Public Notice

November 2026

Forest City Gallery is facing a financial crisis first in April of this year and then again in November, which under current projections will mean that the FCG ceases operation by the end of 2027. There is a significant deficit in April which the board has needed to address through programming cuts as well as a significant fundraising push that will be starting with the member’s show and sale. The goal of these initial steps is to bridge this budget shortfall in April so that we can reach the arrival of our annual operating funds in May 2027. The board is optimistic that with the planned changes and support from the community that we will be able to navigate the shortfall in April. 

However, the gallery will run out of money again in November of 2027 with no clear pathway to bridging the gap until the next round of operational funding in May of 2028, a gap that would require tens of thousands of dollars that FCG does not currently have and likely major organizational changes that the current board and staff of the gallery simply do not have the capacity to pursue. Purely based on these numbers, Forest City Gallery is facing closure and the end of the organization in November of 2027. It is important to note that this is the situation if nothing changes and new solutions do not emerge, it does not mean that organizational survival is not possible. 

It is worth situating the problems Forest City Gallery is facing within the larger context of Artist Run culture in Canada. Starting a few years ago we have seen major arts organizations struggle, perhaps most obvious among these being C Magazine. We have also been hearing from artist-run centres across Ontario and Quebec that they are facing a financial crisis and potential closures. Like these organizations, the primary cause of FCG’s current problems is stagnant grant funding which has not kept up with rising costs. We have been lucky to be able keep our grant funding stable thanks to hard work from both staff and board over the past several years, but without funding increases we are no longer able to keep up with the rising costs of expenses like rent and CARFAQ fees. After reviewing financial documents and projections, along with the independent audits required by law and information from our bookkeeper, we on the board are confident that there has not been any financial mismanagement or inappropriate use of funds. Like many other artist-run centres, we are being frustratingly squeezed by stagnant funding of the arts in general. 

While the ultimate cause of this situation is outside of the board’s control, we also feel it is important for transparency and forward planning to also reflect on the challenges posed by an entirely volunteer operational board. Forest City Gallery asks a lot of time, energy, and skills from its board members and we have all been increasingly overstretched. We have many board members in positions they accepted due to organizational need which can lead to a mismatch in skills and in particular as a board largely made up of artists and arts professionals, it has been difficult to find and retain treasurers with strong accounting and financial management skills. We reiterate here that there has not been financial mismanagement, but rather the high demands of board work and a loss of skilled members over the years meant there was not as much foresight into the looming financial crisis. 

The response to this crisis is still developing but following a larger presentation at the Annual General Meeting the board would like to briefly outline the current path forward and ask for the public’s support. We have a particular focus on navigating the April 2027 hurdle so that we have time to develop a more robust plan for the November 2027 crisis and the potential for organizational closure going into 2028.

Unfortunately, this response meant making plans to cancel some of our programming for 2027. The first of these cancellations is that Hear Here, the long running music programming at FCG, will not be continuing beyond a final event in January which will celebrate the history of Nihilist Spasm Band and the history of experimental music and sound art in London. The second cancellation is in our exhibition calendar. We are saddened to announce that a curated exhibition will not be moving forward in April, this show titled Drawing Activism  developed and curated by Adi Berardini and the cancellation will impact three artists as well as the curator. Due to the timing of the show which aligns with the significant budget shortfall in April, it will not be possible for us to pay the CARFAQ fees that are due to the artists for their incredible work in alignment with our values as an artist run centre. We on the board are deeply disappointed to be cancelling programming and know that the presence of Adi’s curated exhibition will be missed by the community.

Moving to cancel these programs was the first step in our response and our focus is now moving to fundraising and community consultation as we pursue the funds needed to navigate the first crisis point in April and define the path forward for FCG as we head towards the more significant situation in November of 2027. The board is increasing its fundraising attention on corporate and private donors who may be able to donate larger sums of money, with outreach from the board to local businesses and the executive team on the board also increasing its applications for non-governmental grants. Maxwell Hyett, the interim Executive Director, has also been leading discussions with the three major granting agencies (the Canada Arts Council, Ontario Arts Council, and London Arts Council) to both communicate the seriousness of FCG’s situation and advocate for an increase in operational funding. These activities will continue behind the scenes as the board seeks out larger donations that can help stabilize the financial situation. This is paired with community oriented fundraising efforts beginning with the Member’s Show and Sale, after a hiatus last year, we are once again partnering with Embassy Cultural House for the MSS which has historically helped with the fundraising success of the show which is the Gallery’s major fundraising event for the year. Now more than ever your donations and support of programs like the Member Show and Sale are vital. You can also help us by sharing information about the gallery, our situation, and how people can show support with your own networks and communities either privately or on social media.  

However, we also want to recognize that this is a very difficult time for many members of our community, with the larger economic climate meaning that many folks are struggling to make ends meet and are unable to provide more resources to the gallery. We have seen this in the fundraising trends for FCG over the past several years since the 50th anniversary campaign, as well as the discussions around affordability and economic precarity that have become increasingly prominent. Which brings us to the need for community consultation and input on how to move forward as an organization. One of the things that has become clear over the past year and in the face of the current financial crisis is the need for FCG to fundamentally rethink the way that the organization services the community. 

Looking past the first crisis point and towards the far more significant shortfall in November 2027, the path forward is much less clear. The monetary influx needed is much higher without an obviously feasible solution to holding the gallery until the next round of operational grant funding. As a result, without substantial change, including an influx of both material resources and human energy and ideas FCG will not be able to operate past the end of 2027. The current board is committed to stewarding the organization through this year in line with our values as an artist-run centre but we need substantial community support to think about transitioning to a new group of leaders to envision the future of the organization moving into 2028. To this end the board will be hosting several town halls after the holiday season moving into the Spring, which alongside the outcomes of the fundraising efforts heading into the April crisis point will give us more information about how to approach this potential final year of FCG and open up potential pathways towards long term survival. 

The Board feels it is important to be transparent about just how challenging this upcoming year will be and the need for new people to step up to participate in the governance and operation of the organization. Even with increased income, FCG will not be able to operate long term without new energy and participation from the community. If you, or someone you know has big ideas about how to serve the community in an increasingly difficult economic landscape with the logistical skills to bring those plans to fruition please reach out. The current leadership group are eager to pass on the institutional knowledge and skills we have developed with the goal of setting up the gallery for its next phase, even if it looks different than it has in the past 50 plus years.