OTTAWA — Kapwani Kiwanga has won this year’s $100,000 Sobey Art Award.
The Hamilton, Ont.-born artist received the prestigious prize Wednesday night during a ceremony in Ottawa.
She represented the Ontario region for the contemporary art honour.
Kiwanga’s body of work examines social and political themes such as colonization and the prison system.
The Sobey award is presented annually to a Canadian artist aged 40 or under who has exhibited in a public or commercial art gallery within 18 months of being nominated.
The other four finalists receive $25,000 apiece, while the remaining 20 longlisted artists receive $2,000.
This year’s other finalists were Mi’kmaq artist Jordan Bennett representing the Atlantic region and Jon Rafman of Quebec. Representing the Prairies and the North is Joi T. Arcand from the Muskeg Lake Cree Nation in Saskatchewan, and Jeneen Frei Njootli is the finalist for the West Coast and the Yukon.
Works by the five nominees are in an exhibition running through Feb. 10 at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa.
The Canadian Press
