Gerda and Raymond Hnatyshyn's 1992 Ukraine state visit with musicians
To celebrate its 20th anniversary, the Hnatyshyn Foundation has established a string of prizes for artists of Ukrainian-Canadian heritage under 35, including those affected by war.
Twenty awards of $10,000 each will be awarded across 10 categories, ranging from vocal performance to music and dance. The program honours the roots of the Hnatyshyn family in Canada and Ukraine, says Gerda Hnatyshyn, partner of the late Ramon (Ray) John Hnatyshyn, Canada’s 24th Governor General. She says she hopes that the awards will celebrate Ukrainian culture and create exchanges between artists.
Since 2002, the foundation has operated as a private charity founded by Hnatyshyn and his wife. It has invested more than $4 million in the visual and performing artists since 2005, raising the national and international profile of many individual artists and curators.
Applications for the Ukraine – Heritage, Spirit and Future awards are being accepted until Sept. 19, on the Hnatyshyn Foundation website. Recipients will be chosen by a jury with expertise in the performing arts. Results will be shared in the fall of 2022 and prizes will be awarded in early 2023.
A benefit concert will take place Sept. 16, 2023 at the Jubilee Auditorium in Edmonton in support of rebuilding a cultural centre or space in Ukraine.
Source: Hnatyshyn Foundation