Scotiabank Caribana 2010 and Ipsos Reid release Economic Impact Study Results

Economy and Tourism get big boost from annual Festival

TORONTO, April 27 /CNW/ - With the Honourable Michael Chan, Minister of Tourism and Culture at his side, Scotiabank Caribana chairman Joe Halstead today announced the results of an Ipsos Reid Economic Impact Study. The third party survey conducted last year, reports that Scotiabank Caribana creates thousands of jobs, draws tourists to Toronto and adds hundreds of millions of dollars to the economy every year.
"Scotiabank Caribana 2009 contributed in excess of $396 million to the provincial GDP - 79% of this gain was generated in Toronto and surrounding areas," said Joe Halstead, CEO of the annual festival. "The survey results demonstrate the economic impact that this great festival has on our city's economy, benefitting all levels of government. The Ipsos Reid analysis calculates that total tax receipts were in excess of $198 million last summer with the Federal Government being the largest beneficiary (taking in some 55% of total revenues generated)."

"Despite the rising dollar and a change in passport requirements at the US border, Scotiabank Caribana continues to be a tourism magnet attraction," continued Mr. Halstead. "Ipsos Reid reports that 1.2 million people attended the Festival last year - 171,000 from the United States and a further 130,000 from the Caribbean, South America, Europe and Asia."
Michael Chan, the Provincial Minister of Tourism and Culture, commented on the tourism engine known as Scotiabank Caribana.
"Scotiabank Caribana plays an important role in our tourism industry by attracting new visitors and raising Ontario's international profile. By investing in the Festival, we also support our government's five-year Open Ontario Plan to create economic growth and jobs for Ontarians," said Minister Chan.
After releasing the new study, Scotiabank Caribana announced a major new media sponsor and new promotional and sponsor agreements with all media partners. The declaration was made at a special "kick-off" press conference held in the Royal Ontario Museum's Queen's Park Rotunda.
The producers of the annual festival - the Festival Management Committee (FMC), have also announced a new print media partner. The Toronto Star along with Sway Magazine (premier lifestyle magazine for African and Caribbean Canadians), Eye Weekly and Canadian Immigrant Magazine, will deliver in-kind support to the province's marquee summer event in 2010.
CTV Toronto - home to Toronto's number 1 newscast CTV News at 6, and CP24 - Toronto's destination for breaking news, are now in the second year of a three-year sponsorship agreement with the Festival. Both broadcasters will deliver comprehensive in-kind support this summer, highlighted by a live parade broadcast on CP24, as well as the production and airing of public service announcements, editorial coverage throughout local newscasts and online coverage at CTV.ca and CP24.com.
"The strength of the Festival has always come from the support we receive from our growing list of corporate and media sponsors," said Joe Halstead. "Our sponsors give selflessly to our cause, knowing how much Scotiabank Caribana means to their audiences."
"We are very proud of the continued success of Scotiabank Caribana," said John Doig, Scotiabank Senior Vice-President Toronto Region. "With the increased support, this year's event will reach new heights of creativity and artistic and cultural expression, engaging the more than 1 million people who come out to make this event a success."
The morning press conference also announced that four major GTA public institutes and Tourism Toronto have teamed up with Scotiabank Caribana this year. The Royal Ontario Museum will once again host a juried art show of African Canadian Art, the Greater Toronto Airport Authority will sponsor steelpan concerts in-terminal for the enjoyment of international visitors and, new this year, the Ontario Science Centre will present further Scotiabank Caribana programming. Scotiabank Caribana Lime will remain at Ontario Place this year.
Corporate sponsors of this year's festival include: Scotiabank, The Federal Government, The Province of Ontario, the City of Toronto, Tourism Toronto, The Toronto Star, Sway Magazine, Eye Weekly, CTV, CP-24, Research In Motion (RIM)/BlackBerry, The Greater Toronto Airports Authority, Ontario Place, the Royal Ontario Museum, the Ontario Science Centre, The Toronto Library, Yorkgate Mall, Liberty Grand and Grace Kennedy Foods.

About Scotiabank Caribana


Scotiabank Caribana is an exciting three-week cultural explosion of Caribbean music, cuisine, revelry and visual and performing arts. Now in its 43rd year, the Festival has become a major international event and is the largest cultural festival of its kind in North America. As Carnival is an international cultural phenomenon, the great metropolis of Toronto and its environs will come alive as the city explodes with the pulsating rhythms and melodies of Calypso, Soca, Reggae, Hip Hop, Chutney, Steel Pan and Brass Bands, through Scotiabank Caribana. The Festival Management Committee oversees the running of North America's largest outdoor festival.
This year the Official Launch for Scotiabank Caribana will take place at noon on Thursday July 15th. The parade will be staged Saturday, July 31, 2010; 10:00 am - 6:00 pm. For complete listing information visit www.caribanafestival.com the only official website for the Festival.
For further information: Scotiabank Caribana 2010 Festival Office 263 Davenport Avenue, Lower Level, Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Tel., (416) 391-5608; Fax, (416) 391-5693, info@caribanafestival.com; Stephen Weir, Publicist, (416) 489-5868, (416) 801-3101 cell, Stephen@stephenweir.com
CUTLINE: Top: Two of the 10 Mas Dancers who performed for Scotiabank Caribana at the recently held Olympic Games. The two were at the Tuesday April 27th press launch for the Scotiabank Caribana Festival.
Second From Top: A well attended Press Conference which included dancers Danielle Ramjattan and Lysha de Freitas
Third: Bob Hepburn, Director, Community Relations and Communications for the Toronto Star, announced that his paper along with Sway and Eye Weekly are sponsoring this year's Scotiabank Caribana Festival.
Bottom: Group shot of speakers at the Media Launch for the 2010 Scotiabank Caribana festival. Provincial Minister (Culture/Tourism) Michael Chan is in the middle of the group.

Scotiabank Caribana 2010 - it all begins Tuesday April 27 at the Royal Ontario Museum 10am sharp. Media EvenT

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Scotiabank Caribana 2010 Launch / Press Conference

* Release of IMPORTANT Ipsos Reid Economic Impact Study
* Introduction of MAJOR Media Partner
* Introduction of NEW sponsors
* Release of OFFICIAL schedule/programme
* Minister of Tourism/Culture to speak

Tuesday April 27, 2010 10am sharp
Royal Ontario Museum
Main Floor Rotunda, Bloor St Entrance, Toronto

On Tuesday morning the Festival Management Committee will be holding a media launch for the 2010 Scotiabank Caribana Festival. The press conference is scheduled to last 45-minutes. There will be opportunities to interview Minister Michael Chan and Joe Halstead and our stakeholders.

Scheduled to speak:

* The Honourable Michael Chan, Minister of Tourism and Culture
* Scotiabank Caribana Chairman Joe Halstead
* Federal Government - TBA
* City of Toronto - Councillor Joe Mihevc
* John W. Doig, Senior Vice-President, Marketing
* Joel Peters, Vice-President Tourism Toronto
* William Thorsell CEO Royal Ontario Museum
* New major media partner

Costumed Mas Dancers (who appeared on stage at the Ontario Pavillion during the British Columbia Olympics) will be in attendance.
Live Pan Music.

CUTLINE: Minister Michael Chan

For further information contact:

Stephen Weir publicist
416-489-5868416-801-3101
stephen@stephenweir.com
www.caribanafestival.com

Flag this: Nova Scotia artist Tom Forrestall at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection for the closing day (April 25) of his 50-year retrospective

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Rare opportunity to meet acclaimed magic realist artist!
Nova Scotia artist Tom Forrestall at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection for the closing day of his 50-year retrospective

April 16, 2010 Kleinburg, ON — Acclaimed magic realist artist Tom Forrestall will be at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection on Sunday, April 25 to help close the retrospective exhibition of his work, Tom Forrestall: Paintings, Drawings, Writings. The Dartmouth, Nova Scotia painter will meet with visitors and sign copies of the exhibition publication.
Tom Forrestall will be at the McMichael gallery beginning at 1:30 p.m. to meet visitors and talk about the 50-year retrospective that has been on display at the gallery since January 30. There will be a docent-guided tour of the exhibition at 2:00 p.m. and Mr. Forrestall will then be available to sign copies of the exhibition publication, which was written by McMichael Executive Director and CEO, Tom Smart, and traces the development of Forrestall’s art and the depth of his long artistic career.
The exhibition, Tom Forrestall: Paintings, Drawings, Writings, organized and circulated by the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia and curated by Tom Smart, is a retrospective exhibition which chronicles the artist’s curious observations and exploration of his surroundings, the nature of his creativity, and the source of his visions, through his works. Forrestall’s art has been classified as Magic Realism—a term used to describe the work of a coterie of East Coast Canadian painters who emerged after the Second World War (Forrestall, Alex Colville, Christopher Pratt, and Mary Pratt). Although their geographic roots, styles and vocabularies were similar, these artists applied themselves differently, each adapting naturalism in a personal way.
Tom Forrestall is one of the leading figures associated with the visual arts in the Maritime region. His work has been exhibited and is represented in every major public collection in the region and beyond, including numerous solo exhibitions in prominent galleries worldwide.
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About the Gallery

The McMichael Canadian Art Collection is an agency of the Government of Ontario and acknowledges the support of the Ministry of Culture. It is the foremost venue in the country showcasing the Group of Seven and their contemporaries. In addition to touring exhibitions, its permanent collection consists of more than 5,500 artworks, including paintings by the Group of Seven and their contemporaries, First Nations, and Inuit artists. The gallery is located on Islington Avenue, north of Major Mackenzie Drive in Kleinburg, and is open daily from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Admission is $15 for adults, $12 for seniors/students and $30 for families. There is a $5 fee for parking. For more information about the gallery visit www.mcmichael.com.

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Media Contact:
Stephen Weir, Publicist
Gallery: 905.893.1121 ext. 2529
Toronto Office: 416.489.5868
Cell: 416.801.3101
sweir@mcmichael.com
stephen@stephenweir.com
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CUTLINES: Top: Tom Forrestall backed into a corner! Photo taken during the set up of his retrospective at the McMichael Canadian Art Collection. Forrestall, a Nova Scotia artist, is know for his magic realism style of painting.
Bottom: Tom Forrestall and his daughter stand in front of the historic fireplace in the McMichael Canadian Art Collection's Founder's Lounge. The Canoe Lake sign is a railroad sign from Alqonquin Park - where Tom Thomson used to get off the train

McMichael Gallery recieves 7,500 Hallendy slide photographs on Cape Dorset

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The McMichael Canadian Art Collection is given the
Norman Hallendy Collection of Arctic images,
a significant donation that will enhance the public gallery’s Inuit holdings.

April 12, 2010 Kleinburg, ON—The McMichael Canadian Art Collection is proud to announce that it is the recipient of the Norman Hallendy Collection of Canadian Arctic images. The extensive collection of almost 7,500 colour images is the fifth significant donation made to the gallery over the past twenty years by internationally recognized ethnographer, author and photographer Norman E. Hallendy.
The images in the Norman Hallendy Collection are original 35-mm Kodachrome colour slides photographed by Mr. Hallendy over the past fifty years. He has made many expeditions to the Canadian Arctic to interact with and observe traditional Inuit communities and document their world. The images range in subject from inuksuit (stone figures), ancient and sacred sites, landscapes, seascapes, icebergs, natural environment and campsites, to the people of the Arctic, including artists—many of whom are represented in the art collection of the McMichael. As a respected and trusted friend to the Inuit elders, Mr. Hallendy has been granted the privilege of seeing and photographing inuksuit and ancient sites that others do not have access to.
“In terms of understanding the art and people of Kinngait (Cape Dorset), this is a defining moment for the McMichael Canadian Art Collection,” said Thomas Smart, Executive Director and CEO of the gallery. “It is the largest single donation of photographs, both in size and value, to come to this public institution. The slides brilliantly capture the essence of the people, the land, and the history of Kinngait.”
Since 1989, Mr. Hallendy has been donating his photographic work to the McMichael. Earlier donations include a smaller representation of colour slides taken in the Eastern Arctic, and a collection of rare black and white 35-mm negatives and photographs of Kinngait artists from 1968. He has also donated Inuit art including drawings, prints and sculpture. Norman Hallendy has transferred copyright for the images in this collection, and the earlier black & white photograph collections, to the McMichael Canadian Art Collection which will oversee the use and licensing of the Hallendy images in the future. This comprehensive photographic resource has significant research, documentary and educational potential, as well as spectacular aesthetic value.
“The acquisition of these images greatly enhances and supports our existing holdings of Inuit art, including the historic Cape Dorset archival collection on loan from the West Baffin Eskimo Co-operative,” continued Mr. Smart.
According to Mr. Smart, the Norman Hallendy Collection is a perfect complement for the approximately 100,000-object Cape Dorset collection of drawings, prints and sculpture. For the past twenty years the McMichael has been the custodian of this national treasure. Kinngait is a hamlet located on Dorset Island off the southwest tip of Baffin Island in Nunavut. Named after the mountains which make up the region (Kinngait means “high mountains”), Cape Dorset has become a centre for Inuit drawing, printmaking, and carving since the 1950s.

About the Gallery

The McMichael Canadian Art Collection is an agency of the Government of Ontario and acknowledges the support of the Ministry of Culture. It is the foremost venue in the country showcasing the Group of Seven and their contemporaries. In addition to touring exhibitions, its permanent collection consists of more than 5,500 artworks, including paintings by the Group of Seven and their contemporaries, First Nations and Inuit artists. The gallery is located at 10365 Islington Avenue, north of Major Mackenzie Drive in Kleinburg, and is open daily from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. For directions and information, visit www.mcmichael.com.

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Media Contact:

Stephen Weir, Publicist
Gallery: 905.893.1121 ext. 2529
Toronto Office: 416.489.5868
Cell: 416.801.3101
sweir@mcmichael.com / stephen@stephenweir.com

Cutline: Inuksuit at Inuksugalalait, Southwest Baffin, 1990
Norman Hallendy Collection
Gift of Norman E. Hallendy
McMichael Canadian Art Collection Archives

Five days later, the bar is raised again. Griffin adds an extra $100,00 in poetry prize money

Short List announced today at Le Select in Toronto

No sooner did I write that the Scotiabank had raised the bar for Canadian art prizes by creating a $50,000+ annual prize for photographers (see story below http://20minutesoffame.blogspot.com/2010/04/scotiabank-now-title-sponsor-of-contact.html), Scott Griffin goes and doubles it all down on his own dime five days later! Griffin announced at a press conference held in the back salon of Le Select Bistro in Toronto that he and his wife will be giving an extra $100,000 to poets this year!
Scott Griffin, founder of the privately funded Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry told a SRO press conference today that the annual Griffin Poetry Prize will be doubled from $100,000 to $200,000 in recognition of the prize's tenth anniversary.
In a press release handed out at the end of the 30-minute media event, Griffin explains how the extra money will be given out. "The increased amount of $100,000 will be awarded as follows: $10,000 to each of the seven shortlisted - four international and three Canadian - for their participation in the shortlist readings. The winners, announced at the Griffin Poetry Prize Awards evening on Thursday, June 3, 2010, will be awarded $65,000 each, for a total of $75,000 that includes the $10,000 awarded at the Readings the previous evening.
"The size of the prize reflects the importance the Trustees of The Griffin Trust For Excellence In Poetry place on poetry, and its influence on literature," continued Mr Griffin "The increased amount of the prize shared among the seven shortlisted poets underlines the importance of the poetry readings, and recognises all seven poets' books."
After announcing the increase in the poetry prize pot Griffin stayed at the podium and recited two EE Cumming poems from memory to the members of the press who attended the morning conference.


The short listed International authors are:

Grain, by John Glenday
A Village Life, by Louise Gluck
The Sun-fish, by Eilean Ni Chuilleanain
Cold Spring in Winter, Susan Wicks, translated from the French, written by Valerie Rouzeau

The Canadian short listed authors are:

The Certainty Dream, by Kate Hall
Coal and Roses, by P.K. Page
Pigeon, by Karen Solie

Cutlines: top: Scott Griffin announced that he is going to give away twice as much money this year than he did in 2009! The co-founder of the Griffin Trust will give away $200,000 in the 10th annual running of his poetry award. After making the announcement he recited two EE Cumming poems from memory to the members of the press who attended the morning press conference. The covers of the books written by the short listed authors hang behind Scott Griffin. Photo by sweir 6 April 2010
bottom: Arts & Minds reporter Tim Powis (middle) calls for quiet as he prepares to interview Scott Griffin following this morning's announcement. Bravo! got first crack at Canadian poetry's most generous patron.

Scotiabank makes CONTACT with the photography world -- the Toronto press conference

We are all photographers says Burtynsky
SCOTIABANK NOW HAS PICTURE PERFECT RELATIONSHIP WITH COUNTRY'S LARGEST PHOTO FESTIVAL

Scotiabank has upped the ante for the support of the arts ... again. On the last day of March, Scotiabank's public affairs department took over the uber-cool Nicholas Metivier Gallery on King Street in Toronto, to announce their title sponsorship of CONTACT, the World's Largest Photography festival and their creation of a yearly $50,000 cash and publishing award to a Canadian photographer.
"We are all photographers," said renowned Canadian photographer (and Ryerson Polytechnical Institute grad) Ed Burtynsky. " Canada is a nation of picture takers and CONTACT is a festival for all Canadians."
CONTACT, a not-for-profit organization based in Toronto has been celebrating the art of photography for 13-years. The association stages an annual month-long festival in May holding photography exhibitions at galleries and cafes throughout the city.
The Festival attracts both established photographers like Burtynsky and emerging photographers. Long on fans the Festival has traditionally been financially challenged, until now.
The Globe and Mail, one of the few media covering the press conference, reported that Scotiabank has long been a supporter, but now as the name sponsor its annual commitment to the Festival will be $150,000 a year beginning immediately. An additional annual $50,000 cash prize and a pre-negotiated book publishing deal (Steidl)will be handed out annually beginning in 2011.
The addition of the CONTACT Festival gives Scotiabank name recognition in the arts throughout the spring, summer and fall here in Toronto. Other festivals here in Toronto that have name sponsorship from the bank include: Scotiabank United Way Rat Race (June) Scotiabank Caribana (July 15 to August 2), Scotiabank Buskerfest (August), Scotiabank Toronto Waterfront Marathon (September), the all night Nuit Blanc (October),the Scotiabank Giller Prize (October/November) and the Christmas Cavalcade of Lights (November / December).
The creation of a $50,000 annual prize for a photographer immediately vaults the award into the same class as the $50,000 Giller, the $80,000 Griffin Trust For Excellence In Poetry, the $25,000 Charles Taylor Prize for Literary Non-Fiction and the Royal Bank's $25,000 Canadian Painting Competition.
"Canadian photography has reached a level that deserves to be recognized here in Canada, after all, photography - like all visual art -- is about communication," said Jane Nokes, Scotiabank Director of Corporate Archives and Fine Art. "Through the establishment of this Scotiabank Photography Award, we are helping engage Canadians in the photographic art scene and reward outstanding photographers for their contributions, a further support to their careers."
In announcing the new Photography Award, Burtynsky admitted that the details about the $50,000 prize are not available. "This is the framework" he said. "Stay tuned (for the small print)."
Burtynsky told the press conference attendees that in the first 20-years of his career he didn't have a published book of his work. Even though he didn't realize it then, the lack of a book hurt his career ... people upon seeing his work were suprised that they had never heard of him. After his first book was published, his fame spread around the world.
The power of the published book on the career of a photographer is one of the reason's that Burtynsky has gotten involved in the Photography Award. He will be one of three judges to hand out the yearly prize of $50,000 and the book deal with his European publisher.
The funding that Scotiabank is providing has allowed CONTACT to expand the content and the look of its website. For a preview of the first festival that is to bear the Scotiabank name visit www.contactphoto.com

CUTLINE: TOP: Ed Burtynsky,one of Canada's most successful landscape photographers, speaks at a morning press conference held inside the Nicholas Metivier Gallery, in Toronto.
BELOW:Scotiabank's Jane Nokes, watches from the wings as artist Ed Burtynsky speaks to the media.