The Portia White Prize is the largest prize of its type awarded by the Province of

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

and is named for Portia White, a Nova Scotian artist who rose through adversity to achieve international acclaim as a classical singer on the stages of Europe and North America. Although Portia White began her career teaching in

Africville Africville was a small community of predominantly African Nova Scotians located in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. It developed on the southern shore of Bedford Basin and existed from the early 1800s to the 1960s. From 1970 to the present, a pro ...

, she eventually turned her energy to developing her enormous musical talent. Portia White became a world-renowned contralto through much hard work and dedication and the financial support of the Nova Scotia Talent Trust, a charitable organization created in 1944 by the Halifax Ladies Music Club, the music community and the Province. Upon retiring from the stage, Ms. White devoted her time to teaching and coaching young singers. Her achievements continue to instill a sense of pride in the African Nova Scotian community and stand as a model to all Nova Scotians. The purpose of the Portia White Prize is to recognize cultural and artistic excellence on the part of a Nova Scotian artist who has attained professional status, mastery and recognition in their discipline. To enable the province of Nova Scotia to promote excellence in the arts by honouring an outstanding Nova Scotian artist who has made a significant contribution to the province’s cultural life. The primary recipient, who is an established artist, either born in Nova Scotia or resident in the province for at least the past four years, will receive $18,000 and a certificate of recognition. A secondary recipient, also called the "protégé", who is an emerging Nova Scotian artist or a Nova Scotian cultural organization selected by the primary recipient, will receive $7,000 and a certificate of recognition.

Recipients

2024 Alan Syliboy
2023 Juanita Peters
2022 Cyndi Cain
2021 Catherine Anne Martin
2020 Afua Cooper
2019 John Little
2018 Ronald Bourgeois
2017 Susan Gibson Garvey
2016 Jerry Granelli
2015 Walter Kemp
2014 Scott Macmillan
2013

Laurie Swim Laurie Swim (born 27 February 1949) is a Canadian visual artist, best known for her quilt art. Her work can be found in the permanent collections of the New York Museum of Arts and Design, the Nova Scotia Art Bank, the Nova Scotia Designer Craft ...

2012 Thom Fitzgerald
2011 James MacSwain
2010 Mary Jane Lamond
2009 Mary Vingoe
2008 Walter Ostrom
2007 Joleen Gordon
2006 Wayne Boucher
2005 Walter Borden
2004 Jim Morrow
2003 Charlotte Wilson-Hammond
2002

Sylvia Hamilton Sylvia D. Hamilton is a Canadian filmmaker, writer, poet, and artist. Based in Grand Pre, Nova Scotia, her work explores the lives and experiences of people of African descent. Her special focus is on African Nova Scotians, and especially women ...

2001

Alistair MacLeod Alistair MacLeod (July 20, 1936 – April 20, 2014) was a Canadian novelist, short story writer and academic. His powerful and moving stories vividly evoke the beauty of Cape Breton Island's rugged landscape and the resilient character of ma ...

2000

Garry Kennedy Garry Neill Kennedy, (6 November 1935 – 8 August 2021) was a Canadian conceptual artist and educator from Halifax, Nova Scotia. In the mid-1970s, he created works that investigated the processes and materials of painting. In the first decade ...

1999

Georg Tintner Georg Tintner, (22 May 19172 October 1999) was an Austrian conductor whose career was principally in New Zealand, Australia, and Canada. Although best known as a conductor, he was also a composer (he considered himself a composer who conducted ...

1998

George Elliott Clarke George Elliott Clarke (born February 12, 1960) is a Canadian poet, playwright and literary critic who served as the Poet Laureate of Toronto from 2012 to 2015 and as the Canadian Parliamentary Poet Laureate in 2016-2017. Clarke's work addresse ...

References

External links

*{{Official website, https://artsns.ca/grants-programs/awards/portia-white-prize Nova Scotia awards Canadian visual arts awards