January 23–March 1, 2019
The Sobey Art Foundation and the National Gallery of Canada today launched a call for nominations for the 2019 Sobey Art Award, Canada’s prestigious contemporary art prize. The annual award is presented to a Canadian artist aged 40 or under. The deadline for nominations is Friday, March 1, 2019.
Established in 2002, the Sobey Art Award represents unprecedented opportunities for Canadian contemporary artists, providing national and international recognition. From a total of 240,000 CAD prize money, 100,000 CAD is awarded to the winner, 25,000 CAD is given to each of the four shortlisted artists, and 2,000 CAD is awarded to each of the remaining twenty longlisted artists. Three artists from the longlist will also be selected each year by the Sobey Art Award Jury to participate in the Sobey Art Award Residencies Program (SAARP), providing international residencies which range in length from three to six months. The work of the five finalists, representing as many regions in Canada selected from the longlist of 25 nominees, is featured in a special exhibition that alternates yearly between the National Gallery of Canada and prominent art institutions across the country.
The 2019 Sobey Art Award’s longlist of nominees will be announced April 16, followed by the release of the shortlist on June 12. Those selected for the Sobey Art Award Residencies Program will be announced in September.
This year, the exhibition of works by the five shortlisted artists will be presented at the Art Gallery of Alberta, Edmonton AB, from October 5, 2019 to January 5, 2020. The winner of the 2019 Sobey Art Award will be announced at a gala hosted by the Art Gallery of Alberta on November 15, 2019.
The 2019 international jury panel, chaired by National Gallery of Canada’s Senior Curator of Contemporary Art, Josée Drouin-Brisebois, is composed of curators from five designated regions in Canada (the Atlantic Provinces, Quebec, Ontario, the Prairies and the North, and the West Coast and Yukon) and one international juror.
About the Sobey Art Award process
The National Gallery of Canada will accept nominations for the 2019 Sobey Art Award from recognized agents and institutions. The jury will oversee the selection process. From the complete list of nominated artists, the jurors will create a longlist of 25 artists—five artists from each of five designated regions in Canada. The panel will then choose one representative from each region to be included on the national shortlist and in the 2019 Sobey Art Award exhibition. The panel will also select the winner of the 100,000 CAD top prize.
About the Sobey Art Award
Since its launch, the Sobey Art Award has profiled over 230 Canadian artists through its longlist process. For recipients, the Sobey Art Award has become a mark of distinction that has steered the artists toward national and international recognition. Past award recipients include Brian Jungen, Jean-Pierre Gauthier, Annie Pootoogook, Michel de Broin, Tim Lee, David Altmejd, Daniel Barrow, Daniel Young and Christian Giroux, Raphaëlle de Groot, Duane Linklater, Nadia Myre, Abbas Akhavan, Jeremy Shaw and Ursula Johnson. The 2018 Sobey Art Award Winner, Kapwani Kiwanga, was announced on November 14, 2018 at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa.
For more information and nomination guidelines, please visit www.gallery.ca/whats-on/sobey-art-award/sobey-art-award-nominations.
About the Sobey Art Foundation
The Sobey Art Foundation was established in 1981 with a mandate to carry on the work of entrepreneur and business leader, the late Frank H. Sobey, to collect and preserve representative examples of 19th- and 20th-century Canadian art. In one of the finest private collections of its kind, the Sobey Art Foundation has assembled outstanding examples from Canadian Masters such as Cornelius Krieghoff, Tom Thomson and J. E. H. MacDonald. The collection is on view in the former home of Frank Sobey and his wife Irene in Pictou County, Nova Scotia.
About the National Gallery of Canada
The National Gallery of Canada is home to the most important collections of historical and contemporary Canadian art. The Gallery also maintains Canada’s premier collection of European Art from the 14th to the 21st centuries, as well as important works of American, Asian and Indigenous Art and renowned international collections of prints, drawings and photographs. In 2015, the National Gallery of Canada established the Canadian Photography Institute, a global multidisciplinary research centre dedicated to the history, evolution and future of photography. Created in 1880, the National Gallery of Canada has played a key role in Canadian culture for well over a century. Among its principal missions is to increase access to excellent works of art for all Canadians. For more information, visit gallery.ca and follow us on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram.
About the Art Gallery of Alberta
The Art Gallery of Alberta is a centre of excellence for the visual arts in Western Canada, connecting people, art and ideas. The AGA is focused on the development and presentation of original exhibitions of contemporary and historical art from Alberta, Canada and around the world. The AGA also offers a full-range of art education and public programs. Founded in 1924, the Art Gallery of Alberta is the oldest cultural institution in Alberta, and the only museum in the province solely dedicated to the exhibition and preservation of art and visual culture.
For more information visit www.youraga.ca
For all media enquiries, please contact:
Sobey Art Foundation
Bernard Doucet
T +1 902 752 8371 ext. 2301
C +1 902 921 1755
bernard.doucet [at] sobeys.com
National Gallery of Canada
Genevieve Menard
Media Relations Manager
T +1 613 990 1654
gmenard [at] gallery.ca
