The Sobey Art Foundation recently hosted a special event at the National Gallery of Canada to announce the winner of the Sobey Art Award: Nico Williams. I was thrilled to attend the ceremony, to congratulate Nico on behalf of the AGGV, and to join in celebrating with artists, curators and colleagues from across the country.
Nico Williams is an Anishnaabe artist and a member of the Aamjiwnaang First Nation. He lives and works in Montreal. William is known for his incredibly detailed sculptural beadwork. The National Gallery presented an exhibition of works by each of the shortlisted artists, including a jaw-dropping selection of works by Nico Williams.
William’s sculptures replicate everyday objects, but take shape from glittering, beautifully detailed bead work. Visitors were presented with beaded forms depicting, among other things, bright yellow cautionary tape, that we all know well from construction sites, as well as the shape of an iconic black and red checked flannel shirt worn often by workers. My personal favourite was an incredibly detailed work Wiliams made the form of a Sobey’s Grocery Flyer. The shapes and forms are immediately recognizable, but also jarring and draw the viewer in with visual intrigue. Williams was selected as the winner by an independent jury with representatives from across the country.
The Sobey Art Award is Canada’s most prestigious national prize for living artists. It was established in 2002 and since then has supported the careers of a range of Canadian artists including Brian Jungen (2002), Jean-Pierre Gauthier (2004), Annie Pootoogook (2006), Michel de Broin (2007), Tim Lee (2008), Daniel Barrow (2010), Daniel Young and Christian Giroux (2011), Duane Linklater (2013), Nadia Myre (2014), Abbas Akhavan (2015), Jeremy Shaw (2016), Ursula Johnson (2017), Kapwani Kiwanga (2018), Stephanie Comilang (2019), Laalkuluk Williamson Bathory (2021), Divya Mehar (2022) and Kablusiak (2023). Visitors to the AGGV had the opportunity to see works by some of these artists, including Brian Jungen, Annie Pootoogook and Ursula Johnson this summer when we hosted the exhibition, Generations: The Sobey Family and Canadian Art.
– Written by Steven McNeil, AGGV Chief Curator & Director of Collections and Exhibitions.
Feature Image: Nico Williams, Uncle, 2023. Glass beads, Delica beads and thread, 124.5 × 73.7 cm. Gochman Family Collection, with thanks to the studio team in Tiohtià:ke (Montreal). © Nico Williams. Installation at the National Gallery of Canada. Photo courtesy of Steven McNeil.
