2025 Sobey Art Award longlist revealed

April 16, 2025

The prize recognizes 30 exceptional contemporary visual artists from across Canada

The 30 longlisted artists, hailing from coast to coast to coast, for the 2025 Sobey Art Award, Canada’s preeminent contemporary visual arts award, were announced today by the National Gallery of Canada (NGC) and the Sobey Art Foundation (SAF). Last year, a sixth region – Circumpolar – was added to increase representation from across the country. The richest award in the country and one of the most generous in the world, the Sobey Art Award propels the careers of artists, of all ages, through financial support and recognition in Canada and beyond. A total of $465,000 in prize money, funded by the Sobey Art Foundation, will be awarded. The six shortlisted artists, whose names will be unveiled on June 3, will be featured in an exhibition at the National Gallery of Canada next fall (October 3, 2025, to February 8, 2026).

The 2025 Sobey Art Award longlisted artists are:

Circumpolar
Darcie Bernhardt
Tarralik Duffy
Megan Jensen
Shirley Moorhouse
Mathew Nuqingaq

Pacific
Charles Campbell
Hazel Meyer
Michelle Sound
Charlene Vickers
Tania Willard

Prairies
Christina Battle
Molly JF Caldwell
Erika Jean Lincoln
Jessie Ray Short
Chukwudubem Ukaigwe

Ontario
Sandra Brewster
Christian Chapman
Sarindar Dhaliwal
Morris Lum
Shellie Zhang

Quebec
Joyce Joumaa
Michelle Lacombe
Leisure (Susannah Wesley & Meredith Carruthers)
Malena Szlam Salazar
Swapnaa Tamhane

Atlantic
Hangama Amiri
Erin Hunt
Megan Samms
Miya Turnbull
Nelson White

“We’re thrilled to announce the 30 exceptional artists longlisted for the 2025 Sobey Art Award,” said Jonathan Shaughnessy, Director, Curatorial Initiatives, NGC, and Chair of the 2025 Sobey Award Jury. “Providing a platform for Canada’s most pertinent artistic voices has long been a key pillar of the Award and something that is ever more consequential. This year’s selection, drawn from a strong pool of nominations is a testament to the compelling breadth and calibre of contemporary artmaking in this country. We are grateful to the Sobey Art Foundation for their continued partnership and generous support.”

“On behalf of the Sobey Art Award Foundation, our warmest congratulations to each of the deserving artists selected for the 2025 longlist,” said Rob Sobey, Chair of the Sobey Art Foundation. “Now in its 22^nd year, the Sobey Art Award is a great opportunity to learn about Canada’s contemporary cultural makeup. Together, with the National Gallery of Canada, we are very proud to be continuing our aim to promote Canadian contemporary art to national and international audiences.”

The winner will be announced on November 8, 2025, during an evening celebration at the National Gallery of Canada. The overall winner receives $100,000; each of the shortlisted artists receives $25,000; and each of the remaining longlisted artists receives $10,000.

For more information on the 2025 longlisted artists, please visit: https://www.gallery.ca/whats-on/sobey-art-award

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For media inquiries, please contact:

Josée-Britanie Mallet
Senior Officer, Media and Public Relations
National Gallery of Canada
bmallet@gallery.ca

Pénélope Carreau
Officer, Public Relations
National Gallery of Canada
pcarreau@gallery.ca

About the Sobey Art Award

The Sobey Art Award (SAA) is Canada’s preeminent prize for Canadian contemporary visual artists. Created in 2002 with funding from the Sobey Art Foundation (SAF), the SAA has helped to propel the careers of artists through financial support and recognition in Canada and beyond. The SAA has been jointly administered by the National Gallery of Canada (NGC) and SAF since 2016.

The past winners of the Sobey Art Award are: Brian Jungen (2002), Jean-Pierre Gauthier (2004), Annie Pootoogook (2006), Michel de Broin (2007), Tim Lee (2008), David Altmejd (2009), Daniel Barrow (2010), Daniel Young and Christian Giroux (2011), Raphaëlle de Groot (2012), Duane Linklater (2013), Nadia Myre (2014), Abbas Akhavan (2015), Jeremy Shaw (2016), Ursula Johnson (2017), Kapwani Kiwanga (2018), Stephanie Comilang (2019), Laakkuluk Williamson Bathory (2021), Divya Mehra (2022), Kablusiak (2023) and Nico Williams (2024).

About the Sobey Art Foundation

The Sobey Art Foundation was established in 1981 by the late Frank H. Sobey who was a dedicated collector of Canadian art. The Sobey Art Award was founded in 2002 as privately funded prizes for Canadian contemporary visual artists. The award aims to promote new developments in contemporary visual art and attract national and international attention to Canadian artists.

About the National Gallery of Canada

Founded in 1880, the National Gallery of Canada is among the world’s most respected art institutions. As a national museum, we exist to serve all Canadians, no matter where they live. We do this by sharing our collection, exhibitions and public programming widely. We create dynamic experiences that allow for new ways of seeing ourselves and each other through the visual arts, while centering Indigenous ways of knowing and being. Our mandate is to develop, preserve and present a collection for the learning and enjoyment of all – now and for generations to come. We are home to more than 90,000 works, including one of the finest collections of Indigenous and Canadian art, major works from the 14^th to the 21^st century and extensive library and archival holdings.

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