London’s only artist-run centre risks closure due to stagnant funding and rising costs of living - CBC

Maxwell Hyett is the interim executive director of the Forest City Gallery in London, Ont. He said the gallery could be forced to shut its doors by the end of 2027. (Jessica Singer/CBC)Social SharingThe people running London’s only artist-run centre, the Forest City Gallery, say it's at risk of permanent closure due to stagnant funding and rising costs of living.

The 53-year-old gallery, which is tucked away on an industrial street in London’s Old East Village, is one of the oldest of its kind in Canada, said Maxwell Hyett, the gallery’s interim executive director.

Still, without donations and community support, he said the non-profit gallery could be forced to shut its doors by the end of 2027.

“The goal is longevity and survival,” said Hyett. “The question is, how?”

Hyett said the gallery is bracing for a period of financial uncertainty in April. Amy Keating, the chair of the gallery’s board of directors, said it will need to raise at least $16,000 to survive a deficit in that month.

If the gallery doesn’t raise the money, Keating said board members will have to decide whether it’s feasible to keep the gallery open with the money available in its operating budget.

“We will have to kind of reflect and take stock as to whether or not it is sustainable to move forward,” said Keating. She said the gallery has two paid staff members, and a board that is made up of volunteers.

“Due to sort of ongoing, stagnating funding for the arts broadly across Canada, alongside the high cost of living, we are finding ourselves in significant financial stress.”

The Forest City Gallery said it is relying on fundraising and donations to help keep its doors open. (Jessica Singer/CBC)

Hyett and Keating said the gallery’s monthly operating cost is upwards of $10,000, to pay for things such as the building’s rent and employee salaries.

Hyett said he is hopeful that community support will keep the gallery open past April, but he is anticipating a larger financial shortfall that could force the gallery to close by the end of 2027.

For the past three years, Hyett said the gallery has received funding from the London Community Foundation, through a roughly $120,000 grant. He said the grant funding from the organization ends in October 2027.

The gallery also receives around $99,000 annually in operational funding from all three levels of government, said Hyett, along with money raised through membership fees, donations, and fundraising.

With grant money from the London Community Foundation set to dry up, Hyett said the gallery could face a financial shortfall between $50,000 and $60,000 for 2028 if it doesn't make major changes.

The 53-year-old Forest City Gallery, which is tucked away on an industrial street in London’s Old East Village, is one of Canada’s oldest artist-run centres, said Hyett. (Jessica Singer/CBC)

Hyett also said the gallery is grappling with inflation, impacting rent and artist fees, which are nationally standardized.

“Every year those costs go up, and … the cost of just doing what we did before is more expensive,” he said.

Hyett said the nearest artist-run centres are in Windsor, Barrie, and Hamilton, so the Forest City Gallery serves a large number of creatives throughout southwestern Ontario.

He said the gallery does not ask artists for money to exhibit their work, and it doesn't take a cut of any sales. Since many new artists aren’t able to display their work in museums, Hyett said there are few places in the city for up-and-coming creatives to showcase their work.

Ruth Skinner, a curator at Western University’s McIntosh Gallery, said the Forest City Gallery is an important incubator for new artists in London.

“It really prioritizes community building events, exhibitions, pop-ups, zine fairs, that serve a need for emerging artists in the city to understand that they can actually pursue arts as a viable career path,” said Skinner, who was previously a director at the gallery.

“I didn’t have a complete understanding of London’s art history, and its present, really rich and vibrant arts culture, and it introduced me to that.”

Hyett said people who are interested in supporting the gallery can reach out or attend its annual fundraising event that runs from the end of November through to mid-December.

“The best way to help us is just to donate and to cheer us on,” said Hyett.

Jessica Singer is a CBC News journalist in London, Ont. She has also worked for the corporation from Toronto and St. John’s, N.L. Singer reported on the rise of far-right politics in eastern Germany as the 2026 recipient of the Gordon Sinclair Roving Reporter bursary. She was also named a 2025 FASPE fellow and a 2021 Joan Donaldson CBC News Scholar. You can reach her at jessica.singer@cbc.ca