The 2023 Sobey Art Award shortlist is here
CBC Arts | Posted: June 12, 2023 5:30 PM | Last Updated: June 12, 2023
Five artists will vie for the $100,000 prize. The winner will be chosen in November
Five artists from across Canada are now one step closer to winning the Sobey Art Award, a $100,000 prize and one of the most prestigious accolades an artist can achieve in this country.
The shortlist was revealed Monday morning by the National Gallery of Canada and the Sobey Art Foundation, and per tradition, each nominee represents a different home region.
The finalists are:
Séamus Gallagher (Atlantic)
Anahita Norouzi (Quebec)
Michèle Pearson Clarke (Ontario)
Kablusiak (Prairies and North)
Gabrielle L'Hirondelle Hill (West Coast and Yukon)
Before the winner is announced in November, the NGC will open a group exhibition featuring work by this year's shortlisted artists. That show will appear in Ottawa Oct. 13 through March 3, 2024. In addition to the exhibition, the five finalists will also receive $25,000.
"The breadth of practices this year represents the multifaceted texture and strength of contemporary artistic talent in this country," said Jonathan Shaughnessy, NGC's director, curatorial initiatives, who is also the chair of the 2023 Sobey Award Jury. (That independent jury, which is comprised of six curators, will ultimately select this year's winner.)
"From the longlist to the short, each of this year's artists are deserving national and international recognition," Shaughnessy continued. "The work of the five finalists present views on many urgent matters of our time, including 2SLGBTQ+ solidarities and representation, as well as critical questions regarding diasporic experience and Canadian identity."
"We all stand to gain from their perspectives that are propelled through a lens attuned to creativity, aesthetics and innovation."
Founded in 2002, the Sobey Art Award was previously reserved to Canadian artists under 40, a rule that was abandoned in 2021.
In 2022, the prize went to Winnipeg artist Divya Mehra, and previous winners include Laakkuluk Williamson Bathory (2021), Kapwani Kiwanga (2018) and Brian Jungen (2002).