2023 Endowment Award recipients
Ten artists receive annual awards.
Regina – February 2nd, 2024 – The Saskatchewan Foundation For the Arts (SFFA) proudly announces the 2023 Endowment Award recipients in literary, multidisciplinary, performance (dance, music and theatre) and visual arts, with ten awards of $5000 each. Managed and administered by the SFFA Board of Trustees, each award is supported by the named endowment funds.
Gursh Barnard, Chair of the SFFA says, “The response to the 2023 call for submissions was a proud moment. Not only in the volume of applicants, but the diversity across artistic platforms was tremendous. The generosity of our donors has facilitated the growth of the Endowment Funds allowing the SFFA to support emerging and established artists from Saskatchewan who represent our province’s diverse cultures.”
THE 2023 ENDOWMENT AWARD FUNDS AND RECIPIENTS
LITERARY AWARD – Colleen Bailey Memorial Fund
IRENE TUSHABE (IRYN) a Ugandan Canadian writer and journalist: to write a collection of short stories tentatively titled ‘A Separation’.
INDIGENOUS LITERARY AWARD – Dick & Jane Fund
ELAINE MCARTHUR a Dakota/Nakota member of the Ocean Man First Nation on Treaty 4 territory: to develop a graphic novel about an Indigenous superhero who battles evil in the community.
INDIGENOUS TRADITIONAL CRAFT AWARD – Dick & Jane Fund
ANNIE BRASS: Anishinaabe/Neheyow comes from the people of many roads, Kawacatoose Cree Nation of Saskatchewan: to document a family journey creating Men’s Fancy Dance Regalia.
INDIGENOUS/ MULTIMEDIA LANGUAGE AWARD – Dick & Jane Fund
GEANNA DUNBAR: Cree Metis spoken word visual artist. Member of Metis Nation of Saskatchewan: A Metis written and illustrated children’s book about a wolf hybrid that doesn’t fit in with pure bred wolves or dogs. Book will be translated in English and Michif.
MULTIDISCIPLINARY 2SLGBTQ+ ARTIST/ART AWARD – Dick & Jane Fund
S.E. GRUMMETT (they/them) a queer, transgender theatre artist: Develop a performance piece ‘Nude Parade’. Using repurposed trash-puppets, non-linear narrative, and live music, the piece explores the collective body, its parts and the identities we cling to.
FEMALE ENTREPRENEUR AWARD – Dick & Jane Fund
GABRIELA GARCÍA-LUNA is a photo-based multimedia artist born in Mexico City: Access to Business tools to showcase, promote and market her substantial body of work. Invest in the creation of a professional website.
PRAIRIE FOLK ART AWARD – Dick & Jane Fund
KARLIE KING is a mixed media visual artist: Restore the doily to its traditional placement in our daily lives, in alignment with current aesthetic trends.
REGINA ARTIST AWARD – Harry Nick Kangles Fund
LANDON WALLISER is a queer and neurodiverse artist working as director and producer: to further the new jukebox musical “Annette is a Bimbo!” with The Women’s Company and Be Kind Rewind Productions.
VISUAL AWARD FOR FEMALE ARTIST – Jane Turnbull Evans Fund
NÉGAR DEVINE-TAJGARDAN visual artist with interest in sculpture, installation art and photography: for her visual work based on concepts of displacement through new approaches to textile and sound art.
VISUAL AWARD – Shurniak Fund
AUDIE MURRAY visual artist working with multimedia including sculpture, media, beadwork and drawing:Creation of two sculptures made of beadwork that resembles cake to be shown in a 2024 group exhibition.
The SFFA is committed to supporting and recognizing the work of Saskatchewan artists and actively seeks donations from arts patrons and supporters who celebrate the vibrancy and value of the arts and culture.
In 2023, the SFFA announced five new awards supported by ‘The Dick and Jane Fund’. The endowment fund was established by Richard Spafford and Jane Turnbull-Evans as a legacy gift in perpetuity honoring a lifelong commitment to supporting the arts and their drive in establishing the SFFA.
Barnard says, “Our province is recognized for creating world-class artists. Our donors and supporters have invested over 3 million dollars to secure private funding for the arts and artists of Saskatchewan. To date the SFFA has supported 76 artists with over $410,000 in awards. Visionaries have made this possible and we look forward to building the Endowment funds in support of our province’s arts and talented artists.”
About the Saskatchewan Foundation for the Arts
The Saskatchewan Foundation for the Arts (SFFA) is a public Foundation dedicated solely to creating a legacy of financial support for the arts and artists of Saskatchewan, through the generous financial support of individuals, organizations and corporations. If interested in learning more about becoming a donor, or supporting the SFFA and Saskatchewan’s artists, please contact the SFFA for more information.
http://www.saskartsfoundation.com/
Gursh Barnard: Chair, Board of Trustees
Tel: 306-737-8980
E-mail: info@saskartsfoundation.com