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Call for Applicants: Textile Museum of Canada, Melissa Levin – Emerging Artist Award
Application Deadline: November 4, 2019, Midnight The Third Melissa Levin Emerging Artist Award will help take your work to...

Application Deadline: November 4, 2019, Midnight

The Third Melissa Levin Emerging Artist Award will help take your work to the next level:

  • Develop skills and enrich your knowledge of textiles in the context of historic and contemporary textile practices.
  • Increase your access to resources and opportunities that will support your efforts to explore, take artistic risks, and advance your practice to generate long-term artistic and career development.

WHO CAN APPLY?
Emerging artists from all disciplines are encouraged to apply, including artist collectives and collaborative projects. For the purpose of this award, an emerging artist is defined as one who has begun to make an impact in their chosen field through exhibitions, community arts engagement or public presentations, and has been practicing professionally for at least three years. Applicants must be a Canadian citizen or permanent resident in Canada.

HOW TO APPLY
Submit the following in ONE email to 
MLEAA@textilemuseum.ca before midnight on November 4, 2019:

  1. 500-word (maximum) statement on your proposal, including how it connects to textiles and previous/current directions of your art practice.
  2. 50-word (maximum) summary of how you propose to use the funds.
  3. Two-page (maximum) resumé with clear indication of exhibition record, community engagement or public presentations in a professional context.
  4. Up to 10 jpeg images (72 dpi at 1000 pixels wide) of your work that relate to your application; or a film clip (up to 3 minutes long) documenting your work. Please provide a link.
  5. Project start date and end date (project completion no later than May 1, 2020).
  6. Name, mailing address, phone number, email address and website URL.

Award recipients will be notified by December 16, 2019. Incomplete applications will not be considered. Last year, we were able to provide 2 awards of $3000 each. The value of the 2019 Award is dependent on donations to the Fund.

The award is geared to helping emerging artists conduct self-directed activities such as art production, apprenticeships, residencies or research. If the applicant desires, the Textile Museum of Canada will support a customized program of research, including access to the library, exhibitions, and permanent collection of over 15,000 global artifacts, exposing the successful applicants to new worlds of inspiration.

Applications will be assessed on connections between the written proposal and the direction of the applicant’s art practice. Award recipient(s) must be prepared to present an illustrated talk at the Textile Museum of Canada within one year of the completion of the proposed course of activity.

Please direct any questions to MLEAA@textilemuseum.ca. No phone calls please.

JURORS
Nina Levitt is a visual artist and a professor in the Department of Visual Arts & Art History at York University. Nina initiated this program in honour of Melissa Levin, her life partner.
Sarah Quinton is Curatorial Director at the Textile Museum of Canada.
A third juror will be announced at a later date.

ABOUT MELISSA LEVIN
Melissa Levin (1958–2015) was an artist, mentor and teacher whose career as a textile and costume designer was synonymous with her exuberant love of colour and pattern. This fund was established in honour of Melissa’s passion for mentoring emerging artists, with generous donations made by family, friends and communities. 
melissalevinartist.com

ABOUT THE TEXTILE MUSEUM OF CANADA
The Textile Museum of Canada has been exploring ideas and building cultural understanding through the universal medium of textiles since 1975. Connecting international textile traditions to contemporary art and design, this national museum is one of Canada’s most engaging arts institutions, welcoming thousands of visitors from across the country and around the world each year. The Museum’s permanent collection spans 2,000 years and consists of over 14,000 artifacts from 200 countries and regions, uniquely positioning the Museum to speak to global culture as well as our increasingly global communities. A leader in the digitization of collections and interactive environments, the Textile Museum of Canada is recognized for its innovation in the development of landmark educational, research, and creative initiatives.

DONATE
If you are interested in donating to the Melissa Levin Emerging Artist Fund, please visit 
textilemuseum.ca/join-support/give or call 416-599-5321 x2246.

IMAGES, LEFT TO RIGHT: 2017 MLEAA winner Hannah Epstein, Mouser (detail), 2017; wool, acrylic, polyester, cotton; 55 x 41″ | 2018 MLEAA winner Meera Sethi, Persaud (Begum series), 2017; acrylic and mixed media on canvas; 30 x 48” | 2018 MLEAA winner Catherine Blackburn, But There’s No Scar? (detail), 2016; beads on deer hide 48″ X 48″

Textile Museum of Canada
55 Centre Avenue
Toronto, ON, M5G 2H5
416.599.5321
textilemuseum.ca

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