Business, Tourism, Culture and Rural Development
May 9, 2016
Province Boasts Dynamic Cultural Community
Minister Congratulates 2016 Arts and Letters Winners
The province's cultural community was in the spotlight this past weekend as the winners of the 2016 Arts and Letters Awards Program were announced at The Rooms in St. John's. The Honourable Christopher Mitchelmore, Minister of Business, Tourism, Culture and Rural Development, attended the awards ceremony this past Saturday at The Rooms.
"For 64 years the Arts and Letters program has provided an opportunity for amateur and professional artists to participate in a program that honours their exceptional creative vision and diverse talents. Our province has a vibrant and energetic cultural community and as a government we are pleased to invest in programs like Arts and Letters that support the arts. Congratulations to all this year's winners and participants. I applaud the essential role Newfoundland and Labrador's creative and talented visual, musical and literary artists play in the continued growth of Newfoundland and Labrador's cultural heritage."
- The Honourable Christopher Mitchelmore, Minister of Business, Tourism, Culture and Rural Development
Prizes totalling $44,000 were awarded in literary, musical, visual arts and digital multi-media categories. In the junior division, 30 winning entries were submitted from youth; while there were 32 winning submissions in the senior division. A total of 545 entries were submitted for consideration under the 2016 Arts and Letters Program.
"Congratulations to all the winners of the 2016 Arts and Letters Program. The awards show not only showcases the diverse artistic talent that exists throughout our province, but also provides the opportunity for artists to view each other's works and receive feedback from their peers. I would like to thank the Department of Business, Tourism, Culture and Rural Development for its on-going support of the program."
- Brian Way, Chair of the Arts and Letters Program
The Percy Janes First Novel Award, the program's top prize of $2,500, was awarded to Devin Lee of Paradise for his manuscript Waking Ambrose. A detailed list of award recipients can be found in the backgrounder below. Further information on the program and submission guidelines is available by visiting www.gov.nl.ca/artsandletters.
QUICK FACTS
- The 2016 Arts and Letters Awards were presented this past Saturday at The Rooms.
- Approximately $44,000 in prizes was awarded to recipients of the 2016 Arts and Letters Awards.
- Information on the Arts and Letters program and how to enter can be found by visiting www.gov.nl.ca/artsandletters.
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Media contact:
| Tansy Mundon
Director of Communications Department of Business, Tourism, Culture and Rural Development 709-729-4570, 693-1865 tansymundon@gov.nl.ca |
BACKGROUNDER
2016 Arts and Letters Awards Recipients
Senior Poetry
(59 entries; $1,000 prize) Adjudicators: Robin Durnford and Adam Beardsworth
| Name | Home | Title |
| Joe Bishop | St. John's | Shell Shock |
| Nathan Downey | St. John's | Eating Songbirds |
| Mary Germaine | St. John's | If Icarus had a Sister |
| Anthony Lambe | Paradise | Seconds |
Senior Short Fiction
(40 entries; $1,000 prize) Adjudicators: Susan Rendell and Kevin Major
| Name | Home | Title |
| Bridget Canning | St. John's | Bradley and Molly 4Ever |
| Michael Finn | St. Bernard's-Jacques Fontaine | Everything's Cool |
| Dane Gill | Gander | The Astronaut's Dog |
| Sarah Penney-Flynn | Bide Arm | Trawling the Dark |
Senior Non-Fictional Prose
(18 entries; $1,000 prize) Adjudicator: Gail Collins
| Name | Home | Title |
| Laura Barron | St. John's | Riding with the Red Barron |
| Chloe Edbrooke | St. John's | Sitting Shiva |
| Ed Kavanagh | Mount Pearl | Aunts |
Senior Dramatic Script
(5 entries; $1,000 prize) Adjudicator: Ben Pittman
| Name | Home | Title |
| Megan Gail Coles | St. John's | Grace |
| Clayton Hare | Corner Brook | Sins of the Children |
Junior Poetry
(138 entries; $350 prize) Adjudicators: Jack Eastwood and Marnie Parsons
| Name | Home | Title |
| Emily Collins | Stephenville | Euthanized |
| Brianna Gibbon | Stephenville | Cracks |
| Evan Girardin | Stephenville | Making Use |
| Guadalupe Koen-Alonso | St. John's | Consumed |
| Ethan Lewis | St. John's | On the Rocks |
| Olivia Parsons | St. John's | Hands |
| Harrison Porter | Kippens | Peace |
| Breanna Sheppard | Paradise | Such a Pretty Girl |
Junior Prose
(62 entries; $350 prize) Adjudicators: Sharon Bala and Randy Street
| Name | Home | Title |
| Leslie Claire Amminson | St. John's | Pulled |
| Olivia Bradbury | Upper Island Cove | Monsters in Us All |
| Emma Cole | St. John's | Siblings |
| Ashley Hare | Harbour Grace | The Blind Side |
| Eva Haas | St. John's | The Ballad of a Shooting Star |
| Ethan McDonald | Portugal Cove | Picture This |
| Caleb Welbourn Jones | Portugal Cove | The Art of Arguing: How to Write a Persuasive Essay |
| Matthew Williams | Gander | Der Schwarzwald |
Senior French Literary
(3 entries; $1,000 prize) Adjudicator: Michael Wilkshire
| Name | Home | Title |
| Michel Savard | St. John's | Essais de lumièrel |
Junior French Literary
(3 entries; $350 prize) Adjudicator: Michael Wilkshire
| Name | Home | Title |
| Christopher Marmouche | St. John's | Insence |
Senior Music
(22 entries; $1,000 prize) Adjudicators: Scott Mansfield, Kristina Szutor and Glenn Simmons
| Name | Home | Title |
| Glen Collins | St. John's | Cheque Please (world fusion) |
| Aiden Hartery | Labrador City | Images for orchestra (classical/contemporary) |
| Rebecca Simms | Mount Pearl | for pillars, gone (contemporary classical) |
| Aley Waterman | Corner Brook | Ender Mender (pop/rock) |
Junior Music
(13 entries; $350 prize) Adjudicators: Scott Mansfield, Kristina Szutor and Glenn Simmons
| Name | Home | Title |
| Clare Follett | St. John's | Warning (alternative) |
| Erin Lee | St. John's | Don't You Dare (pop) |
| Kat McLevey | St. John's | Good Will (electronic) |
| Hannah Wadman-Scanlan | Mount Pearl | Stay Up (contemporary folk) |
Senior Visual Art
(107 entries; $1,000 prize) Adjudicators: Tia Connolly, Bill Rose and Michael Flaherty
| Name | Home | Title | Medium |
| David Baltzer | St. John's | National Gallery (D.C.) | Acrylic/oil on panel |
| Stephen Brace | Lewisporte | Shawn and Jacob; Father and Son | Film photography |
| Brian Carey | Goulds | We Don't Always Have Time for Tim Hortons | Digital photography |
| Jenny Dwyer | Goulds | The Rugged Ground Beneath our Feet will Always Lead us Home | Acrylic on panel |
| Fatima Hammond | St. John's | Ocean Creatures of the North Atlantic | Collage/acrylic |
| George Horan | St. John's | A Murmur of Orange at Dawn | Acrylic |
| Nicole Ledrew May | Corner Brook | India Gate View | Oil on canvas |
| Laurie Leehane | St. John's | Pesticidal Homicide: The Plight of Native Bees | Oil |
| Anne Pickard-Vaandering | St. John's | "8012775" | Mixed media on stonehenge |
| Christina Rees | St. John's | My Favourite Place in Newfoundland | Mixed media on panel |
| Darren Whalen | St. John's | Shallow Breath | Acrylic/oil on canvas |
| Melissa Wong | St. John's | In the Pink Sky | Acrylic on canvas |
Junior Visual Art
(53 entries; $350 prize) Adjudicators: Amber-Lynn Thorne and Marc Lafreniere
| Name | Home | Title | Medium |
| Aidan Devereaux | St. John's | Out There | Digital photography |
| Kayla Dunne | Mount Pearl | A Reason to Let Go | Graphite |
| Kaeleigh Fitzgerald | Clarenville | Through the Looking Glass | Photography |
| Hillary Furlong | Portugal Cove | My Favorite Time of Year | Oil/palette knife |
| Joshua Mack | St. John's | The Wondrous Wildlife of Asia | Paint/markers on canvas |
| Ellen Saunders | St. John's | Tom | Thread on canvas |
| Olivia Stacey | Grand Falls - Windsor | St. Lawrence River through a Bus Window | Oil on board |
| Brooklyn Turner | Conception Bay South | Best Friend | Watercolor |
Percy Janes First Novel Award
(13 entries; $2,500 prize) Adjudicator: Leslie Vryenhoek
| Name | Home | Title |
| Devin Lee | Paradise | Waking Ambrose |
Senior Digital Multi Media
(3 entries; $1,000 prize) Adjudicator: Tristram Clark
| Name | Home | Title |
| Jonathan Kennedy | St. John's | Haunted |
Junior Digital Multi Media
(2 entries; $350 prize) Adjudicator: Tristram Clark
| Name | Home | Title |
| Natalie Young | St. John's | A Day in July, October and December |
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