Next Generation of Canadian Artists Shine in 14th Annual BMO 1st Art! Invitational Student Art Competition

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Aug. 4, 2016) - BMO Financial Group BMOBMO today announced the winners of the 14th annual BMO 1st Art! Invitational Student Art Competition. Presented annually, the competition recognizes visual arts excellence in post-secondary institutions from across Canada.

Winners were selected from 248 submissions. The national winner receives $10,000 and each of the 12 regional winners receives $5,000 in recognition of their accomplishments. All of the BMO 1st Art! winning works will be displayed at the Justina M. Barnicke Gallery, 7 Hart House Circle, University of Toronto, from November 17 to December 17, 2016.

"Congratulations to the winners on their outstanding achievements in visual art," said Gilles Ouellette, Group Head, BMO Wealth Management. "As longstanding supporters of the arts, BMO is proud to celebrate the wealth of present and emerging talent in this country."

"We are thrilled to exhibit the exceptional selection of works by the 2016 BMO 1st Art! winners," said Dawn Cain, Curator, Corporate Art Collection, BMO Financial Group. "Each year, the competition presents a unique platform through which promising Canadian artists have an opportunity to showcase their artistic vision. We look forward to sharing these works with the greater community."

Deans and instructors of undergraduate certificate, diploma, and degree arts programs from colleges and universities across the country were invited to select three outstanding graduating students from each of their studio specialties to make submissions to the competition.

The 2016 BMO 1st Art! winners are:

National Winner

Nathan Levasseur, University of Alberta

Regional Winners

Alberta: Joel Warkentin, Alberta College of Art & Design

British Columbia: Elizabeth Villalva Granda, University of British Columbia

Manitoba: Zahra Baseri, University of Manitoba

New Brunswick: Jennifer McInnis-Wharton, New Brunswick College of Craft & Design

Newfoundland & Labrador: Lucas Morneau, Grenfell Campus, Memorial University of Newfoundland

Nova Scotia: Jordan Blackburn, Nova Scotia College of Art & Design University

Nunavut: Alookie Alikatuktuk, Nunavut Arctic College

Ontario: Rouzbeh Akhbari, OCAD University

Prince Edward Island: Dylan McQuaid, Holland College

Quebec: Alexandre Menard, Universite du Quebec a Montreal

Saskatchewan: Kristen Auger, First Nations University of Canada

Yukon: Tyler Anderson, Yukon School of Visual Arts

The diverse works produced by the 2016 winners cover a range of themes in a variety of media. They include:



-- A conceptual project, digitally drawn and printed on satin gloss photo
paper, that blends contemporary product design aesthetic and language as
a way to re-frame the societal relationship between vulnerability,
production and capitalism (Levasseur, National Winner)

-- A sculpture that consists of thirty-six individual blocks of hickory,
cherry, black walnut and wenge wood, cut and assembled to convey the
natural circular growth of trees (Warkentin, Alberta)

-- An intricate piece made of stroud cloth, seed beads, satin and
velveteen, that is inspired by the Cree Hoods of the 1970s and strives
to embody Indigenous womanhood and connection to Mother Nature (Auger,
Saskatchewan)

-- A replica of maize, one of the most important foods in Mesoamerica, with
kernels crafted out of US bills to illustrate ongoing issues surrounding
consumerism and colonialism between Latin America and the United States
(Villalva Granda, British Columbia)

-- A large-scale sculpture that explores relationships and insecurities
around intimacy, created through the use of acrylic on plywood
(Anderson, Yukon)




The following panel of esteemed judges chose the winners:



-- Michelle LaVallee, Associate Curator, MacKenzie Art Gallery

-- Jeanie Riddle, Artist and Co-director, Parisian Laundry

-- Kim Simon, Curator, Gallery TPW

-- Pan Wendt, Curator, Confederation Centre Art Gallery




To view the winning pieces on BMO Financial Group's website, please visit: http://1stArt.bmo.com.

About BMO Financial Group

Established in 1817, BMO Financial Group is a highly diversified financial services provider based in North America. With total assets of $681 billion as of April 30, 2016, and over 45,000 employees, BMO provides a broad range of retail banking, wealth management and investment banking products and services to more than 12 million customers and conducts business through three operating groups: Personal and Commercial Banking, Wealth Management and BMO Capital Markets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
Media Contacts:
Jessica Bonin
BMO Financial Group
jessica.bonin@bmo.com
(416) 867-3996


Valerie Doucet
BMO Financial Group
valerie.doucet@bmo.com
(514) 877-8224


To arrange to speak with any of the winners, please contact:
Daniel French, Touchwood PR
daniel@touchwoodpr.com
(416) 593-0777 ext. 205