Several Quebec artists are on the long list of candidates for the Sobey Prize for the Arts 2023, which is the most prestigious honor awarded to contemporary Canadian visual artists. The stakes are high for them, since the big winner of this contest will pocket 100,000 dollars.
The National Gallery of Canada (NGC) on Tuesday unveiled a list of 25 nominees for the next Sobey Art Award, including five Canadian artists, including two duos. Among them is Renée Condo, an artist of Mi’gmaw ancestry from the Gesgapegiag community, on the south shore of the Gaspé Peninsula. The one who lives today in Montreal uses the technique of beading to produce large-scale works that explore the links between the vision of the Western world and that of her community of origin.
The name of Arkadi Lavoie Lachapelle, originally from Montreal, also appears in this list. Since 2011, his works have been presented in several exhibitions and festivals held in Canada and Europe. The artist was also a finalist for the Pierre-Ayot Prize in 2020, in addition to having been a member of the board of directors of the VIVA festival! Art Action, from 2013 to 2020.
Two artists from Rouyn-Noranda, Geneviève Crépeau and Matthieu Dumont, were also noticed within the framework of this competition. The duo, which was born in the late 1990s, stands out for its interdisciplinary works that combine performance, music and a depiction of everyday life. Their creations have been exhibited more than forty times in recent years, notably in Canada, the United States and a few European countries.
Anahita Norouzi, from Tehran, is also on this list. The artist has lived in Montreal since 2018, but has traveled several times between Iran and Canada over the past five years to conduct research that has informed her works, where she notably addresses colonial histories and questions of ‘identify. His works take the form of sculptures, but also photographs and videos, in particular.
Canadian-Colombian artistic duo Laura Acosta and Santiago Tavera are also on this list. Based in Montreal, they produce works that combine performance and textile art to create immersive experiences that have been presented in Canada and Colombia.
$400,000
The five candidates who will be on the short list for this prize will be announced on June 7, while the identity of the winner will be revealed on November 18, during a special evening to be organized at the NGC. Last year, Manitoba multidisciplinary artist Divya Mehra won the first prize, while Quebec artist Stanley February found himself on the short list of five finalists.
This prize, created in 2002, makes it possible to distribute approximately $400,000 each year to several Canadian artists. A first prize of $100,000 will be awarded to the overall winner, while $25,000 will be awarded to each of the artists on the short list and $10,000 to the other artists whose names appear on the long list made public on Tuesday. The five finalist artists will also be the subject of an exhibition at the NGC next fall.