Call for Nominations: The William and Meredith Saunderson Prizes for Emerging Artists
February 6, 2025
The Hnatyshyn Foundation is pleased to launch the call for nominations for the 2025 William and Meredith Saunderson Prizes for Emerging Artists!
Séamus Gallagher, 2024 Saunderson Prize laureate, A Geography of Elsewhere Disappearing Into Air, 2023, lenticular print, 40”x60”
About the prizes
The Saunderson Prizes consist of three awards of $10,000 dollars each for young emerging Canadian visual artists whose practices show potential and who are deemed to have the determination and talent to contribute to the legacy of art in Canada. Previous laureates include Séamus Gallagher (2024), Lan “Florence” Yee (2023), Esmaa Mohamoud (2018), Audie Murray (2018), Tau Lewis (2017), Bridget Moser (2015), and many other exceptional artists who have gone on to enjoy illustrious careers and continue to exhibit their work nationally and internationally.
Who can submit a nomination
Representatives of public and private galleries, fine arts training institutions, and artist-run-centres, are invited to submit a nomination. An institution may only nominate one candidate per year.
Deadlines
Deadline to nominate a candidate: April 14th
Deadline for candidates to submit their materials: May 7th
Candidate criteria
We are pleased to announce that going forward, the age limit for this program has been increased from 30 to 35.
To be eligible for a Saunderson Prize, candidates must be:
Canadian citizens or permanent residents of Canada;
Aged 35 years or less as of December 31 of the current year;
Emerging professional artists, which we define as having approximately 3 to 7 years of professional practice.
Candidates must also have:
A body of work that incorporates specialized training (not necessarily gained at an academic institution);
A public presence and peer recognition;
The determination and talent to contribute to the legacy of art in Canada;
Had their work featured in at least two curated shows or public collections in Canada in the last five years.
Current undergraduate and college students are not eligible for a Saunderson Prize.
How to submit a nomination
Representatives from qualified institutions are invited to send a letter of nomination to the Foundation at director@rjhf.com with the subject line “Saunderson Prize Nomination (Candidate Name)” by April 14th 2025.
The letter of nomination must include:
The nominator’s title at the institution;
The nominator’s phone number;
The candidate’s current city of residence and/or work;
The candidate’s email address and phone number;
A brief bio of the artist and/or a web link where their bio may be found;
An explanation of why, in the nominator’s opinion, the candidate is deserving of a Saunderson Prize;
Confirmation that the candidate has been notified of their nomination and consented to the nominator sharing their information with The Hnatyshyn Foundation.
Adjudication
Laureates will be selected by an independent jury composed of a Canadian mid-career artist and a Canadian mid-career curator. All selections are final. All candidates will be contacted with their results in June or July of 2025.
Runner-up prizes
We are thrilled to announce that in addition to the three first-place prizes of $10,000, the three runners-up will receive a finalist’s award of $3,000. There is no shortage of promising emerging artists in Canada and we look forward to supporting their development in even greater numbers this year!
We look forward to receiving your nominations and discovering this year’s laureates!
Please see the full guidelines here: /https://www.rjhf.com/current-programs/saunderson-prize
