Then Governor-General Ray Hnatyshyn does the inspection of the guards at Rideau Hall after his swearing in ceremony in Ottawa on Jan. 29, 1990.PAUL CHIASSON/CP
Celebrating its two decades of existence with a substantial monetary gesture, Canada’s Hnatyshyn Foundation has established a $200,000 fund in support of Ukrainian artists.
The private charity, established by the late Right Honourable Ramon John (Ray) Hnatyshyn and his wife, Gerda Hnatyshyn, will offer 20 prizes of $10,000 to performing artists of Ukrainian-Canadian heritage, and for Ukrainian performing artists, including those displaced by war.
The foundation’s intent is to “celebrate the vibrancy and resilience of Ukrainian culture, identity and spirit, here in Canada and in Ukraine,” Ms. Hnatyshyn said in a press statement. “We want our program to strengthen ties between artists through the unique power of the arts.”
Ukrainian-Canadian and Ukrainian artists 35 years of age and younger are eligible for the Ukraine – Heritage, Spirit and Future awards. They encompass 10 categories, from traditional Ukrainian choral music and dance to modern vocal and classical performance.
Mr. Hnatyshyn – the modest, genial grandson of a Ukrainian immigrant family – rose to become Canada’s 24th governor-general. The Hnatyshyns served at Rideau Hall from 1990 to 1995.
Mr. Hnatyshyn first made his mark in Ottawa as a Progressive Conservative politician, serving in the cabinets of both Joe Clark and Brian Mulroney. One of his proudest moments, he once said, was to return to his ancestral homeland as governor-general after Ukraine won independence in 1991 when the Soviet Union collapsed.
When he was governor-general, Mr. Hnatyshyn and his wife made the work of Canadian musicians and actors their special cause, inaugurating the Governor-General’s Performing Arts Awards in 1992. The gala takes place every spring at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa.
Mr. Hnatyshyn died of pancreatic cancer in 2002 at age 68. Since then, the charity that bears the Hnatyshyn name has disbursed more than $4-million in artist grants.
The foundation’s most recent major project was the establishment of the REVEAL Indigenous Art Awards in 2017. Cash awards of $10,000 each were given to 150 Indigenous artists for the creation of artistic works. Recipients included Tara Williamson, Drew Hayden Taylor, Tanya Tagaq, Eden Robinson, Kent Monkman, Tomson Highway, Beatrice Deer, Cliff Cardinal, Celeigh Cardinal and Susan Aglukark.
Applications for the Ukraine – Heritage, Spirit and Future grants will be accepted online until Sept. 19, 2022, on the Hnatyshyn Foundation’s website. A gala fundraiser concert, featuring the successful artists, is scheduled for Sept. 16, 2023, at the Jubilee Auditorium in Edmonton. The proceeds will be used to restore or rebuild a cultural centre or cultural space in Ukraine.
“We are grateful to the Hnatyshyn Foundation for recognizing and celebrating Ukraine’s rich cultural legacy in Canada and for providing solidarity and support to Ukrainian artists even as Russia wages unjustified war on Ukraine, its people, history and culture,” Yuliya Kovaliv, Ukraine’s ambassador to Canada, said in a statement.
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