Allison Katz Awarded the 2023 Gershon Iskowitz Prize
Portrait of Allison Katz. Photo: Amy Gwatkin
Allison Katz Awarded the 2023 Gershon Iskowitz Prize
The Gershon Iskowitz Foundation in partnership with the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) has awarded Allison Katz the 2023 Gershon Iskowitz Prize at the AGO. The award, which includes a $75,000 cash award as well as a solo presentation at the AGO is presented annually to an artist who has made an outstanding contribution to the visual arts in Canada.
Internationally renowned for her cerebral approach to painting, Montreal-born, UK-based artist Allison Katz transforms everyday objects and spaces into enticing visual allusions. Defying traditional painterly categories, her images blur realism with the fantastic, incorporating wordplay and literary, historical and autobiographic details to upend viewers’ expectations. In 2022 Katz presented a much-celebrated series of new works at the 59th Venice Biennale and in 2024, Katz was both artist and curator of an expansive group exhibition at the Aspen Art Museum.
Allison Katz, Blondie, 2013 – 2021 © Allison Katz. Photo: Eva Herzog
‘Katz has received widespread critical recognition, yet her achievements in painting have yet to be celebrated significantly in Canada. So, while it may seem an unusual gesture for the Gershon Iskowitz Prize to select an artist to bring ‘home’, it also feels extremely timely.’
—Jay Smith
Jurors for the 2023 Gershon Iskowitz Prize at the AGO are: artist and recipient of the 2022 Gershon Iskowitz Prize, Tim Whiten; November Paynter, Artistic Director and Chief Curator, Lassonde Art Trail Foundation; and two Directors of the Iskowitz Foundation: Jay Smith, collector; and Stephan Jost, Michael and Sonja Koerner Director and CEO of the Art Gallery of Ontario.
Allison Katz is represented by Hauser & Wirth, Antenna Space, Gió Marconi and dépendance. The AGO will present an intimate installation of Katz’s new and recent works this summer with more details to be announced in spring.
About the Gershon Iskowitz Foundation
The Gershon Iskowitz Foundation is a private charitable foundation established in 1986 through the generosity of painter Gershon Iskowitz (1919 – 1988). Iskowitz recognized the importance of grants in the development of artists in Canada, in particular acknowledging that a grant from the Canada Council in 1967 gave him the freedom to create his distinctive style. Iskowitz’s works are in public and private collections across Canada and abroad. The Foundation’s principal activity is the designation of the Prize which is unique in that one can neither apply nor be nominated. A second distinct characteristic which many of the recipients have commented on is that the Prize is an excellent example of an artist supporting other artists. Iskowitz himself was actively involved in designating the Prize in its first years; after his death this responsibility passed to juries composed of trustees of the Foundation and invited artists and curators. The achievements of the first 20 years of the Foundation and the Prize are detailed in The Gershon Iskowitz Prize 1986 – 2006; the work of subsequent winners is included on the Foundation’s web site, www.iskowitzfoundation.ca
About the Gershon Iskowitz Prize and AGO
At the 20-year mark of the Prize, the Foundation formed a collaborative partnership with the Art Gallery of Ontario to raise awareness of the importance of the Prize and through it, the visual arts in Canada. The AGO is home to Gershon Iskowitz’s archives, which include early works on paper, sketchbooks and memorabilia, and it holds 29 paintings by Iskowitz spanning 1948 to 1987 in its collection. Beginning in 2006, in addition to a substantial financial award, the Prize included a solo exhibition of the winner’s work at the museum. Among the 36 previous recipients of the Prize are Liz Magor, Betty Goodwin, General Idea, Stan Douglas, John Massey, Irene F. Whit tome, Françoise Sullivan, Geoffrey Farmer, Brian Jungen, Michael Snow, Kim Adams, Rebecca Belmore and Ken Lum. Faye HeavyShield was the recipient of the 2021 Gershon Iskowitz Prize at the AGO, and Tim Whiten was the recipient of the 2022 Gershon Iskowitz Prize at the AGO. The AGO will host exhibitions of their work in 2025.
About the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO)
Located in Toronto, the Art Gallery of Ontario is one of the largest art museums in North America, attracting approximately one million visitors annually. The AGO Collection of more than 120,000 works of art ranges from cutting-edge contemporary art to significant works by Indigenous and Canadian artists and European masterpieces. The AGO presents wide-ranging exhibitions and programs, including solo exhibitions and acquisitions by diverse and underrepresented artists from around the world. The AGO is embarking on the seventh expansion it has undertaken since the museum was founded in 1900. When completed, the Dani Reiss Modern and Contemporary Gallery will increase exhibition space for the museum’s growing modern and contemporary collection. With its groundbreaking Annual Pass program, the AGO is one of the most affordable and accessible attractions in the GTA. Visit ago.ca to learn more.
The AGO is funded in part by the Ontario Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Gaming. Additional operating support is received from the City of Toronto, the Canada Council for the Arts, and generous contributions from AGO Members, donors, and private-sector partners.
