Artist Application

Artist Application
A Little About Us:

Thank you for your interest in joining The Maker’s Circle—a collaborative art gallery and teaching studio located at 17 Peter St S, in the heart of Orillia’s Arts District. Our space is being built around creativity, community, and shared vision. We believe that when artists come together, they multiply inspiration, opportunity, and impact.

This application is for artists who are interested in becoming part of our co-operative gallery, teaching workshops, or both. We are looking for creators who are committed to their craft, open to collaboration, and eager to contribute to a vibrant arts community.

Please take your time with the questions below. We want to get a sense of your artistic voice, your goals, and how you envision participating in the space. Whether you’re a painter, potter, jeweler, sculptor, textile artist, or something in between—we’re excited to learn more about you!

Let’s make something meaningful together!

General Benefits & Expectations:

Space are expected to average $150+tax for a 3' wide wall space floor to ceiling and 18" out from the wall, per month. Some spaces may be a bit smaller, larger, or plinth style and will be reflected in the pricing.

Currently, a 6 month contract is required, running from Oct 1, 2025 - March 31, 2026. Rent will be due monthly before the 25th of the previous month. At the renewal, we plan to move to a 1 year contract.

All your sales will be your own, no commission will be taken. TMC will provide payment processing, and artists payouts will process within the first week of the following month.

All artists will be expected to staff the gallery at least 1 day per month, or pay another gallery artist to do the shift for them if they are unable. Our expected hours are 10am-5pm Tuesday to Saturday, we hope to expand to Sunday as well if we have enough to staff it.

All artists will be expected to contribute in whatever other way they may be able, eg. book keeping, social media management, events organization, scheduling, etc. All artists will be expected to attend monthly meetings, this is a collaborative space and we need your input and want to build relationships!

Artists will be welcome to stock cards, prints etc, but will be expected to maintain at least 50% of their space as original works. (If you are a photographer, or other media that may not be considered "orginals", please reach out to us, as we are looking for variety, and not just traditional wall art.) Your space will be your own to set up, but there will be general product and presentation guidelines.

TMC has 3 primary permanent renters - Woodsy Music Lessons, Bloom Community Art Studio and Melissa Van Dam Studio. Woodsy runs late afternoon and evening music lessons, Bloom will be providing daytime art drop-ins, and MVD Studio will be offering mainly late afternoon and evening classes. There will be opportunities for other artists to teach, and facilitate classes in the studio space through either Bloom or MVD Studio.

TMC will produce a brochure of all the artists, maintain a website, social media, run or volunteer for local art and community events, and more. Whatever we can do to bring more of the public through the door, and connect with the community, the better!

A Few Last Words:

This is a new venture, and we are sure things will evolve as we grow! There are several other ideas in the works, but if we are asking you to invest in us, we want to make sure you have a good feel for our plan!

Applications close August 31!

About You
Email*
Name*
Business Name*
Phone Number*
Address*
Social Media, Website, Portfolio Links 1 per line *
Personal Bio We want to know a little about you, where you are from, what you have done in the past, where you are at now and what makes you tick?!*

About Your Art
Describe your artistic work and style in a few sentences. (Think of this like an artist statement.)*
What is your primary medium or discipline? (e.g., Watercolour, Ceramics, Mixed Media, Jewelry, Textile Arts, etc.)*
How long have you been practicing your discipline?If more then one, include all*
What items do you plan to sell in our space & what are your prices? We don't need an exhaustive list, but are looking to get a feel for what you'd like to sell and your price points*
Please upload 3–5 images of recent work including one of your work displayed or packaged for sale. or provide a shared folder link in the final comments Max 10mb per file, minimum 1 file required If you have not packaged or displayed your art, tell us about how you plan to do this in the final comments at the end of the application*

Cancelof
My preferred artist space - what kind of space would best suit your needs, smaller and larger spaces are limited*

Smaller wall space, ok if the wall space is odd or interrupted, I have smaller works.3' wall space, up to 18" from the wall4' wall space, up to 18" from the wallCenter of the room plinth or display - must be moveable for larger events

Collaborative Involvement
What is your availability for staffing or participating in shared co-op responsibilities (e.g., gallery sitting, event nights, setup/cleanup, meetings)? We are a collaborative space and expect shared involvement.*
TMC is a cooperative space. Are you willing to take part in shared responsibilities like event promotion, gallery upkeep, artist mentorship, or helping with special projects? *

YesNo
If "Yes" Do you have skills or interests you'd like to contribute to the community? (e.g., Grant writing, Social media, Staff Scheduling, Music/Performance planning, Admin, etc.)
What do you hope to gain from being part of The Maker’s Circle? *
Are you interested in teaching workshops or classes at the studio? Fees and scheduling would be handled through Bloom or MVD Studio*

YesNoMaybe
If "Yes" what kind of classes, workshops would you be interested in running?

Final Thoughts
How did you hear about us? *
Is there anything else you'd like to share with us?
Should be Empty:

Artist Application

About You

About Your Art

Collaborative Involvement

Final Thoughts