Banff Centre Names Françoise Lyon, Santee Smith, To Board of Governors

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From left, Santee Smith (photo by Make Emarthle) and Françoise E. Lyon (photo by Benedicte Brocard)

The Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity has named Santee Smith and Françoise E. Lyon to its Board of Governors.

With a background in finance and wealth management, Lyon was chair of the Board of Trustees of the National Gallery of Canada from 2017 to 2024, a role that was not without controversy. Before that, she was on the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts Foundation Board. 

Smith, Tekaronhiáhkhwa (Picking Up the Sky), is a multidisciplinary artist from the Kahnyen’kehàka (Mohawk) Nation in Ohswé:ken/Six Nations of the Grand River. She has been associated with the Banff Centre's Indigenous Arts, Dance, and Theatre departments since 1996.

Smith and Lyon join six public governors who were appointed by the Government of Alberta in 2024, a list that includes board chair Paul Baay, Brinna Brinkerhoff, Lori Paine, Naomi Schmold, Pinder Sandhu, and Myron Tétreault. Ron Hallman and Chris Lorway are also part of the current board.

Source: Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, Galleries West