At Scotiabank, we believe arts and culture has enormous power to enrich people’s lives. That is why support for the arts is a prominent part of Bright Future, the Bank’s global philanthropy program, and why we are proud to be the title sponsor of the Scotiabank CONTACT Photography Festival.

Scotiabank CONTACT is the world’s largest photography event, with exhibitions by more than 1,000 talented local, national and international artists at more than 200 venues throughout Toronto. The unique perspectives they bring to their work have the potential to reflect – and sometimes change – the way we see ourselves, our country and our world.

The festival is also an opportunity to celebrate and promote the work of a leading Canadian photo artist through the second annual Scotiabank Photography Award. This is the largest and most prestigious award in contemporary Canadian photography, and was presented to Lynne Cohen of Montreal last year.

We look forward to sharing and celebrating the country’s best photographic talent with you, and we hope you enjoy the festival!
 

Rick Waugh
President and Chief Executive Officer

Scotiabank Photography Award → 

Congratulations to Toronto artist Arnaud Maggs, winner of the 2012 award.

Canada's contemporary photo artists communicate their creative vision of who we are and where we stand. Scotiabank Photography Award, an annual search for excellence among leading Canadian photographers, is designed to celebrate that vision.

Scotiabank established the Scotiabank Photography Award (SPA) to encourage wider recognition of mid-to-late career artists working with photographic media and to inspire excellence in the field. It was developed by Edward Burtynsky, one of Canada’s most respected photographers and Chair of SPA, and Jane Nokes, Director of the Fine Art Collection and Corporate Archives at Scotiabank Group and Executive Director of SPA. Each year eight eminent nominators from across Canada put forward qualified candidates who are then adjudicated by three expert Canadian jurors. The $50,000 award and book deal with art photography publisher Steidl, is Canada’s largest contemporary photography award for an established Canadian artist.

The 2012 Shortlist was announced on March 16.  Congratulations to Fred Herzog (Vancouver), Arnaud Maggs (Toronto) and Alain Paiement (Montreal).

2011 Scotiabank Photography Award winner Lynne Cohen's exhibition Lynne Cohen: Nothing is Hidden is presented at the Design Exchange, May 3 to June 30, 2012. Free admission courtesy of Scotiabank.

Primary Exhibition →

Photo Credit: Lynne Cohen, Spa, 2002, Courtesy the artist and Olga Korper Gallery, Toronto

From 2008 to 2011 Scotiabank  awarded scholarships for Canadian photography students to attend the Magnum Photos Workshop Toronto. Qualified applicants were selected through a combination of the merit of their work and their personal statement and chosen by a Magnum jury. In the four years, Scotiabank awarded 16 scholarships providing opportunities to emerging photographers. 

Scotiabank is proud to partner with CONTACT and Magnum Photos in support of emerging photographers, extending their commitment to support the communities in which we live and work, both in Canada and abroad.

For more information on the workshops →  

Recipients include: 

Kiana Hayeri Photography Studies, Ryerson University.
Yalda Pashai Photography Studies, Ryerson University.
Shirin Fathi  Advertising and Photography, OCAD University.

Dianne Davis  Photography Studies, Ryerson University
Angelika Joachimowicz  Photography and Cultural Studies,Concordia University
Christopher Manson Graduate Programm, Documentary Media, Ryerson University
Ryan Walker  Ryerson University in the Photography Studies Certificate program
Annie Zielinski Photography Studies, Concordia University

Meera Margaret Singh Photography Studies, Concordia University
Jonathan Taggart  Photography Studies, Ryerson University
Dominic Nahr  Photography Studies, Ryerson University