ACAD alumnus Jason de Haan is one of five artists shortlisted for the 2012 Sobey Art Award by the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia and the Sobey Art Foundation.
Jason is a multidisciplinary artist whose work has been shown in group exhibitions in Canada, the USA, Ireland, Mexico, Sweden, Iceland and the UK. He has written that his work concerns itself with the conceptual, poetic and absurd, often manifesting itself as a combination in the forms of sculpture, installation, performance, drawing and book works.
The Sobey Art Award is $70,000 with $50,000 going to the winner and $5,000 awarded to each of the other finalists. The Sobey Art Award, established in 2002 is awarded to a Canadian artist age 40 and under who has exhibited in a public or commercial gallery within 18 months of being nominated. It is intended to further the national conversation about contemporary art and is widely recognized as one of the most prestigious awards for contemporary art in Canada.
Work by the shortlisted artists will be shown in an exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art (MOCCA) in Toronto, opening on October 24, 2012. The 10th Anniversary Sobey Art Award winner will be announced at a Gala event at the MOCCA on November 16, 2012.