building long-term strategies for sharing artistic practices online. Topics include file naming, watermarks, and SEO to help artists establish an intentional digital presence. Funded by SaskCulture, Sask Lotteries, and CARFAC SASK members, this workshop is an invaluable resource for artists at all stages of their careers.
ICCA is thrilled to partner with TOAF (Toronto Outdoor Art Fair) to spotlight the recipients of the Emerging Artists by Emerging Curator Award. This collaboration with curator Jesse King highlights the works of Alex Millington, Matthew Walton, and Lauren Rice in Blushing Bodies, a curatorial showcase exploring queer identity, the human body, and form. The artists, each participating in TOAF for the first time, have already gained significant recognition for their unique practices. ICCA is proud to support this award and the showcase, and we look forward to seeing how these emerging artists continue to evolve. Additionally, Jesse King’s insightful curatorial essay further enriches the exhibition’s themes. Special thanks to Barry & Laurie Green Family Charitable Trust and ICCA for making this collaboration possible.
Read Jesse’s TOAF64 Showcase Essay
ICCA is thrilled to partner with TOAF (Toronto Outdoor Art Fair) to spotlight the recipients of the Emerging Artists by Emerging Curator Award. This collaboration with curator Jesse King features Ethereal Forms, a curatorial showcase that brings together the works of Alexander Millington, Julia Asimakopulos, Tobias Luttmer, Francie McGlynn, Keenan O’Toole, Zahra Saleki, Sharl G. Smith, Emily Zou, and Andrew Zimbel. Through this exhibition, King explores memory, identity, landscape, and the unseen, inviting audiences to experience new worlds shaped by energy, form, and perspective.
We’re co-organizing an artist-led legal session for Indigenous artists, designers, and/or creatives, loosely informed by the “Legal Considerations for Indigenous Artists & Designers: An Introductory Guide.”
Complete the ICCA Legal Topics Interest Survey to inform the format of this session.
Online Information Session on Protecting Indigenous Art: Legal Essentials for Indigenous Creatives
Registration Closed
19 Mar 2025 12:00 PM – 2:00 PM (EDT)
Toronto Queer Film Festival (TQFF)
The Indigenous Curatorial Collective (ICCA) partnered with the Toronto Queer Film Festival (TQFF) to host an online screening of eight powerful films created by Indigiqueer* and Two-Spirit filmmakers. This collaboration aligned with the theme of ICCA’s 2022 Gathering, “Accountability,” fostering a conversation on how we are accountable to marginalized communities and voices. The screening, available on TQFF’s website, was accessible with closed captioning and an audio-described version. It took place on October 16, 2022, at 4:30 PM EST (2:30 PM CST). The event also featured an in-person screening at the MacKenzie Art Gallery in Regina, SK. *Indigiqueer was coined by filmmaker TJ Cuthand.
Learn More About ICCA x TQFF Screening Indigiqueer And Two-Spirit Cinema
The Indigenous Curatorial Collective (ICCA) and the Toronto Queer Film Festival (TQFF) have launched an open call for the Indigenous Moving Image Programmer Mentorship. This initiative supports emerging queer and trans Indigenous voices in Indigenous film and queer cinema.
Running from February to June 2026, with a January orientation, the program pairs three mentees with three experienced mentors in a collaborative, hands-on experience. Participants will gain industry knowledge, build professional networks, and attend queer film festivals across Canada.
Selected mentees will receive a $5,000 honorarium along with CARFAC fees for any speaking engagements. The opportunity is open to Indigenous, LGBTQ2S+ individuals residing in Canada.
Application deadline: Wednesday, September 3 at 5:00 PM.
Apply here: https://forms.gle/zqsv1mup88nVJVyt5
We’re pleased to be partnering with The Bentway on “Declaration of the Understory” by Tania Willard as part of their summer exhibition Sun/Shade, which explores how new thinking about sun and shade can help cities adapt to rising temperatures and create more comfortable urban spaces.
The Indigenous Curatorial Collective (ICCA) is thrilled to announce a new partnership with the Indigenous Editors Association and CARFAC National. Together, the three organizations are developing fee schedules tailored to the unique needs of Indigenous writers, editors, and curators. This collaborative initiative seeks input from experienced independent curators to help establish fair and equitable standards for creative and curatorial work across the arts sector.
By combining expertise and community insight, this partnership aims to strengthen the arts ecosystem through transparent, consistent, and culturally grounded compensation practices.
Here are the Curatorial Surveys:
E: https://forms.gle/wRSfdr5U2PmovdPf8
F: https://forms.gle/odFoB4YQUemzGCeQ9
A new partnership with Pātaka Foundation, supported by Creative New Zealand means ICCA can extend our delegations program to include Indigenous curators from Aotearoa to join selected programs.
Learn more and Apply now to participate in our Delegations Program.
A significant collaboration has been formed between the Indigenous Curatorial Collective (ICCA) and Rungh Magazine. This partnership will work to amplify Indigenous voices and provide a platform for Indigenous art, artists, curators, exhibitions, and related programming. The initiative seeks to encourage critical dialogue and broaden the audience for Indigenous narratives.
Read Full ICCAxRungh Press Release.
ICCAxRungh Publications
2021-22
- 2021 11: Reconciliation as a Massive Failure By Bruce McIvor
- 2022 03: Representing “The Indigenous Experience” By Evelyn Pakinewatik
2025-26
- Coming Soon!
The Indigenous Curatorial Collective partnered with SAW Centre to support the Curatorial Mentorship Program: Echo Lines, a national initiative nurturing the next generation of Indigenous curators through mentorship, collaborative exhibition-making, and critical discourse.
Through this partnership, SAW Centre provided its facility to host one of the program’s culminating exhibitions, offering an artist-run environment grounded in experimentation and community exchange. This collaboration reflects SAW’s longstanding commitment to supporting Indigenous-led projects and aligns with ICCA’s goal to create opportunities for emerging curators to develop new work in dialogue with established mentors.
Learn more about the ICCA’s Curatorial Mentorship Program and the hosted exhibition “Denewa“.
The Asinabka Film & Media Arts Festival partnered with the Indigenous Curatorial Collective to present an exhibition developed through the Curatorial Mentorship Program: Echo Lines. This partnership extends Asinabka’s mission of showcasing Indigenous voices in film, media, and performance while supporting mentorship-based curatorial development.
By providing their venue as a site for exhibition and gathering, Asinabka enabled emerging curators to explore new forms of digital and time-based storytelling, connecting curatorial practice to Indigenous futurisms, community dialogue, and shared creative learning.
Through a partnership with the Indigenous Curatorial Collective, L’Imagier Art Centre hosted one of the exhibitions developed through the Curatorial Mentorship Program: Echo Lines. This collaboration reflects a shared commitment to fostering emerging Indigenous curatorial voices and expanding opportunities for exhibition-making within national artist-run networks.
By providing their facility and institutional support, L’Imagier contributed to a mentorship process rooted in Indigenous knowledge, relational learning, and intergenerational exchange—creating space for dialogue between curators, artists, and communities in the Ottawa-Gatineau region.
Learn more about the ICCA’s Curatorial Mentorship Program and the hosted exhibition “Kingunilialuk“.
