Posted March 25, 2020

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Artists in Canadian Municipalities in 2016

March 25, 202025 March 2020

Executive summary

Based on custom data from Statistics Canada’s 2016 long-form census, this report provides an analysis of artists in Canadian municipalities, with a primary focus on groups of municipalities by population. Summary information about select municipalities is also provided in the report, and a data supplement with information for all municipalities with at least 40 artists is available here (in Excel format).

Previous reports in the Statistical Insights on the Arts series have examined the situation of artists in Canada, the provinces, and territories. In Canada, there are 158,100 artists, representing 0.87% of the overall labour force, a proportion that is also called the concentration of artists.

One-half of Canada’s artists reside in the 12 largest cities

Figure ES1 provides the number and percentage of artists in four groups of municipalities, based on the boundaries of census subdivisions, not metropolitan areas.

Exactly 50% of Canada’s 158,100 artists (78,600) reside in the 12 cities with a population over 500,000. The largest cities’ 50% share of all artists is much higher than these cities’ share of the overall Canadian population (34%).

The 16 medium-sized cities (population between 175,000 and 425,000) are home to 18,000 artists, or 11% of all artists, roughly equal to these cities’ share of the overall population (12%).[1]

There are 24,100 artists residing in the 72 smaller cities (population between 50,000 and 165,000), representing 15% of all artists in Canada (compared with 19% of the country’s population).

Small and rural municipalities (fewer than 50,000 residents) are home to 37,400 artists, about one-quarter of all artists in Canada (24%). This municipal group accounts for the second largest number of artists (37,400), behind only the largest cities in the country (78,600). The 24% share of all artists is much lower than the small and rural municipalities’ 35% share of the overall population.

Figure ES1: Artists in Canada by municipal group

Figure ES2 depicts the concentration of artists in each municipal group.

Artists represent 0.60% of the labour force in small and rural municipalities, well below the national average (0.87%).

In the 72 smaller cities, artists represent 0.69% of the labour force.

In the 16 medium-sized cities, the concentration of artists is 0.80%, close to the national average.

The concentration of artists in the 12 largest cities is 1.25%, much higher than in any other municipal group and well above the national average.

Figure ES2: Concentration of artists by municipal group

Different demographic profiles in different sizes of municipalities

The report provides select demographic and employment information, including gender, members of racialized groups, immigration status, Indigeneity, age, education, and self-employment rates, for artists in each municipal group. Because data related to disability, deafness, and sexual orientation are not available from the census, they could not be analyzed in this report.

Small and rural municipalities (under 50,000 population) have the:

Highest proportion of women (57%)
Highest proportion of Indigenous artists (6.0%)
Lowest percentage of artists under 35 (24%) and the highest percentage 55 or over (37%)
Lowest proportion of artists from racialized groups (4%)
Lowest percentage of immigrants (14%)
Highest percentage of self-employed artists (60%)
Lowest proportion of artists having a bachelors’ degree or higher (36%)

In contrast, the 12 largest cities (over 500,000 population) have the:

Lowest proportion of women (49%)
Highest percentage of artists under 35 (37%) and the lowest percentage 55 or over (21%)
Highest proportion with a bachelors’ degree or higher (53%)
Lowest percentage of self-employed artists (49%)

The medium-sized cities (175,000 to 425,000 population) have the:

Highest proportions of racialized artists (23%), immigrant artists (28%), and artists who speak languages other than English and French most often at home (18%)
Same high proportion of artists under 35 (37%) as in the 12 largest cities

Similarities and differences in arts occupations by municipal size

Compared with the national average, the largest cities in Canada have a higher proportion of producers, directors, and choreographers (23% of all artists vs. national average of 17%). Producers, directors, and choreographers are less prevalent in each of the other municipal groups: 14% of artists in medium-sized cities; 13% in smaller cities; and 11% in small and rural municipalities.

On the other hand, it is the small and rural municipalities that have a higher-than-average proportion of artisans and craftspeople (17%, vs. the national average of 9%). The proportion of artists who are artisans and craftspeople decreases as municipal size increases: 10% in smaller cities; 8% in medium-sized cities; and 5% in the largest cities.

Small and rural municipalities also have an above-average proportion of visual artists (17%, vs. the national average of 13%). The proportion of visual artists is quite consistent in other municipal groups: 13% in smaller cities and 12% in both medium-sized cities and the largest cities.

Smaller and medium-sized cities have above-average proportions of musicians (25% and 26%, respectively, compared with the national average of 22%). The proportion of musicians and singers equals the national average in small and rural municipalities (22%) but is slightly lower in the largest cities (20%).

Artists’ median incomes vary by municipal size

The median personal income of Canadian artists, from all sources, is $24,300. The nationwide difference in income between artists and other workers (the “income gap”) is -44%.

Artists in the largest cities, also the most expensive cities in the country, have a median income of $27,000, which is 38% lower than the median income of all workers in these cities ($43,200). The median income of artists in the largest cities is the highest among the four groups of municipalities, and the income gap is lowest in the largest cities, as shown in Figure ES3.

In the other municipal groups, there is relatively little variation in artists’ median incomes (close to $22,000 in each) and in the income gap (-49% and -50% in each):

Artists in the 16 medium-sized cities have a median personal income of $22,200, which is 49% lower than the median income of all workers in these cities ($43,900).
The median income of artists in the 72 smaller cities is $22,500, which is 49% lower than the median income of all workers in these cities ($44,300).
Artists in small and rural municipalities have a median personal income of $21,600, which is 50% lower than the median income of all workers in these cities ($43,200).

Figure ES3: Median incomes of artists and all workers by municipal size

Municipalities with strong concentrations of artists

Individual municipalities of many different sizes have strong concentrations of artists.

Some small and rural municipalities have the strongest concentrations of artists among all Canadian municipalities, including three British Columbia municipal areas: Saltspring Island (5.57%), Sunshine Coast F regional district electoral area (4.72%), and Southern Gulf Islands (4.59%).

Four small and rural municipalities outside of British Columbia have a particularly strong concentration of artists: Piedmont, Quebec (4.07%); The Blue Mountains, Ontario (3.29%); Montréal-Ouest, Quebec (3.18%); and Westmount, Quebec (3.03%).

Most of the above small and rural municipalities are home to fewer than 125 artists but have very strong concentrations of artists due to their smaller overall labour forces.

Smaller cities with particularly strong concentrations of artists include Victoria (1.97%), the District of North Vancouver (1.83%), and the City of North Vancouver (1.69%). Three smaller cities with strong concentrations of artists are provincial capitals: Victoria (1.97%), St. John’s (1.21%), and Fredericton (0.99%).

Burnaby (1.09%), Halifax (1.03%), and Richmond (1.01%) have the strongest concentrations of artists among the 16 medium-sized cities.

In the largest cities, the concentration of artists is highest in Vancouver (2.43%), Toronto (1.88%), and Montreal (1.83%).

Toronto has the largest number of artists (27,000) and is home to about one in every six Canadian artists (17%).

About this report

After an introduction, subsequent sections of the full report provide detailed information about artists in each of the four municipal groups. Detailed data, including statistics on cultural workers, are provided in an appendix. Full methodological notes can be found in the second appendix.

The report is based on a custom data request from the 2016 long-form census, which classifies most people in the occupation in which they worked the most hours during the census reference week (May 1 to 7, 2016). This is an “in between” period for some artistic endeavours. For example, many performing arts organizations have seasons that extend from the fall to the spring. These seasons may be finished before the week of May 1, leaving some artists to find other employment during the late spring and summer. Other organizations may have summer seasons that do not begin in early May.

Other aspects of the census have particular relevance in capturing the working lives of artists:

Artists who spent more time at another occupation than at their artwork during the reference week would be classified in the other occupation. The census does not capture information about secondary occupations.
Each occupation includes individuals who are employed or self-employed.
Artists who teach in post-secondary, secondary, or elementary schools are classified as professors or teachers, not in artistic occupations. Instructors and teachers in some settings (such as private arts schools, academies, and conservatories) are included as “artists”.
Median incomes include wages and salaries, net self-employment income, investment income, retirement pensions, other income sources (a category that includes artists’ project grants), as well as government transfer payments.

No estimates of fewer than 40 artists are provided in this report because of concerns over data reliability. Municipalities with fewer than 40 artists are included in the aggregate totals by municipal group, but specific information on artists in each of these municipalities is not provided in this report or the accompanying tables.

Due to major changes in methods between the 2011 National Household Survey and the 2016 census, data in this report are not comparable to previous reports in the Statistical Insights on the Arts series. Reports based on the 2001 and 2006 long-form census are also not comparable, given a change in the base population used in the calculations of artists.[2]

The Statistical Insights on the Arts series, created by Hill Strategies Research in 2002, is co-funded by the Canada Council for the Arts, the Department of Canadian Heritage, and the Ontario Arts Council as part of their shared commitment to making arts research available to inform the work of Canada’s arts community and inform the general public about Canada’s arts sector.

Introduction

Using custom data that Hill Strategies requested from Statistics Canada’s 2016 long-form census, this report provides an analysis of artists in Canadian municipalities, with a primary focus on groups of municipalities by population. Summary information about select municipalities is also provided in the report.

Detailed data, including statistics on cultural workers, are provided in an appendix. Supplemental tables with key data on artists and cultural workers in each municipality with at least 40 artists are available here (in Excel format).

Previous reports in the Statistical Insights on the Arts series examined artists in Canada, the provinces, and territories and found that there are 158,100 artists in Canada, or 0.87% of the overall Canadian labour force. This proportion is also called the concentration of artists. The median personal income of Canadian artists, from all sources, is $24,300.

Consistent with previous reports in this series, nine detailed occupation codes are included in the count of artists:

Musicians and singers: 22% of all artists
Authors and writers: 18%
Producers, directors, choreographers, and related occupations: 17%
Visual artists: 13%
Artisans and craftspeople: 9%
Actors and comedians: 7%
Dancers: 6%
Other performers: 4%[3]
Conductors, composers, and arrangers: 3%

These statistics on artists are based on the “experienced labour force”, which captures people who had an occupation in May of 2016, or who had worked since January of 2015.[4]

For the purposes of this analysis, all Canadian municipalities were divided into four groups based on population. A section of this report is devoted to each group of municipalities: [5]

The 12 largest cities in Canada, each with a population over 500,000 (home to 11.8 million people, or 34% the population)
16 cities with a population between 175,000 and 425,000, collectively home to 4.3 million residents, or 12% of the population. These cities are referred to as “medium-sized cities” in this report.
72 cities with a population between 50,000 and 165,000, collectively home to 6.7 million people, or 19% of the population. These cities are identified as “smaller cities” in this report.
Municipalities with a population below 50,000 and all unorganized municipal areas (home to 12.4 million residents, or 35% of Canada’s population)[6]. These cities, towns, rural municipalities, Indigenous reserves, and unorganized areas are referred to as “small and rural municipalities” in this report.

The municipalities are grouped based on the populations of census subdivisions, not metropolitan areas.

In order to better understand the situation of artists in each group of municipalities, the report examines the following factors:

Number of artists and proportion of all artists in Canada
Demographic information about artists, including gender[7], racialized people[8], immigrants, Indigenous people[9], age, education, and self-employment status
Median income[10]
Number and median income of artists by occupation

Because data related to disability, deafness, and sexual orientation are not available from the census, they could not be analyzed in this report.

While full methodological notes can be found in Appendix 2, there are a few important elements of census data that should be kept in mind when reading this report:

Most people are classified in the occupation in which they worked the most hours during the census reference week (May 1 to 7, 2016). This is an “in between” period for some artistic endeavours. For example, many performing arts organizations have seasons that extend from the fall to the spring. These seasons may be finished before the week of May 1, leaving some artists to find other employment during the late spring and summer. Other organizations may have summer seasons that do not begin in early May.
Artists who spent more time at another occupation than at their artwork during the reference week would be classified in the other occupation. The census does not capture information about secondary occupations.
Each occupation includes individuals who are employed or self-employed.
Artists who teach in post-secondary, secondary, or elementary schools are classified as professors or teachers, not in artistic occupations. Instructors and teachers in some settings (such as private arts schools, academies, and conservatories) are included as “artists”.
Median incomes include wages and salaries, net self-employment income, investment income, retirement pensions, other income sources (a category that includes artists’ project grants), as well as government transfer payments.
Due to major changes in methods between the 2011 National Household Survey and the 2016 census, data in this report are not comparable to previous reports in the Statistical Insights on the Arts Reports based on the 2001 and 2006 long-form census are also not comparable, given a change in the base population used in the calculations of artists.[11]

Section 2: Artists in Canada's 12 largest cities

The concentration of artists in the 12 largest cities is 1.25%, much higher than in any other group of municipalities and well above the national average (0.87%).

The 12 largest cities are:

Toronto, ON, population of 2.7 million
Montreal, QC, 1.7 million
Calgary, AB, 1.2 million
Ottawa, ON, 934,000
Edmonton, AB, 933,000
Mississauga, ON, 722,000
Winnipeg, MB, 705,000
Vancouver, BC, 631,000
Brampton, ON, 594,000
Hamilton, ON, 537,000
Quebec City, QC, 532,000
Surrey, BC, 518,000

Demographic information

Table 1 provides key demographic information about artists and all workers in the largest cities and in Canada as a whole. The 12 largest cities have:

The lowest proportion of women artists (49%) among the four groups of municipalities, below the national average (52%)
A higher proportion of racialized artists than the national average (19% vs. 15%)
A similar proportion of immigrant artists as the national average (23% vs. 21%)
A lower proportion of Indigenous artists than the national average (2.2% vs. 3.1%)
The highest proportion of artists under 35 years of age (37%) among the four groups of municipalities, above the national average (33%)
The highest proportion of artists with at least a bachelor’s degree (53%) among the four groups of municipalities, above the national average (47%)
A lower self-employment rate than the national average (49% vs. 52%)

Table 1: Demographics of artists in Canada’s largest cities
Statistic	Largest cities	Canada
Women
Artists	49%	52%
All workers	48%	48%
Racialized
Artists	19%	15%
All workers	39%	21%
Immigrants
Artists	23%	21%
All workers	39%	24%
Indigenous
Artists	2.2%	3.1%
All workers	2.1%	3.9%
Under 35
Artists	37%	33%
All workers	37%	35%
55 or older
Artists	21%	26%
All workers	19%	21%
Bachelor’s degree or higher
Artists	53%	47%
All workers	38%	28%
Self-employed
Artists	49%	52%
All workers	11%	12%
Source: 2016 census custom data request.

In the largest cities, the proportions of artists by language group[12] are similar to the national averages:

English: 76% in the largest cities and all of Canada
French: 18% in the largest cities and all of Canada
Other languages: 10% in the largest cities and 9% in all of Canada

Median income of artists

As shown in Figure 1, artists in the largest cities have a median personal income of $27,000, which is 38% lower than the median income of all workers in these cities ($43,200). The median income of artists in the largest cities ($27,000), also the most expensive cities in the country, is much higher than the medians in the three other groups of municipalities (close to $22,000 in each). The median for all Canadian artists is $24,300.

The difference between the median income of artists and all workers in the largest cities (-38%) is the lowest among the four groups of municipalities and is smaller than the nationwide difference (-44%).

Figure 1: Median individual income of artists in Canada's 12 largest cities

The median employment income of artists in the largest cities is $20,700, 48% lower than the median employment income of all workers in these cities ($39,800).

Artists in the largest cities have a median household income of $58,000, which is 31% lower than that of all workers in these cities ($84,000).

Incomes of different groups of artists

Compared with the median income of all artists in the largest cities ($27,000), artists who are racialized, Indigenous, under 35, or self-employed, have particularly low median incomes. However, artists in all demographic groups (except for Indigenous artists) have higher median incomes in the largest cities than in the three other municipal groups. Table 2 provides the median incomes for various demographic groups in the largest cities.

Table 2: Median incomes of different groups of artists in Canada’s largest cities
Group	Largest cities	Canada
Women	$25,600	$22,300
Men	$28,400	$27,100
Racialized	$19,200	$18,200
Non-racialized	$29,100	$25,400
Immigrants	$23,200	$21,900
Non-immigrants	$28,400	$25,000
Indigenous	$18,300	$16,600
Non-Indigenous	$27,200	$24,600
Under 35	$20,200	$17,900
35 to 54	$33,300	$29,200
55 or older	$31,400	$27,500
Bachelor’s degree or higher	$31,800	$29,300
Self-employed	$20,900	$19,600
All artists	$27,000	$24,300
Source: 2016 census custom data request. Income figures relate to the 2015 calendar year.

Arts occupations in the largest cities

There are some differences in the occupations of artists in Canada’s largest cities compared to the country as a whole. As shown in Table 3, the largest cities have a higher proportion of producers, directors, and choreographers (23% vs. 17%) and a lower proportion of artisans and craftspeople (5% vs. 9%).

Table 3: Artists by occupation in Canada’s largest cities
Occupation	Largest cities	Canada
Musicians & singers	20%	22%
Authors & writers	19%	18%
Producers, directors, choreographers & related	23%	17%
Visual artists	12%	13%
Artisans & craftspeople	5%	9%
Actors & comedians	9%	7%
Dancers	5%	6%
Other performers	4%	4%
Conductors, composers & arrangers	3%	3%
Source: 2016 census custom data request

Table 4 shows that artists in the 12 largest cities have slightly higher median incomes than the Canadian median in most of the nine arts occupations. Writers and actors tend to have much higher incomes in the largest cities.

Table 4: Median income by arts occupation in Canada’s largest cities
Occupation	Largest cities	Canada
Musicians & singers	$18,000	$17,900
Authors & writers	$43,100	$40,000
Producers, directors, choreographers & related	$50,400	$49,300
Visual artists	$21,200	$20,000
Actors & comedians	$23,300	$20,500
Artisans & craftspeople	$19,200	$18,500
Dancers	$17,400	$15,800
Other performers	$17,500	$16,900
Conductors, composers & arrangers	$28,700	$29,700
All artists	$27,000	$24,300
Source: 2016 census custom data request. Income figures relate to the 2015 calendar year.

Artists in each large city

Toronto has the largest number of artists (27,000) and is home to about one in every six Canadian artists (17%). Figure 2 shows that the concentration of artists in Toronto (1.88%) is second only to Vancouver (2.43%) among the 12 largest cities.

Figure 2: Concentration of artists in Canada's 12 largest cities

Table 5 provides additional information about each of the 12 largest cities (listed from west to east). Artists in Ottawa ($28,800), Toronto ($28,700), Montreal ($28,500), and Calgary ($28,400) have the highest median incomes, but there are significant income differences between artists and all workers in each of these cities. These differences are labelled as “income gap” in the table.

The 15,800 artists in Montreal have the lowest difference in median income compared with all local workers (-24%, compared with -44% for all Canadian artists). Hamilton (-57%), Brampton (-54%), and Mississauga (-53%) have the largest gap in median incomes among the largest cities.

A data supplement with information for all municipalities with at least 40 artists is available here (in Excel format).

Table 5: Artists in each of Canada’s 12 largest cities
City	Number of artists	Median income	Income gap
Vancouver	8,900	$27,100	-37%
Surrey	1,700	$20,200	-48%
Edmonton	3,500	$26,400	-48%
Calgary	5,200	$28,400	-46%
Winnipeg	3,200	$24,100	-42%
Hamilton	2,300	$18,400	-57%
Brampton	1,300	$17,800	-54%
Mississauga	2,200	$19,800	-53%
Toronto	27,000	$28,700	-31%
Ottawa	5,200	$28,800	-43%
Montreal	15,800	$28,500	-24%
Quebec City	2,400	$25,800	-40%
Canada	158,100	$24,300	-44%
Source: 2016 census custom data request. Income figures relate to the 2015 calendar year.

Section 3: Artists in 16 medium-sized cities

Home to 18,000 artists, the 16 Canadian cities with a population between 175,000 and 425,000 account for 11% of the country’s artists, compared with the cities’ 12% share of the total population.

The concentration of artists in these 16 cities is 0.80%, second only to the largest cities (1.25%) and close to the national average (0.87%).[13]

The 16 medium-sized cities are:

Laval, QC, population of 423,000
Halifax, NS, 403,000
London, ON, 384,000
Markham, ON, 329,000
Vaughan, ON, 306,000
Gatineau, QC, 276,000
Saskatoon, SK, 246,000
Longueuil, QC, 240,000
Kitchener, ON, 233,000
Burnaby, BC, 233,000
Windsor, ON, 217,000
Regina, SK, 215,000
Richmond, BC, 198,000
Richmond Hill, ON, 195,000
Oakville, ON, 194,000
Burlington, ON, 183,000