Toronto Biennial of Art Announces Two Prizes at the Opening of its Second Edition

The Toronto Biennial of Art (the Biennial/TBA) announced during the opening celebration for its second edition, that Camille Turner is the recipient of its Artist Prize, recognizing an artist’s outstanding contribution to the Biennial, and Aycoobo / Wilson Rodríguez is the recipient of the Emerging Artist Prize acknowledging a promising, early-career Biennial artist. Each prize includes a $10,000 (CAD) award. Awardees participating in the 2022 Biennial, What Water Knows, The Land Remembers, were selected by a distinguished jury that included: Michelle Jacques, Chief Curator, Remai Modern, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan; Dr. Julie Nagam, Artistic Director of Nuit Blanche 2020 and 2022, Toronto, Ontario; and Canadian artist Lisa Steele, an innovator in video art, educator, curator, and co-founder of Vtape in Toronto, Ontario.

“We are pleased to recognize the inspiring work of our prize recipients, and hope this support helps them further develop their already impactful practices. We are also grateful to the jury for their thoughtful consideration and to our visionary patrons for their exceptional support,” said Biennial Executive Director Patrizia Libralato. The Artist Prizes were generously supported by the Hal Jackman Foundation, Eleanor and Francis Shen, the DH Gales Family Foundation, David and Dawn Beswick, Jay Smith and Laura Rapp, and the J.P. Bickell Foundation. Accommodations for jurors were generously supported by The Drake Hotel. “With such a broad range of artists from so many different locations, the prizes offered by the Toronto Biennial of Art are important to identify works that resonate profoundly,” said juror Lisa Steele. “For me, that means they are deeply engaging in terms of content, are beautifully crafted, and come from the heart of the artist, because it is this openness and vulnerability that speak most directly to me.”