TORONTO, Feb. 25, 2021 /CNW/ - Scotiabank is pleased to announce that the following 11 Canadian artists have been longlisted for the 2021 Scotiabank Photography Award.

Congratulations to:

• Vikky Alexander, Montreal, QC
• Jeff Bierk, Toronto, ON
• Deanna Bowen, Montreal, QC
• Sara Cwynar, Vancouver, BC and Brooklyn, NY
• Will Gill, St. John's, NL
• Annie MacDonell, Toronto, ON
• Dawit L. Petros, Montreal, QC
• Ned Pratt, St. John's, NL
• Carol Sawyer, Vancouver, BC
• Greg Staats, Toronto / Six Nations of the Grand River Territory, ON
• Jeff Thomas, Ottawa, ON

 "Scotiabank recognizes the importance of lens-based art in Canada and around the world," says Laura Curtis Ferrera, Chief Marketing Officer, Scotiabank. "Visual art carries rich and engaging stories that give us a snapshot of life at a point in time. We are proud to play a role in celebrating the creative vision and accomplishments of our country's most gifted photographers."

A group of esteemed members of the Canadian arts community put forward their nominations that make up the 2021 longlist. The nominators include:

• Rose Bouthillier, Curator (Exhibitions) at Remai Modern, Saskatoon, SK
• Mireille Eagan, Curator of Contemporary Art, The Rooms, St. John's, NL
• Mona Filip, Director/Curator of the Koffler Gallery of the Koffler Centre of the Arts, Toronto, ON
• Dominique Fontaine, Curator, Founding Director of aPOSteRIORI, Montreal, QC
• Matthew Hills, Director and Curator of the Grenfell Art Gallery, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Corner Brook, NL
• Michelle Jacques, Head of Exhibitions & Collections/Chief Curator at Remai Modern, Saskatoon, SK
• Lisa Kehler, curator and art consultant, Winnipeg, MB
• Gerald McMaster, Tier 1 Canada Research of Indigenous Visual Culture and Curatorial Practice, Director of the Wapatah: Centre for Indigenous Visual Knowledge, OCAD University, Toronto, ON
• Crystal Mowry, Senior Curator, Kitchener Waterloo Art Gallery (KWAG), Kitchener, ON
• cheyanne turions, Curator, SFU Galleries, cultural worker and writer, Vancouver, BC
• Emmy Lee Wall, Executive Director, Capture Photography Festival, Vancouver, BC

The Scotiabank Photography Award recognizes the achievements of established mid-to-late career artists and is Canada's largest and most prestigious annual peer-nominated and reviewed prize. The Award celebrates the creative vision and accomplishments of some of the country's most gifted contemporary lens-based artists. In addition to being featured in a solo Primary Exhibition at Ryerson Image Centre during the 2022 Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival, the winner of the Scotiabank Photography Award will take home $50,000 and will have a book of their work published and distributed worldwide by Steidl. The finalists will each receive $10,000.

"I am incredibly grateful to the Awards Nominators for their time and consideration as we compile the 2021 longlist of Scotiabank Photography Award candidates," says Edward Burtynsky, Chair of the Scotiabank Photography Award jury. "I'm equally excited and proud to see the perseverance and talent of our Canadian photographic artists, as they continue to create and put the kind of art we all need out into the world during these trying times. Congratulations to all."

A jury of photography experts will select a shortlist of finalists, along with the final winner of the Award. The 2021 jurors are:

• Edward Burtynsky, Artist, chair of the jury
• Sophie Hackett, Curator, Photography at the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO)
• Dr. Kenneth Montague, Art Collector & Curator
• Brian Sholis, Editor, Curator/Writer

The shortlisted artists will be announced March 31, and the winner of the 2021 Scotiabank Photography Award will be announced in Spring 2021.

The 2020 Scotiabank Photography Award Winner, Dana Claxton, will have a solo Primary Exhibition at the Ryerson Image Centre during the Scotiabank 2021 CONTACT Photography Festival happening sometime in the Spring.

For more information about the Scotiabank Photography Award, please visit the website at www.scotiabank.com/photoaward.

About Scotiabank

Scotiabank is a leading bank in the Americas. Guided by our purpose: "for every future", we help our customers, their families and their communities achieve success through a broad range of advice, products and services, including personal and commercial banking, wealth management and private banking, corporate and investment banking, and capital markets. With a team of approximately 90,000 employees and assets of approximately $1.2 trillion (as at January 31, 2021), Scotiabank trades on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX: BNS) and New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BNS). For more information, please visit http://www.scotiabank.com and follow us on Twitter @ScotiabankViews.

SOURCE The Bank of Nova Scotia