Sponsorship of Arts Umbrella

Arts Umbrella is Canada’s leading visual and performing arts institute for young people, offering classes that include dance, music, theatre, painting, architecture, sculpture, animation, video and photography. Their mandate is to deliver the highest quality visual and performing arts training to young people in the community regardless of their financial means.

Arts Umbrella strives to remove barriers to participation in the arts faced by children with lower socio-economic status; therefore 85% of their students participate through free outreach programs. The outreach programs frequently partner with community organizations and social service groups to meet the needs of “at risk” children and youth. They offer free workshops for inner city school classes at the Granville Island location and they also offer instruction for youth in the Strathcona area and the Broadway Corridor area.

In 2006, Arts Umbrella expects to reach over 36,000 children through their regular classes at their Granville Island location and through outreach programs. They also remain the largest employer of artists in British Columbia, employing over 100 professional visual artists, musicians and dancers.

Vancouver Umbrella supplies Arts Umbrella with their corporate umbrellas, which serve as gifts to donors. Donors are extremely important to the not-for-profit organization, as they raise 55% of their annual operating budget of $4.1million through the support of these corporations, individuals and foundations. Vancouver Umbrella also donates umbrellas to the art classes for the children to decorate or paint for art projects.

For further information about Arts Umbrella, please visit: www.artsumbrella.com