Toronto poet, novelist, performance storyteller and scriptwriter, Lee Maracle is the winner of the Individual Artist Award in the “Premier's Awards for Excellence in Arts” at a gala event at Roy Thomson Hall last night. Submitted photo.
The award recognizes extraordinary achievements of the province's artists and arts organizations.
North Bay’s Keith Campbell, a renowned, award-winning ceramic artist whose career spans 45 years, was one of just six artists province-wide to be named a finalist.
“It was a great celebration,” Campbell told BayToday.
He also congratulated Maracle.
“She so deserves this award for all here accomplishments. Actually all the finalists deserved to win this award because of their commitment and achievements in their field of expertise.
“It is important for the government to have this Prestigious Award seeing the Arts and Culture Industry brought in 26 billion dollars last year.”
Even though Campbell didn't win in the individual category he still received $2,000, a framed certificate and a poster.
“It is a great honour to be a finalist considering the number of unbelievable fabulous artists in all categories nominated. The Ontario Arts Council did a fantastic job organizing this event, he stated.”
Campbell’s works have been shown in 280 exhibitions, both nationally and internationally, and are in numerous collections including the Royal Ontario Museum, the Archives of Ontario, the Canadian Museum of History and the Nickle Arts Museum.
His work has also been published in 27 texts.
Here is the 60 cm w x 90 cm l poster that they gave Campbell.
Campbell’s honours include induction into the Niagara Falls Arts and Culture Wall of Fame, being awarded the 125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal and receiving the Craft Ontario’s John and Barbara Mather Award for Lifetime Achievement.
Maracle is currently a Traditional Teacher at the University of Toronto's First Nations House and an instructor at the Centre for Indigenous Theatre.
As the winning artist she receives $35,000.
Sudbury’s Le Théâtre du Nouvel-Ontario won the Arts Organization Award.
The professional theatre company focuses on contemporary works from playwrights and artists from Ontario and across Canada and has been developing noteworthy contemporary theatre for over 40 years.
The winning arts organization is awarded $50,000.
Ontario is home to almost 57,000 artists – nearly twice as many as any other province.
The culture sector generates more than $22 billion annually for Ontario’s economy and supports more than 300,000 jobs.
http://www.mtc.gov.on.ca/en/awards_funding/Premiers_awards.shtml
