A community art space on the Bonavista Peninsula is being recognize with a major prize.
Union House Arts, located in Port Union, has been awarded the Lacey Prize. UHA provides a space for artists to develop new works with special events and their yearly artist residency program, showcasing local talent.
Awarded by the National Gallery of Canada every two years, the prize sees $50,000 dollars go to a small art centre supporting visual arts in the country. It also sees a National Gallery art curator travel to visit the winning organization to meet with local artists.
Programming Director with UHA, Bethany MacKenzie, says the prize comes at a really crucial time for the organization’s growth.
She says they’ve been operating at a limited capacity with only one staff member, but now they will have support for staff and more programming, She says they will be able to put the money back out into the community to give artists opportunities that they otherwise would not have in rural Newfoundland.