Megan Samms Winner of the 2024 Theodore Prize

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Megan Samms (photo courtesy of Beaverbrook Art Gallery)

The Beaverbrook Art Gallery has announced that the 2024 Theodore Prize has been awarded to Canadian artist Megan Samms.

Samms is an L’nu and Nlaka’pamux multidisciplinary artist from Newfoundland and Labrador. She works in a variety of mediums, including textile, natural dyes and inks, paint, words, photography and performance.

The $20,000 award is given yearly to an Atlantic Canadian artist whose work demonstrates outstanding artistic and creative excellence, a command of the chosen medium, and a high level of regard from the Atlantic Canadian curatorial and gallery community.

“Megan Samms's collaborative and supportive approach, rooted in the notion of place, embodies an important ethos of the Atlantic Region. Whether hosting a residency program on their ancestral lands in rural Ktaqmkuk (the island of Newfoundland) or in their own practice, Samms views art as the focal point for relationships — with the land, with other artists, and with those who engage with their art,” said Ray Cronin in a news release. He spoke on behalf of the Theodore Prize’s selection committee.

“She shows us that art is a living focal point, thriving when culture is fostered and supported.”

The prize, which is administered by the Beaverbrook Art Gallery, was created by the Throop Family Foundation and is named in honour of a family member who was renowned for their generosity and good will. 

“To be nominated is a compliment enough but to receive the news that I was selected for the Theodore prize this year is a huge privilege; I’m very proud to receive this prize and it’s an honest and gratifying responsibility to keep doing and making, one that I take very seriously,” said Samms. 

“I hold my hands up and say wela’lin aqq kʷukʷscemxʷ to my nominators, the jury for the Theodore prize, to the Throop Family Foundation, to my collaborators, friends, and family who hold me close and up.”

Source: Beaverbrook Art Gallery

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