(TORONTO – June 6, 2011) Michael Snow, one of Canada’s most internationally celebrated artists, is the winner of the 2011 Gershon Iskowitz Prize at the AGO for his remarkable contribution to the visual arts in Canada. The AGO and the Gershon Iskowitz Foundation will commemorate the award at a reception on June 10, and next year, the AGO will host an exhibition of Snow’s work. The cash prize has been increased by $15,000 for 2011, and Snow will be the first artist to receive a $40,000 award.
Born in 1928 in Toronto, Snow has led a prodigious career, spanning eight decades and including painting, drawing, sculpture, photo works, film, video, projection, sound installation, experimental jazz, and book works. Snow’s work continues to be shown in galleries and museums around the world, including recent solo exhibitions at Le Fresnoy in France, Angels in Barcelona, and the British Film Institute in London.
“Michael Snow’s contribution to art in Canada is unparalleled,” says Matthew Teitelbaum, the MIchael and Sonja Koerner Director and CEO of the AGO. “The breadth, innovation and creative vision of his work have been consistent throughout his career. The Art Gallery of Ontario is pleased to collaborate with the Gershon Iskowitz Foundation in presenting this prize to Michael, who’s specific genius permeates each medium he interacts with.”
With 82 of Snow’s works housed at the AGO, including several of the Walking Woman Works, early drawings, sketchbooks, films, music, and sculpture, the artist and the institution share a unique history. In 1994, Snow was the subject of a major retrospective exhibition titled The Michael Snow Project, with installations at the AGO, The Power Plant and other public venues. That same year, the AGO collaborated with Alfred A. Knopf Canada to publish four books about Snow’s work.