Five Canadian artists, representing all corners of the vast country, learned today that they are at least C$25,000 ($18,700) richer, with bigger paydays coming possibly in the fall. The five have been shortlisted for the prestigious Sobey Art Award, which offers a total prize of CA$400,000 ($300,000), among the richest awards available to artists. The winner, who will pocket C$100,000 ($75,000), will be named to the National Gallery of Canada (NGC) in Ottawa during a gala on November 18.
The five finalists emerged from a long list of 25 artists announced at the end of April, with the 20 who did not advance each receiving C$10,000 ($7,500). The other five contenders are Seamus Gallagher (representing Atlantic Canada), Anahita Norouzi(of Quebec), Michele Pearson Clarke (from Ontario), Kabussiak (representing the Prairies and the North) and Gabrielle L’Hirondelle Hill (representing the West Coast and the Yukon).
“Each year, it’s always so exciting to see people whose work I admire, as well as friends and colleagues I admire, have their work highlighted by this award,” said Gallagher.
“It is especially gratifying to join the talented group of inspiring former Sobey Award winners who are doing important work and supporting their artistic communities across the country,” adds Pearson Clarke. Nozouri says the nomination “recognizes years of hard work and gives me the motivation to continue my current research.”
The works of the five nominees will be exhibited at the NGC from October 13 to early March 2024. “Year after year, we marvel at the standards of excellence produced by contemporary artists from across the country,” said Bernard Doucet, Sobey Art Director General of the Foundation.
In naming the finalists, Jonathan Shaughnessy, Director of Curatorial Initiatives at the NGC and Chair of the 2023 Sobey Prize Jury, said, “The breadth of practices this year represents the multifaceted texture and strength of contemporary artistic talent in this country. From the long list to the short, each of this year’s artists deserves national and international recognition.
Shaughnessy adds, “The work of the five finalists presents perspectives on many pressing topics of our time, including 2SLGBTQ+ solidarities and representation, as well as critical questions about the diasporic experience and Canadian identity.
Seamus Gallagher, a Maritimer originally from Moncton, New Brunswick, but currently residing in Kjipuktuk/Halifax, Nova Scotia, is a lens-based artist, infusing queer aesthetics into self-portraiture, engines of video games and building sets. He will begin an MFA program at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh in the fall.
Anahita Norouzi, originally from Tehran but based in Montreal since 2018, is a research-driven multidisciplinary artist who works with a wide range of materials and media, including sculpture, installation, photography and video. His work often picks up the stories and legacies of archaeological and botanical research.
Michele Pearson Clarke, who is Trinidadian by birth and now resides in Toronto, is an artist and educator working in photography, video and installation. Her work often focuses on the experiences of grief and loss in black and queer communities, and the resulting possibilities for connection and solidarity.
Kabussiak, who was born in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, grew up in Edmonton, Alberta, and currently lives in Calgary, is an Inuvialuk multidisciplinary artist and curator. They work in a variety of modes and media, which include photography, video, soapstone sculpture, felt, acrylic paint and more. Their work examines issues of connection and alienation within the Inuit diaspora and the ongoing impact of colonialism on the health and sexuality of Indigenous communities.
Gabrielle L’Hirondelle Hill is a Métis artist and writer born in Comox, British Columbia, and currently lives on the unceded territories of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh, Musqueam, and Tsleil-Waututh/Vancouver peoples. Her sculptures, which often incorporate textiles and found materials, address issues of property and ownership.
For those keeping the dots, the Prairies and Northern Canada are on a hot streak, as last year’s Sobey Award winners, Divya Mehraand the 2021 winner, Laakkuluk Williamson Bathory, native to this region. The latter was unique in that her work included the skin of a polar bear she had killed. Historically, artists representing Ontario and Quebec have won the lion’s share of the Sobey Awards, with five wins each. In 2020, at the height of Covid-19, the 25 shortlisted artists received C$25,000.
