Adrian Stimson Appointed New AUArts Chair

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Adrian Stimson

Adrian Stimson has been appointed as the new chair of Alberta University of the Arts (AUArts.)

A member of the Siksika (Blackfoot) Nation in Treaty 7, Stimson — also a Galleries West contributor — becomes the first Indigenous board chair in the 98-year history of the Calgary arts institution. He has been a public AUArts board member since 2021.

Stimson has been appointed for a term of three years, beginning Mar. 20. 

“I am humbled and honoured to take on this role,” said Stimson in a news release. “The university is an important incubator for artists, designers and craftspeople; it is a place where we build capacities to reflect on our shared histories and inspire creative futures.”

He replaces M. Carol Ryder, who has been the AUArts board chair for the past decade. 

“Adrian Stimson is an amazing artist and leader who brings a regional, national and international perspective to Alberta University of the Arts,” said AUArts president and CEO Dr. Daniel Doz in the release. “With AUArts’ centennial on the horizon, Adrian is ideally positioned to lead the board as we look at envisioning and building the next 100 years.”

Stimson is an interdisciplinary artist whose work is in museum collections across North America and the United Kingdom. A Canadian Armed Forces veteran, Stimson was a civilian participant in the Canadian Forces Artist Program. As part of the program, he went to Afghanistan in 2010.

In 2023, Team Stimson (Adrian Stimson, LeuWebb Projects and the MBTW Group) was awarded the commission for the National Monument to Canada's Mission in Afghanistan in Ottawa. 

Stimson was awarded the Alumni of Influence award in 2020 from the University of Saskatchewan in 2020, the Governor General’s Award for Visual and Media Arts in 2018, the REVEAL Indigenous Arts Award –Hnatyshyn Foundation 2017 and the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal in 2003.

Source: AUArts

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