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Message From The Chair
- The Arts and Letters Awards is a celebration of
the artistic talent of this province. And what talent we have! If
we take a moment to compare the output of our mere 500,000 souls to the
rest of the country, I think we can only conclude that there is
something wonderful at work in this province,
- something driving us to create visually, to put
words on paper, to compose music with a thirst that has few parallels
anywhere in this land, from our part of the Atlantic shores to the
Pacific. Our province has less population than the city of Hamilton, and
yet has produced the cluster of talent that includes Bernice Morgan,
Michael Winter, Cassie Brown, Christopher Pratt...and dozens more, all
of whom, I hasten to point out, have been entrants over the years to the
Arts and Letters Awards.
-
- This program is special, and I believe, unique to
this country. Its roots go back to the pre-confederation era and the
O'Leary Awards for Poetry and Essays. In 1952 the Arts and Letters
Competition came into being, and over the years has evolved into the
event we applaud today, one that encompasses artistic endeavor from a
12-year old sculptor to that of a mature writer ready to tackle the
novel form. Along the way the program has had its detractors, those who
felt it had outlived its usefulness, but
- I couldn't have disagreed more. And neither did a
multitude of people across the province, and to its credit, the
Government of Newfoundland and Labrador.
-
- 2002 marked a half century since the inception of
the awards. It was celebrated in style. But it was made a lasting
celebration as well, in that we added some new categories, revamped
others, and increased the prize money. This committee is committed to an
Arts and Letters that is a true
- reflection of the artistic activity in the
province and a reflection of the ever-evolving face of artistic activity
generally.
-
- I think we need to applaud what the Arts and Letters
Awards has achieved. More than anything it has instilled a confidence in
our creators by demonstrating that what they do and what they have
dreams of doing is valid and deserving of recognition. I have always
been especially delighted to see among the winners names I don't
recognize, people sometimes from smaller communities who I'm sure have
to stand apart to declare their aspirations as artists.
-
- They drummed up the courage to enter, knowing
that they are pitting themselves against more established creators (for
the competition doesn't differentiate between amateurs and
professionals, but acknowledges excellence wherever it is found). These
people, maybe just content knowing that they ill get a professional
written adjudication (which, by the way, goes out to all entrants who
request it), package up or hand-deliver their entries. Then suddenly
they get calls from our coordinator telling them
- they are winners.
-
- Each year we celebrate the winners from an
average of a thousand entries. But at the same time we celebrate all
people who have taken time to put forward their best efforts and have
found fulfillment in doing so. Choosing the best is a subjective
undertaking, and numerous are the requests from
- adjudicators to extend the list of prizes.
Narrowing down the entries to a slate of winners is a tough assignment.
I say this by way of encouragement to everyone to keep the entries
coming. Let's make each year a record year. The joy is not necessarily
in the money (although I know that helps). It's
- in the creation. For the creation is all yours.
It is who you are and, by letting us share in that, we are all - every
one of us - the richer.
Kevin Major, Chair
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