Media advisory

Board of the Canada Council for the Arts to meet in New Brunswick
Annual Public Meeting in Moncton

Ottawa, September 24, 2009 – The Board of the Canada Council for the Arts will hold its quarterly meeting in Moncton and meet artists and arts organizations in Moncton, Fredericton and Saint John from September 29 to October 2. As part of their visit, the Board will hold its Annual Public Meeting on Wednesday, September 30 in Moncton.

The Board meets four times each year – three times in Ottawa, and once in another region of Canada. During its working sessions, the Board will deal with its usual business matters. The Board members will also take advantage of their visit to New Brunswick to meet with the New Brunswick arts community at an open reception for the arts community and will also visit a number of arts organizations. The following are key events:

- A reception for the arts community of New Brunswick on the evening of Tuesday, September 29th at Capitol Theatre, 811 Main Street, from 5 to 7 p.m.
- A presentation on Sistema New Brunswick by the New Brunswick Youth Orchestra on the morning of Wednesday, September 30th.
- The Annual Public Meeting will take place on Wednesday, September 30th at 4 p.m. at the Théâtre l'Escaouette, 170 Botsford Street, Moncton. All Board members will be present at the meeting. Please contact publicmeeting@canadacouncil.ca or call 1-800-263-5588 ext. 4678 by Friday, September 25 to RSVP. All are welcome to attend this event.
- A walking tour of Saint John in the afternoon of Thursday, October 1 with stops at Saint John Arts Centre, Saint John City Market, Handworks Gallery, CentreBeam Place, Peter Buckland Gallery, Klausen Gallery, Tim Isaac Gallery & Antiques, and New Brunswick Museum.
- The opening of Beaverbrook Art Gallery’s 50th Anniversary Legacy at 5 p.m., Friday, October 2 (703 Queen Street, Fredericton). The exhibit will feature 50 prominent Canadian artists who have donated works of art to the gallery’s collection in celebration of its 50th anniversary. Canada Council Director and CEO Robert Sirman will open the exhibit.

Members of the Council Board are appointed by the Government of Canada from across the country. The chair is Joseph L. Rotman, appointed in August 2008, and the director and CEO is Robert Sirman, who joined the Council in June 2006. Appointed for four-year terms, the current Board includes two members from New Brunswick as well as: vice-chair Simon Brault (CEO of the National Theatre School of Canada and president of Culture Montréal), Montreal; Barbara Burley, St. Andrews, NB; Tom Hill, Ohsweken, ON; Susan Mary (Dyer) Knight, St. John's, NL; Luc LaRochelle, Montreal; Jerry Mazzerole, Inkerman, NB; Philip G. Ponting, Calgary; Anna Porter, Toronto; Jean Saucier, Montreal; and Rosemary L. Vodrey, Winnipeg. Biographies are available on in the About Us section of the Council's website, www.canadacouncil.ca.

To arrange an interview, contact Grace Thrasher at 1-800-263-5588, ext. 5145 (cell: 613-795-3669).

Canada Council for the Arts
The Canada Council for the Arts is a federal Crown corporation created by an Act of Parliament in 1957. The role of the Council is to foster and promote the study and enjoyment of, and the production of works in, the arts. To fulfill this mandate, the Council offers a broad range of grants and services to professional Canadian artists and arts organizations in dance, integrated arts, media arts, music, theatre, visual arts, and writing and publishing. It also promotes public awareness of the arts through its communications, research and arts promotion activities.

The Council administers the Killam Program of scholarly awards, the Governor General's Literary Awards and the Governor General's Awards in Visual and Media Arts. The Canadian Commission for UNESCO and the Public Lending Right Commission operate within the Council. The Canada Council Art Bank, which has some 17,400 works of contemporary Canadian art in its collection, rents to the public and private sectors.

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Media contact:
Grace Thrasher 613-566-4414 or 1-800-263-5588, ext. 5145
grace.thrasher@canadacouncil.ca
Carole Breton 613-566-4414 or 1-800-263-5588, ext. 4523
carole.breton@canadacouncil.ca

Visit our web site at www.canadacouncil.ca.

Tous les documents du Conseil des Arts du Canada sont offerts en français et en anglais.

350 Albert Street
Post Office Box 1047
Ottawa, Ontario K1P 5V8
www.canadacouncil.ca

350, rue Albert
Case postale 1047
Ottawa (Ontario) K1P 5V8
www.conseildesarts.ca