For those of you who have followed along with my journey from FASHIONIGHTS to DoTheDaniel.com, you will know that I am a lover of photography. With one of the best in the industry, Amanda Hayden as our official photographer I have come to learn the ins and outs of an art form that is too often under appreciated. When I found out about The Scotiabank Photography Award, I was so excited to see true artists being recognized for their craft.
In its fourth year, the award “is Canada’s largest annual peer reviewed award honouring the work of contemporary Canadian photographers.” Founded to help foster the artists who participate achieve national and international notoriety, this year’s finalists were recently announced. I am happy to help showcase their endeavours and wish them all the best of the luck in the next phase of the contest!
“Our Scotiabank Photography Award jury has made fantastic choices for this year’s finalists with Rodney Graham, Mark Ruwedel, and Donald Weber. .. These artists have unique and distinctive bodies of work that show true excellence in Canadian contemporary photography. I want to thank the jury for their careful selection of these gifted finalists and I look forward to announcing who they have selected as the winner on April 29.” says Edward Burtynsky, Chair of the Scotiabank Photography Award jury.
So let’s take a look at one of each of their photos and you can see why I love this award so much!
Rodney Graham, Gifted Amateur, 2007
Rodney Graham
A conceptual artist, Rodney Graham has created a varied body of work, exploring and reflecting on works of art, music and literature, as well as events in intellectual history. He has exhibited widely throughout North America and Europe for more than 30 years. A highly prolific artist, Graham has produced a vast array of works, primarily in photography and media art installations, while also making use of such diverse media as film, painting, literature, and music.
Mark Ruwedel, California Valley #4G, 2006
Mark Ruwedel
Mark Ruwedel first became interested in photography while studying painting at Kutztown State College, Pennsylvania and later moved to Montreal to pursue graduate studies in photography at Concordia University. Ruwedel’s photographic interests are found in the contemporary landscape and the nature/culture dynamic, photographing in both black-and-white and colour. With several bodies of work now published in print, Ruwedel’s latest book, “Pictures of Hell” will be released this fall.
Donald Weber, Untitled, Interrogations, 2010-11
Donald Weber
Donald Weber is one of Canada’s most compelling practitioners in the field of documentary photography, devoted to the study of how power deploys an all-compassing theatre for its subjects. His diverse photography projects have been exhibited as installations, exhibitions and screenings at festivals and galleries worldwide. Currently, Weber is working on his next project, War Sand, about historic sacrifice and the meaning of war in our modern world.
This amazing award consists of five components:
- A cash prize of $50,000 to the winner;
- A book published and distributed world-wide by the internationally-renowned art photography publisher Steidl (Germany) and overseen by Ed Burtynsky;
- A curated exhibition at Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival, the world’s largest photography festival;
- $5000 cash prizes to each of the two shortlisted artists;
- $1500 honorarium to the nominator of the winning artists for a written statement in the publication
Good luck to you all!
About Scotiabank:
Scotiabank is a leading financial services provider in over 55 countries and Canada’s most international bank. Through Bright Future, our global philanthropic program, Scotiabank and its employees support causes at a grassroots level across six pillars: health, education, social services, arts and culture, environment and sports. Recognized as a leader for our charitable donations and philanthropic activities, Scotiabank has contributed on average some $50 million annually over the last five years to community causes around the world. Visit us at www.scotiabank.com.
Photos: Scotiabank Photography Award
Cheers!