$25,000 award to be given biennially, 2024 shortlisted artists announced

SEPTEMBER 3, 2024 (VANCOUVER, CANADA) — The Polygon Gallery is thrilled to announce a $1 million endowment for the Philip B. Lind Emerging Artist Prize, securing the future of the award for decades to come. This generous donation from the Lind family will increase the prize amount to $25,000, making it the country’s largest accolade dedicated to supporting emerging visual artists. The Lind Biennial, a collective exhibition of works from shortlisted artists, will also have an extended exhibition term made possible with the new endowment. The first iteration of the revamped showcase will open to the public this fall.

“We are extremely moved by this incredible donation from the Lind family in honour of Phil Lind,” says Reid Shier, Director of The Polygon Gallery. “Phil was an incredible supporter of the arts whose passion made an indelible mark on many across the country. He loved being able to nurture emerging BC artists during pivotal moments in their careers through the Lind Prize. The Polygon Gallery is honoured to be able to steward this prestigious award in his name.”

“Our father was a lifelong advocate for contemporary art and we knew that expanding the future of the Lind Prize would be an incredible way to commemorate his legacy,” says Jed Lind, Phil’s son. “The Lind Biennial will ensure that future generations of young artists have an opportunity to show their work in The Polygon’s incredible exhibition space and engage in their rich history. The Biennial highlights emerging talent within the province while subtly honouring our father’s contribution to Canadian art. We could not be more excited to be working alongside Reid and his team at The Polygon.”

The 2024 exhibiting finalists are: Mena El Shazly, Karice Mitchell, Dion Smith-Dokkie, Parumveer Walia, and Casey Wei. They were selected from a longlist of more than 60 nominees by a panel of esteemed international jurors: Grace Deveney, the Art Institute of Chicago’s David C. and Sarajean Ruttenberg Associate Curator, Photography and Media; Brian Jungen, acclaimed contemporary artist; and Aram Moshayedi, writer, interim chief curator at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles, and current curator-in residence at Museo Tamayo Arte Contemporáneo in Mexico City. The inaugural biennial exhibition will be on view at The Polygon from Nov. 9, 2024–Feb. 2, 2025. The winner will be announced at a ceremony on Jan. 23, 2025.

Also opening this November at the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO), an institution that was equally near and dear to Lind’s heart, is Light Years: The Phil Lind Gift, an exhibition celebrating the extraordinary donation of 37 works from his personal collection. Highlighting Lind’s interest in the Vancouver-school of conceptual photography as well as social and political history, this exhibition and its accompanying publication will feature works by leading contemporary artists Stan Douglas, Anthony Gormley, Rodney Graham, William Kentridge, John McCracken, Jeff Wall and Ai Weiwei, among others. These tandem exhibitions re-affirm the lasting impact of Phil Lind on the Canadian art world, celebrating his lifelong passion from coast to coast.

The Philip B. Lind Emerging Artist Prize was established in 2015 with a donation from Rogers Communications in honour of Lind’s 40-year commitment to the communications industry. The prize is awarded to an emerging BC-based artist working across the mediums of film, photography, or video. Artists are nominated by staff and faculty from established arts institutions and organizations from across the province. In addition to the prize money, the winner is provided with the opportunity to produce a project with The Polygon Gallery.

Lind was a pioneer in media and telecommunications, having helped build Rogers Communications Inc., and a giant in the arts and education community for his many philanthropic endeavors. An avid art collector, he had a particular love for contemporary photography and BC artists. He passed away on Aug. 20, 2023, his 80th birthday.

For more information, visit thepolygon.ca/exhibition/the-lind-biennial.

Press kit and photos
bit.ly/LindPrize2024

Press contact
Ines Min
604 440 0791
ines@inesmin.com

Phil Lind at The Lind Prize 2022 Award Ceremony. Photo by Alison Boulier.