2022 Scholarships & Awards Winners
The Board of Directors for the Red Deer Arts Council are thrilled to announce the winners of the 2022 Awards & Scholarships program for the Red Deer Arts Council. We are so happy to have been able to continue the scholarships and Awards program throughout the pandemic, but there was something lost in Zoom ceremonies, so we were grateful to be able to celebrate the winners in person on June 23rd at our new office location in the Imperial Block, downtown Red Deer.
Hosted by Board Secretary Lorna Johnson, we were very pleased to welcome all the winners either via Zoom or in person to the space for the event. This year, we are pleased to support developing visual, literary, and performing artists in our community!
We always acknowledge our scholarship committee volunteers who help develop the program each year, and to our jury members for giving their time and consideration in evaluating your submissions.
RDC Music Society Scholarship – Zoe McCormick 
Zoe McCormick, 21 years old, of Ponoka, is our 3rd winner of the RDC Music Society Scholarship. She is an accomplished Soprano and Violinist studying at Burman University in Lacombe. In 2021 & 2022, she awarded first prize in ‘Excellence in Classical Voice’ at the Alberta Music Provincials and received multiple scholarships for both her academic excellence and her musicianship. She is Concertmaster of the University’s Symphony Orchestra and plays First Violin in the Early Music Ensemble. Zoe is presently engaged to past Princess Margaret Award winner, pianist Matthew Peavoy, who often accompanies her performances, and she runs a small music studio from her home. She will be representing Alberta at the Canada West Music Competition in Saskatchewan in July and we wish her all the best in her continuing studies, and we look forward to following your progress in the future.
Centennial Scholarship for Secondary Students – Ainsley Nivens
Princess Margaret Scholarship for Post-Secondary Students - Cova Brouwer
Our final scholarship awarded this year is the Princess Margaret Scholarship, an award sponsored by the City of Red Deer and administered by the Red Deer Arts Council. This evening’s winner is Cova Brouwer. Cova just completed her fourth year at Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia and is now moving to Los Angeles to work with Netflix creators after just getting married. She joined us at the award ceremony via Zoom because as she was on her Honeymoon in Tennessee. Cova has completed a feature film centered on Drumheller and the Red Deer River Valley and the funds from this scholarship will contribute towards continued development of a feature film script set in Canada’s North. Our sincerest congratulations on the win and the wedding! Best wishes to you and your new husband for your future together!
Emerging Artist Award – Sabrina Samuel
(Photo by Emilie Hatch)
Artwalk Developing Visual Artist Award – Marianne Harris
Our final award of the year is the Artwalk Developing Visual Artist Award, which was granted to Marianne Harris. Working in watercolour and acrylics, Marianne is also a photography enthusiast as it offers inspiration for new paintings. She also adds mixed media for texture and visual appeal to her works focusing on rural landscapes, people, florals, animals. Paintwerx is Marianne’s art business, featuring her home gallery and studio where she teaches painting technique to many students throughout Central Alberta. She has been part of many group and solo exhibitions around Central Alberta for nearly 3 decades and she continues to develop her craft. She will be putting her award fund towards a new website attending some upcoming workshops. Congratulations Marianne! We hope to see your art continue to grow in coming years.
Thank you all, once again for joining us this evening to celebrate your achievements in arts, culture, and creativity. We see a bright future for the arts in Red Deer thanks to you. Congratulations once again to our winners.
