Calgary Arts Development extends its thanks to everyone who made this year’s Mayor’s Lunch for Arts Champions a huge success.
The second annual event, organized by Calgary Arts Development and the Office of the Mayor, took place earlier today with a sold-out crowd. Each of the 675+ attendees directed their portion of the proceeds to a local arts project currently raising funds on crowdfunding platform InvestYYC.com, resulting in a total investment of about $25,000.
The event, hosted by Dave Kelly, featured a keynote panel discussion between Mayor Naheed Nenshi, Calgary Stampede CEO Vern Kimball and theatre artist Rebecca Northan, exploring how the arts contribute to many different aspects of a vital city. Karen Ball, former Executive Director of Calgary 2012, announced this year’s recipients of the Cultural Leaders Legacy Artist Awards:
▪ Dean Bareham (ATB Financial Healing Through the Arts Award)
▪ Roberto Rozo (Calgary Catholic Immigration Society New Canadian Artist Award)
▪ Chris Cran (Doug & Lois Mitchell Outstanding Calgary Artist Award)
▪ Paul Welch (Enbridge Emerging Artist Award)
▪ Antyx Community Arts Society (SANDSTONE City Builder Award)
▪ Sharon Stevens (William MacLachlan Community Beacon Award)
Winners received a $5000 cash prize, and Chris Cran also received a residency at The Banff Centre as the winner of the Doug & Lois Mitchell Outstanding Calgary Artist Award.
Each Legacy Award is funded by a $10,000 contribution from a local philanthropist or organization with equal matching money from Calgary 2012, and will be awarded annually for four years with winners determined by a jury of peers. This is the second year for all the awards except for the ATB Financial Healing Through the Arts Award, which was presented for the first time at this year’s lunch.
Calgary Arts Development congratulates the winners and thanks the awards jury members who donated their time to help select this year’s recipients and ensure the integrity of the awards.
The event was sponsored by TELUS and also included a youth arts showcase featuring many of Calgary’s outstanding youth performers, including singers, musicians, circus artists and dancers.
