Brenda Draney wins the RBC Canadian Painting Competition
Artist Brenda Draney, winner of the 11th annual RBC Canadian Painting Competition, stands next to her winning work at at the competition's awards ceremony in Montreal on October 7, 2009 / photo CNW Group/RBC
RBC and the Canadian Art Foundation extend warm congratulations to Vancouver's Brenda Draney, the national winner of the 11th annual RBC Canadian Painting competition.
Brenda Draney holds a BA in English Literature and a BFA from the University of Alberta, and an MAA from Emily Carr University of Art and Design. She is interested in how memory, which is by its nature personal, operates in families, communities and cultures. Her first-place prize includes an award of $25,000.
Martin Golland and Sasha Pierce, both of Toronto, were named honourable mentions for their works Residential Night Vulture and Brown. Each receives $15,000.
“The RBC Canadian Painting Competition has served as a springboard for Canada’s emerging artists for more than a decade,” said Anne-Marie David, regional vice-president, RBC. “The high calibre of artists in this year’s collection speaks volumes about the extraordinary level of talent in Canada.”
The goal of the RBC Canadian Painting Competition is to support and nurture Canadian visual artists in their early career by providing them a forum to display their artistic talent to the country and hopefully open doors to future opportunity.
“The annual competition provides artists with an opportunity to showcase their work to the community at large and gives the public a view of what is current in contemporary painting across the country,” said Ann Webb, executive director, Canadian Art Foundation.
The winner and runners-up were announced at a ceremony October 7 at the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal. The prizes are intended to help up-and-coming artists build their career. Paintings from all the 2009 competition semifinalists will be on exhibit at the Musée d'art contemporain until October 18. The winner and runner-up paintings will then travel to Toronto, where they will be displayed at the Toronto International Art Fair from October 22 to 26, followed by an exhibition of all semifinalist paintings at the Power Plant in Toronto from November 21 to 29.
For more information about the RBC Canadian Painting Competition, please visit our related program page.
