TORONTO, ON - April 28, 2014 /CNW/ - Scotiabank Photography Award: Stan Douglas exhibition opens to the public on May 1 at the Ryerson Image Centre (RIC) as part of the Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival. The exhibition of Stan Douglas, acclaimed Vancouver artist and the winner of the 2013 Scotiabank Photography Award (SPA), was guest curatored by Robert Bean. The exhibition is a component of the Award.

"Stan Douglas is an incredible force in Canadian contemporary photography and we are thrilled that the public is getting the opportunity to experience his work firsthand at this exhibition, which features a few pieces that are being shown for the first time," said Jane Nokes, Scotiabank Director, Archives, Corporate Records and Fine Art, Executive Director and co-founder of the SPA. "We are proud to support Stan Douglas and his thought-provoking work. He was the well deserving winner of the 2013 Scotiabank Photography Award and we look forward to continuing to follow his career as it reaches new heights both here in Canada and internationally."

Stan Douglas has created films, photographs, and installations that reexamine particular locations or past events. His works often take their points of departure in local settings, from which broader issues can be identified. He works with popular media: photography, film, storytelling, public spectacle, and soon, mobile apps. With his artwork, Stan invents, influences and redefines the cultural understanding and reception of art.

"We are very proud to once again host the SPA exhibition," said Ryerson Image Centre Director Paul Roth. "Stan Douglas perfectly exemplifies our institutional mission to present artists exploring the uses and meanings of photography and lens-based media arts. For three years running, the Scotiabank Photography Award has captured the importance of Canadian photographers within the international arts community, and we are honoured to contribute to that recognition."

The opening of the exhibition also marks the launch of the book "Stan Douglas," a second component of the SPA, published and distributed worldwide by Steidl.

"The arts have such an important role in inspiring us and encouraging us to develop new perspectives. This is why we believe in supporting the arts, particularly great opportunities to see artwork firsthand, like the Stan Douglas exhibition for the Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival," said Jacquie Ryan, Scotiabank Vice President Sponsorships and Partnerships. "We look forward to people in the community getting the opportunity to appreciate Stan's work and are excited to see who will be joining him as a Scotiabank Photography Award winner, when the 2014 winner is announced on April 29."

About the SPA:
The SPA was founded on behalf of Scotiabank by internationally renowned Canadian photography 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 photography-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 in a major solo exhibition at the Ryerson Image Centre. This exhibition is a primary exhibition during the Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival, the world's largest photography festival.

The 2014 SPA finalists are Donald Weber, Mark Ruwedel and Rodney Graham. The 2014 SPA winner will be announced on April 29th.

For more information about the SPA, this exhibition and the 2014 finalists, please visit: www.scotiabank.com/photoaward

About Scotiabank:
In addition to the SPA, Scotiabank is committed to the Arts through its support of numerous arts, cultural and heritage festivals and events, including Scotiabank Nuit Blanche, the Scotiabank Giller Prize, the Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival, Scotiabank Buskerfest and the Scotiabank Toronto Caribbean Carnival.

Scotiabank is a leading financial services provider in over 55 countries and Canada's most international bank. Through Bright Future, our global philanthropic program, Scotiabank and its employees support causes at a grassroots level across six pillars: health, education, social services, arts and culture, environment and sports. Recognized as a leader for our charitable donations and philanthropic activities, Scotiabank has contributed on average some $50 million annually over the last five years to community causes around the world. Visit us at www.scotiabank.com.

About the Ryerson Image Centre:
The Ryerson Image Centre (RIC), a new Toronto cultural destination, is dedicated to the public exhibition, research, study and teaching of photography and related disciplines, including new media, installation art and film. International in scope, the Ryerson Image Centre features three interrelated areas of activity: an exciting program of public exhibitions where innovative work by professional Canadian and international artists addresses social, cultural, historical and aesthetic issues; a world-class research centre that conducts research into the history of photography and documentary media, and offers an array of workshops, conferences and publication programs; and the collection, which is home to the acclaimed Black Star Collection of black and white photojournalistic prints, as well as important fine art photographic holdings and artist archives. Click here to view a short video about the Ryerson Image Centre. For more information, visit www.ryerson.ca/ric.

About the Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival:
CONTACT fosters and celebrates the art and profession of photography with an annual festival in May and year-round programming in the CONTACT Gallery.

CONTACT, a not-for-profit organization founded in 1997 and granted charitable status in 2011, is generously supported by Scotiabank, Nikon Canada, BMW Group Canada, La Fondation Emmanuelle Gattuso, Torys LLP, Ernst & Young LLP, Pattison Outdoor Advertising, Vistek, Grolsch Premium Lager, Stratus Vineyards, Transcontinental PLM, 3M Canada, Four By Eight Signs, Beyond Digital Imaging, Giant Container Services, Toronto Image Works, The Gilder, Hotel Le Germain, The Gladstone Hotel, The Globe and Mail, The Grid, and BlogTO. The Festival gratefully acknowledges the support of Celebrate Ontario, Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport, Ontario Arts Council, the Government of Ontario, Canada Council for the Arts, the City of Toronto through the Toronto Arts Council, the Hal Jackman Foundation, and all of our funders.

Media contacts:

Scotiabank: 
Diana Hart
diana.hart@scotiabank.com
416-866-7238

Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival: 
Lisa Kwong
NKPR
lisa@nkpr.net
416.365.3630 x242

Ryerson Image Centre: 
Erin Warner
erin.warner@ryerson.ca
416.979.5000 x7032