ARTS & CULTURE

Arts and culture make a community a vibrant and enriching place to live. An active and diverse mix of cultural offerings increases our sense of satisfaction with our environment and community pride.

Carrying music forward

Arts & Culture

Carrying music forward

Now celebrating its 40th season, the Greater Victoria Youth Orchestra (GVYO) offers musicians aged 13 to 28 outstanding classical training. Auditioned members grow through discipline, commitment, and love of music.“When they play, everything else disappears,” says Board member Evelyn Higgins. “You can feel the passion.”

GVYO fosters mentorship as younger members look up to older peers during weekly rehearsals. The education is holistic – orchestra members learn how to play together, lead, support, and be part of something greater.

GVYO has also always offered bursaries with no barriers. “We give them a space where they are safe, seen, andsurrounded by others who are just as passionate,” says Music Director Yariv Aloni.

With consistent membership of 60 to 65 musicians for four decades, GVYO cultivates a lifelong appreciation ofthe arts, providing an opportunity for young musicians to find and interact with a community that supports their musical development.

With concerts, school workshops, a strong board, and outreach to hundreds of students annually, GVYO enrichesthe lives of young talent and nurtures them to be the next generation of performing artists in the region.

Sponsored by
BLACK PRESS MEDIA


Photo courtesy of Greater Victoria Youth Orchestra 

Vital signs citizen survey grade

B

Last year's grade was B

Arts and Culture

Vital signs citizen survey grade

B
Sustainable Development Goals

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

LIBRARY USE

In 2024, the Greater Victoria Public Library (GVPL) reported the following visits, circulation and engagement across its 12 branches in the region:

3.5MTotal Visits
1.8M in-person

23,000 New Cardholders

16% of total cardholders as of December 31, 2024

6.3M Total Circulation

3.7M physical items
2.6M digital items

180,000 Public Computer Logins

35,000 Total Program Participation 

SOURCE: GREATER VICTORIA PUBLIC LIBRARY

GPVL rankings in 2023 (most recent year of data) among 42 reporting urban library systems in Canada:

  • 2nd for total circulation per capita
  • 8th for in-person visits per capita
  • 14th for total number of cardholders per capita

SOURCE: CANADIAN URBAN LIBRARIES COUNCIL

The Vancouver Island Regional Library (VIRL) serves Vancouver Island, Haida Gwaii, and the Central Coast. It operates 39 branches, including two in the capital region: Sidney/North Saanich and Sooke.

In 2024, the two capital region branches combined recorded:


17600Total Cardholders (17% new applicants)

0%

of Sidney/North Saanich residents have a library card

0%

of Sooke residents have a library card

11550people attended free events

In 2024, Sidney/North Saanich’s Teen Advisory Group organized free library card drives at Parkland Secondary and North Saanich Middle School and gathered Period Promise campaign donations to keep the library’s washrooms stocked with free period products. The Sooke branch launched a volunteer-run home delivery service for Ayre Manor, a local seniors’ housing complex, providing welcome access to library materials and social connection for homebound residents.

SOURCE: VANCOUVER ISLAND REGIONAL LIBRARY 

ARTS FUNDING

Regional Funding in 2024

Record high funds distributed by Capital Regional District (CRD) Arts and Culture Support Service:

$2.73M to 101 local not-for-profit arts organizations of whom 15 were first-time recipients.

9500arts events and performances activated by CRD grant recipients in the region with over 1,150,000 audience members, participants and attendees, of which 76% were in-person and 24% online.

5580arts workers were employed by grant recipients, including 4,600 artists and 980 arts workers.

SOURCE: CAPITAL REGIONAL DISTRICT

Federal Funding in 2023/24

Funds awarded by the Canada Council for the Arts:

$5.1M to 120 recipients in the Victoria CMA, including 71 individuals (27%), 6 groups (2%), and 43 arts organizations (71%).

Grants ranged from $1,250 to $670,000

$19584 average grant received by individuals

$83766 average arts organization grant

$48.4M (16% of grants awarded in Canada) to 1,257 artists, groups, and organizations in 91 communities in BC.

SOURCE: CANADA COUNCIL FOR THE ARTS 

EMPLOYMENT IN THE ARTS

Approximately:
12300 people
worked in arts, culture, recreation and sports occupations, except management, in Greater Victoria in 2024.

continuing a 5-year upward trend and double the number since 2020

SOURCE: STATISTICS CANADA 

THEN & NOW

CULTURAL WORKERS

Between 2006 and 2022 in Greater Victoria
44% increase in arts and select cultural workers, one of the highest growth rates in Canada, and well above the 25% increase in cultural workers, across all census metropolitan areas for the same period.

SOURCE: STATISTICS CANADA 

COMMUNITY IN FOCUS

A Sacred Legacy: Tam Kung Temple

Designated a national historic site in 2025, the Tam Kung Temple in Victoria stands as a rare and enduring symbol of Chinese Canadian heritage. Established in the 1860’s and relocated to the top floor of the Yen Wo Society Building at 1713 Government Street, the temple has served as a spiritual and cultural hub for the Hakka community on Vancouver Island for over a century.

Inside, a wooden statue of the sea deity Tam Kung sits beneath a skylight, surrounded by embroidered silk banners, incense censers, and intricately carved altars. Remarkably, the temple has remained in use through changing times, even surviving a fire in 1980. Today, it is Victoria’s only active Chinese temple.

SOURCE: GOVERNMENT OF CANADA