TORONTO, May 9, 2013 /CNW/ - After months of anticipation, the winner of Canada's most prestigious art photography award, the Scotiabank Photography Award (SPA), will be announced on Thursday, May 16, 2013. Now in its third year, the SPA was created to raise the profile of Canada's established photographic artists and is the largest annual peer reviewed celebration of excellence in Canadian contemporary photography. The winner will be chosen from the three finalists - Angela Grauerholz and Robert Walker from Montreal and Stan Douglas from Vancouver - as announced in March. Video of the shortlist announcement can be seen here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JiNI_HA_WE

The SPA was founded on behalf of Scotiabank by internationally renowned Canadian photo artist Edward Burtynsky, Chair of SPA, and Jane Nokes, Director, Scotiabank Archives, Corporate Records and Fine Art Collection and Executive Director of SPA. The award was conceived and designed to profile an established Canadian photo-based artist, raising him or her to the next level of national and international recognition. The winner receives a cash prize of $50,000 and a book published and distributed world-wide by esteemed photography publisher Steidl (Germany) and overseen by Edward Burtynsky. The winner's work is also featured at a primary exhibition during the Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival, the world's largest photography festival.

For more information about the jury, nominators and prize please visit: http://www.scotiabankphotoaward.com

About Scotiabank
Scotiabank is committed to supporting the communities in which we live and work, both in Canada and abroad, through our global philanthropic program, Scotiabank Bright Future.  Recognized as a leader internationally and among Canadian corporations for our charitable donations and philanthropic activities, Scotiabank has provided on average approximately $47 million annually to community causes around the world over each of the last five years. Visit us at www.scotiabank.com.

SOURCE: Scotiabank