Aspiring Artist

Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the 2023 Creative Nova Scotia Awards. 

Presented by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council, the Creative Nova Scotia Awards celebrate excellence in artistic achievement.  

Award categories are as follows:

• Creative Community Impact
• Prix Grand-Pré
• Established Artist
• Emerging Artist
• Black Artist
• Indigenous Artist
• And finally, The Portia White Prize that is given to a person who has made outstanding and significant contributions to Nova Scotia’s creative community over a sustained career – much like the incredible woman that the award is named after. The winner will also choose an emerging artist or cultural organization that they feel deserve recognition.

Collectively, these awards are worth $75,000! Visit artsns.ca to nominate your favourite Nova Scotia based artist or be a boss and nominate yourself!

This series would not be possible without the fantastic production work of Heist and Keke Beatz.

On this episode I got to chat with Emerging Artist Award winner, Koumbie (she/they) and special guest Eleanor (she/her). Koumbie talks about how their interest in dance and performance arts led to script writing, filmmaking and becoming one of the first on-set intimacy coordinators in Nova Scotia.

On this episode, I chat with a chef for the first time on the podcast! Michelin-trained Gabrielle LeGuerrier, Head Chef of GourmetGab Events and Pertu gives some insight into the private dining events that she hosts with her husband, European Sommelier, Gabor Bodo.

Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the 2022 Creative Nova Scotia Awards. The awards are presented annually by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council.

The goal is to celebrate excellence in artistic achievement – notably, the Portia White Prize. Winners of the Prix Grand Pré, the Established Artist, Emerging Artist, Indigenous Artist Recognition and Black Artist Recognition awards as well as the Creative Community Impact Award are also honoured. Collectively, the awards are worth $75,000.

Visit artsns.ca to nominate a Nova Scotia based artist or apply for awards and grants for yourself.

On this episode I chat with 2022 Creative Nova Scotia Emerging Artist Recognition Award recipient, I’thandi Munro. I’thandi is a multi-disciplinary artist whose love of movement travels through all of her art from metalsmithing to dance. We talk about the value of sticking with the first idea you feel strongly about in the creative process, being inspired by your children and the freedom that mastering your craft through repetition offers artists.

Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the 2022 Creative Nova Scotia Awards. The awards are presented annually by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council.

The goal is to celebrate excellence in artistic achievement – notably, the Portia White Prize. Winners of the Prix Grand Pré, the Established Artist, Emerging Artist, Indigenous Artist Recognition and Black Artist Recognition awards as well as the Creative Community Impact Award are also honoured. Collectively, the awards are worth $75,000.

Visit artsns.ca to nominate a Nova Scotia based artist or apply for awards and grants for yourself.

On this episode I chat with Prix Grand Pré Award winner, Clara Dugas about being a professional storyteller. Clara tells us how she realized that her very personal stories were impactful when they helped her connect with students in her previous career as a teacher and how the passion blossomed from there.

Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the 2022 Creative Nova Scotia Awards. The awards are presented annually by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council.

The goal is to celebrate excellence in artistic achievement – notably, the Portia White Prize. Winners of the Prix Grand Pré, the Established Artist, Emerging Artist, Indigenous Artist Recognition and Black Artist Recognition awards as well as the Creative Community Impact Award are also honoured. Collectively, the awards are worth $75,000.

Visit artsns.ca to nominate a Nova Scotia based artist or apply for awards and grants for yourself.

On this episode I chat with 2022 Creative Nova Scotia Emerging Artist Recognition Award recipient, Tyshan Wright. We talk about Tyson’s creative process and how Jamaica and Nova Scotia’s intertwined histories influence his work.

Art Pays Me is sponsored and produced by Glitterati Communications.

Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the 2022 Creative Nova Scotia Awards. The awards are presented annually by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council.

The goal is to celebrate excellence in artistic achievement – notably, the Portia White Prize. Winners of the Prix Grand Pré, the Established Artist, Emerging Artist, Indigenous Artist Recognition and Black Artist Recognition awards as well as the Creative Community Impact Award are also honoured. Collectively, the awards are worth $75,000.

Visit artsns.ca to nominate a Nova Scotia based artist or apply for awards and grants for yourself.

On this episode I chat with Dancer, Sarah Prosper about receiving the Indigenous Artist Recognition Award, and how she’s living a life of dance.

Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the 2022 Creative Nova Scotia Awards. The awards are presented annually by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council. 

The goal is to celebrate excellence in artistic achievement – notably, the Portia White Prize. Winners of the Prix Grand Pré, the Established Artist, Emerging Artist, Indigenous Artist Recognition and Black Artist Recognition awards as well as the Creative Community Impact Award are also honoured. Collectively, the awards are worth $75,000.

Visit artsns.ca to nominate a Nova Scotia based artist or apply for awards and grants for yourself.

On this episode I chat with Nova Scotian music legend, Cyndi Cain about her music, spirituality and winning the Portia White Prize. We also talked about the meaning behind her brand, ‘We Been Here’ and why she’s passionate about working with creative youth.

On this episode I chat with Ash Young, the Executive Director of the Inverness County Centre for the Arts. They are the recipient of the Creative Community Impact Award for. Ash gives some insight into the centre's beginnings, their program offerings and why they are important to Inverness County and Beyond. 

We talk about early days as an artist and letting go of fear to make the work we were meant to create. We also talk about the role of spirituality in her music and why I should commit to my goal of one day visiting Africa.

In addition to the music, Domanique is truly an enterprising artist with a lot on the go; to start, she has landed major  sync placements with L’Oreal Paris, Unilever Brands (Dove, Vaseline, Shea Moisture) and more, Led a sold-out TEDx Talk with a full performance, Featured at Uganda’s Pepsi World AIDS Day for audience of 40,000+, has headlined her own shows and opened for TIFF film premieres to Mr. Vegas, Grammy-Award Winning artists Eddy Kenzo and Wale, to being the featured performer at events including Black Diamond Ball Awards, the United Nations, and more. Domanique produced RBC's The Imagine Summit, supporting artist-entrepreneurs in imagining beyond the limitations of the current global climate, by offering exclusive access to industry leaders, mindfulness training and financial resources.

Connect with Domanique: Website | Spotify| Instagram | Twitter | TikTok | YouTube

Welcome to a special series of Art Pays Me interviews with the winners of the 2022 Creative Nova Scotia Awards. The awards are presented annually by Arts Nova Scotia and the Creative Nova Scotia Leadership Council. 

The goal is to celebrate excellence in artistic achievement – notably, the Portia White Prize. Winners of the Prix Grand Pré, the Established Artist, Emerging Artist, Indigenous Artist Recognition and Black Artist Recognition awards as well as the Creative Community Impact Award are also honoured. Collectively, the awards are worth $75,000.

Visit artsns.ca to nominate a Nova Scotia based artist or apply for awards and grants for yourself.

On this episode I chat with 2022 Creative Nova Scotia Emerging Artist Recognition Award recipient, Andre Fenton. Andre talks about his early interest in writing, telling stories and his yearning for characters that reflected his experience and his community. Today he's creating those stories and characters himself. We talk about Andre's creative process and he lets us know what it means to him to be acknowledged for his contributions to the Nova Scotian creative scene.