2015 Governor General’s Awards in Visual and Media Arts

The 2015 laureates of the Governor General’s Awards in Visual and Media Arts with Their Excellencies.

Researcher, curator, commissioner, teacher, author and editor, Louise Déry (Montréal, Que.) received the Outstanding Contribution Award. She explores with passion, persistence and sensitivity notions like the missing picture and the relationship between visual arts and text.

"To each of you, I say thank you for enriching our lives through the visual and media arts."

The prizes are funded, administered and promoted by the Canada Council for the Arts. Mr. Simon Brault, Director and CEO of the Canada Council for the Arts also delivered remarks.

"Creativity usually occurs by a mixture of vision, determination, collaboration, stops and starts, dead ends, arm-twisting, a sense of timing and, not least, sheer good luck. The artists and organizers we celebrate tonight have shown just that kind of creativity and dedication—and they have done so for their entire careers," said the Governor General during his remarks.

His Excellency presented the 2015 Governor General’s Awards in Visual and Media Arts, during a ceremony at Rideau Hall. Now in their 15th year, the Governor General’s Awards in Visual and Media Arts are Canada’s foremost awards for excellence in visual arts, architecture, independent film and video, or audio and new media.

Each laureate of the Governor General’s Awards in Visual and Media Arts receives $25,000 and a bronze medallion.

For over 30 years, Reva Stone (Winnipeg, Man.) has used digital technologies to initiate conversations about the impact of biotechnological and robotic practices on the very nature of being human. She is a leader in the Winnipeg media arts community.

For over 40 years, Rober Racine (Montréal, Que.) has created a rich, diverse body of work in visual arts, literature, installation, performance and music. His luminous works elicit wonder and admiration.

For some 35 years, Sandra Meigs (Victoria, B.C.) has created vivid, enigmatic paintings that combine dense narratives with comic elements. Her works gradually reveal layers of meaning, giving viewers insight into psychological spaces and philosophical ideas.

For over 25 years, Paul McClure (Toronto, Ont.) has been creating works that interpret the body at the cellular level to reflect our humanity in an era of medical advancement. He combines mastery of his craft and an acute awareness of jewellery’s traditions and conventions with an interest in digital technologies. He received the Saidye Bronfman Award. Ms. Nancy Rosenfeld, Executive Director of the Samuel and Saidye Bronfman Family Foundation joined His Excellency to present the award.

Rafael Lozano-Hemmer (Montréal, Que.) is internationally renowned for his interactive installations that are at the intersection of architecture and performance art. His main interest is in perverting technologies to create platforms for public participation.

Micah Lexier (Toronto, Ont.) has a deep interest in measurement, increment, time, structures, found imagery, and the casual marks of our day-to-day lives. His multi-faceted practice includes sculpture, installation, photography and text-based work, as well as curation.

Robert Houle (Toronto, Ont.) is an Anishinaabe Saulteaux artist who has contributed significantly in defining contemporary Indigenous identity through his distinct visual language that melds both Aboriginal and modernist aesthetic traditions.

The prizes are awarded annually to visual and media artists for distinguished career achievement in these disciplines. In addition, the Saidye Bronfman Award is given for excellence in the fine crafts, as well as a prize for outstanding contributions to the visual and/or media arts in a volunteer or professional capacity.