…grants to enhance the capability of arts organizations to achieve excellence in presentation, curation, documentation and promotion of contemporary art in New Brunswick
Based on recommendations by independent jurors, SHMF provided funding for a variety of projects presenting innovative approaches to exhibition. The organizations selected by an independent jury for 2019 grants were : Third Space Gallery, AX: the Arts and Culture Centre, ArtsLink NB, AAAPNB (the Association Acadienne des Artistes Professionnel. Le.s) and Mawi’Art: The Wabanaki Artist Collective, Saint John Arts Centre, Sunbury Shores Arts and Nature Centre, and the Canadian Craft Federation.
“Third Shift Spotlight Exhibition” was a new feature of the signature festival of contemporary art programming presented by the independent Art Run Centre Third Space. Artists, selected by curator, Chritiana Myers, were featured in a night-time exhibition on August 2019. Ms. Myers, a recent graduate of the Glasgow School of Art, with a Master’s degree in curatorial practice, was excited to spotlight local emerging and established artists in the wider context of a festival with national and international artists.
AX, the Arts and Culture Centre of Sussex, inspired by the international slow art movement, hired curator, Amy Ash to mount an exhibition showcasing New Brunswick artists engaged in laborious, time-intensive processes. Her research led her to invite eight contemporary New Brunswick artists, to exhibit in the newly renovated AX Gallery. The resulting exhibition, Circadian, brought together artists working in widely diverse media but all intent on challenging viewers to decelerate, pause, look, and listen as the world unfolds around us. Congratulations to AX for the production of its first full-length catalogue, which presented a critical appraisal of New Brunswick artists Jim Boyd, Janice Wright Cheney, Jud Crandall, Tara Francis, Emilie Grace Lavoie, Alana Morouney, Karen Stentaford, and Anna Torma as artists deeply engaged in art that is provocative and thought provoking. SHMF salutes the continuing renaissance of the Sussex based gallery.
Saint John Arts Centre launched its inaugural curatorial residency with a project entitled “HARBOUR”. Making her curatorial debut in New Brunswick, Amy Ash managed all elements of the exhibition, which included a publication with her curatorial essay and accompanied by thematically linked contributions from the wider arts community. HARBOUR featured the work of nine contemporary artists with strong ties to New Brunswick, and included a mix of painting, sculpture installation and print. Participating artists were: Alisa Arsenault (Moncton), Sara Griffin (Grand Manan), Emma Hassencahl-Perley (Tobique First Nation), Nienke Izurieta (Saint John), Sarah Jones (Saint John), Chantal Khoury (Montreal), Ann Manual (Fredericton), Sarah Power (Saint John) and Dan Xu (Saint John). This residency was a new direction for Saint John Arts Centre, extending its ability to foster critical discourse through the advancement of curatorial practice.
Sunbury Shores Arts and Nature Centre has enhanced its capability in the exhibition of fine craft with the appointment of Sarah Brinkhurst, an accomplished UK goldsmith, as director and curator of the centre. SHMF was proud to contribute to the tradition of excellence in the exhibition of local hand crafted art through the 2019 Sheila Grant. Sunbury Shores Arts and Nature Centre dedicated resources from this grant to build capacity in the specific exhibition needs in metalwork.
Curated by the national Executive Director of the Canadian Craft Federation, Maegen Black, Citizens of Craft: the Podcast is a virtual exhibition series highlighting artists from across Canada. SHMF was proud to sponsor a 2019 podcast which featured the unique craft and vision of selected New Brunswick based artisans. The jury recognised the importance of multi-faceted and far reaching documentation of exhibitions, applauding this initiative of the Canadian Craft Federation to build national recognition for artists.
SHMF has been investing in arts organizations devoted to the promotion of visual art since 1987. The funds for the annual facilitation grant are part of the legacy of Sheila Mackay, a champion of the arts in New Brunswick. The Board of Directors thanks the following individuals from across the province, for professional assistance in the adjudication of the 2019 applicatons: Mario Doucette, Julie Forgues, Caleb Jones, Paul Mathieson, Barbara McAllister, Adda Mihailescu, Elizabeth O’Hara, and Dan Steeves and Vicky Lentz.