Call for Submissions: Winter Wonders 2026 Performing & Visual/Media Arts, Royal Botanical Gardens

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Call for Submissions
Winter Wonders Live Performances & Visual/Media Arts Installations at Royal Botanical Gardens

Application Deadline: Sunday, August 2, 2026, 11:59pm
Optional Site Visit: Site visits will be held on Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10am – 2pm, upon request.

About Winter Wonders:

Winter Wonders is Royal Botanical Gardens’ signature winter experience attracting approximately 40,000 visitors over 5 weeks. Guests explore illuminated outdoor trails, commissioned art installations, enjoy festive music and seasonal treats, explore our local vendors cabins and take in the beauty of winter landscapes throughout Hendrie Park.

Event Dates:

• Installation Period: November 15 – 23, 2026 (approx.)
• Preview Night: November 25, 2026
• Public Run: November 26, 2026 – January 3, 2027
  Thursday through Sunday, plus December 21–23 and 28–30 (26 dates in total), 5pm – 10pm each night

Festival Site:

Winter Wonders takes place in Hendrie Park, the primary garden connected to RBG’s Main Centre. The map below shows where key infrastructure, art installations and activations will take place.

Map of Winter Wonders 2026

Performing Arts Call

What we’re looking for:

To enhance the Winter Wonders experience RBG is seeking a performing arts element that helps animate the site with live performers. We are seeking a single organization or artist collective who can bring a sense of whimsy and energy to the outdoor festival grounds for the entire duration of Winter Wonders.

The presentation should be:

• Family-friendly, engaging for a multi-generational audience
• Consists of no less than 4 performers at all times
• Include professional costumes, masks, puppets or mobile elements that add to the experience
• Vignettes, bits, characters and moments, rather than a scripted, long-format narrative
• Interactive and engaging for both individuals at an intimate level, or a spectacle for crowds from a distance

What we don’t want:

• A presentation that takes place in one space. We want a performance that goes to the people and engages the grounds of Hendrie Park
• A deeply narrative work that requires the audience to see the entire performance for it to resonate
• A presentation that requires significant technical requirements (i.e. No stage, production lighting, PA system, etc.)
• Only roving musician performances

Artist Fee: $50,000 CAD

This fee is inclusive of all artist fees, transportation, accommodation as required, materials, studio and fabrication costs, insurance, licensing, technical needs, installation requirements, costumes and consumables. In addition to the core fee, RBG can provide onsite rehearsal time, storage for costumes, props and other production assets, and ample power throughout the site.

[Image caption/credit]

Visual/Media Arts Call

To enhance the experience RBG is seeking up to four installation works by Canadian artists that engage light, interactivity and a sense of magic. RBG’s audience is multi-generational and loves having interactive experiences with one another. These new installations should play off this desire to create magical moments together, a sense of exploration and curiosity, and be able to engage a visitor for a 5-10-minute duration.

Oak Allee – 200 linear foot grand entrance to Hendrie Park
Fee: up to $50,000 CAD

Kippax Trail – 750-meter-long trail that winds into the woods
Fee: up to $50,000 CAD

Mitchell’s Field – Massive gradually sloping open space
Fee: up to $50,000 CAD

Rose Domes – Two identical large-scale garden dome structures
Fee: up to $20,000 CAD

Special Note:

All installations for Winter Wonders will undergo a technical and environmental review by RBG staff who know our grounds and nature of our weather conditions during Winter Wonders.

All installations must consider the following:

• robust fabrication to withstand 40 days in winter conditions (+10 to -30 degrees) and periods of significant wind
• installation/de-installation plan that requires no ground staking or below grade support except in select garden beds along Kippax Trail
• daily operation by RBG staff requiring minimal daily set-up/tear down
• if engaging technology, the artist (or a partner acting on their behalf) must be remotely available for the duration of the run for technical troubleshooting should a piece not perform consistently, in-person for complex repairs, and provide a detailed technical operation manual

How to Apply:

Visit the links below to complete the application process:

• Performing Art Call
• Visual/Media Arts Call

To see images of the selected sites, past images of Winter Wonders and learn more about the Royal Botanical Gardens, visit: www.rbg.ca

To request a site visit or for additional information please email: artists@rbg.ca

Application Deadline: Sunday, August 2, 2026, 11:59pm

Royal Botanical Gardens
680 Plains Road West
Burlington, ON L7T 4H4
www.rbg.ca
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