Saidye Bronfman Award 2004: Maurice Savoie, Exhibition unveiled at the Canadian Museum of Civilization
Gatineau, Quebec, October 15, 2004 — In celebration of the 28th anniversary of the Saidye Bronfman Award, the exhibition Saidye Bronfman Award 2004: Maurice Savoie opens today at the Canadian Museum of Civilization. The exhibition showcases the work of renowned Canadian ceramist Maurice Savoie, recipient of the 2004 Saidye Bronfman Award for excellence in the crafts, and it will be on display until September 11, 2005.
"The Museum is very interested in crafts and design, both for the beauty they add to our lives and for their illustration of broader social themes," said Dr. Victor Rabinovitch, President and CEO of the Canadian Museum of Civilization Corporation. "Our long-standing partnership with the Samuel and Saidye Bronfman Family Foundation has enabled us to continue to build the largest collection of contemporary craft in Canada and to honour recipients such as Maurice Savoie."
Maurice Savoie is one of Canada's pre-eminent ceramic artists, and his career in Canada and abroad has spanned more than 50 years. From his earliest murals and architectural projects in the 1960s, to his ceramic tableware prototypes for mass production in the 1970s and his current sculptural artwork, Savoie has created a wide range of innovative work. His work shows how ceramics can be allied with architecture, be applied to production work for mass distribution or stand on their own as creative objects that seek to delight and inspire.
Symbolism has greatly influenced Maurice Savoie, and his mythological beasts and toy-like objects serve as humorous commentary on our society. His ideas come from many sources including nature, art history, his own curiosity and his love of playing and of story-telling. One piece entitled "Noah's Ark" features the animals that one would expect, but also a "King Kong" figure in the hold of the ship.
The exhibition Saidye Bronfman Award 2004: Maurice Savoie presents the various aspects of Savoie's work in ceramics, starting with photographic images of his architectural installations, such as a mural made of stoneware and cables for the Quebec Pavilion at Montréal's Expo 67 and a cement, clay and pigment mural completed in 1984, called "The River" and created for the Canadian Chancery in Belgrade.
The exhibition includes Savoie's works from the Canadian Museum of Civilization, the Claridge Collection in Montréal and the artist's studio from the 1970s to the present. It features a number of functional and affordable ceramic pieces for consumers such as vases, cups, mugs and decanters. These pieces were designed by Savoie and mass-produced by the ceramic company SIAL II. Although common practice for today's designers, this was an innovative concept in the 1970s.
Saidye Bronfman Award 2004: Maurice Savoie will be presented at the Canadian Museum of Civilization until September 11, 2005. The award is presented by the Samuel and Saidye Bronfman Family Foundation, in partnership with the Canadian Museum of Civilization and the Canada Council for the Arts.
For further information on the Saidye Bronfman Award and profiles of previous recipients, visit http://www.civilization.ca/arts/bronfman/brint01e.html
Media Information:
Heather A. Hatch
Saidye Bronfman Foundation
The Haley Group
Tel.: (416) 961-2220
Media Relations Officer
Canadian Museum of Civilization
Tel.: (819) 776-7169
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