Pictured here, people admire the artwork shared at the 2019 Hazee Art Awards. The awards will go ahead at a later date this year, once the COVID-19 pandemic subsides. (submitted photo/Matt Jacques)

By Martin Martinson

Celebrating the Arts

Hazee Awards postponed, but not cancelled, among COVID-19 pandemic

Apr 3, 2020 | 6:06 PM

The Chapel Gallery announced this week, the postponement of its second annual Hazee Art Awards, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last spring marked the inaugural year of the Hazee Art Awards for Young Artists, a night designed to celebrate the creativity and imagination of youth in the Battlefords and area, aged 11 to 20.

Pictured left to right: Don Asmussen (Hazel Asmussen’s son), with 2019 Artist of the Year winner Landis Roan, and Nora and Rob Rongve at the inaugural Hazee Art Award celebration, held last year in North Battleford. (Angela Brown/battlefordsNOW Staff)

Leah Garven is the curator and manager of galleries for the city of North Battleford. She said while they discussed possibly hosting the awards virtually over the internet, ultimately the decision was made to postpone the evening until a later date, to allow all the artists to come together to celebrate and share their work in community.

While the deadline for this year’s applicants was initially April 12, Garven said with the event itself being pushed back several months, and no one at the gallery to take in submitted artwork for the time being, that deadline will be moved back until sometime in the fall. The postponement allows further time for those interested in entering, to work on and submit their piece; something she hopes all interested youth consider doing.

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“I encourage youth to try doing the Hazee, even if they [may not] think they are good enough,” Garven said. “We had awards for 12-year-olds to 16-year-olds and it is really about [celebrating] the story you have to tell. I encourage everyone to use this time to push their creativity, and I would like to thank Rob and Nora Rongve’s family fund for encouraging the youth to create art.”

Rob and Nora Rongve launched the Hazee Art Awards at the Chapel Gallery last year in honour of Hazel “Hazee” Asmussen, a local artist who passed away just over 10 years ago. Rongve told battlefordsNOW when it began, the awards night is designed to “celebrate art and artists in the community, and hopefully encourage kids to take up the arts and show off what they can do.”

Garven echoed that sentiment, saying there is great value in supporting youth to take an interest in the arts.

“The arts can teach confidence, just like sports do, along with different ways of thinking,” Garven said. “It helps with problem solving and can be really fulfilling and very healing for people. It is a good way of learning more about yourself and I think more than anything, to celebrate imagination.”

For more information, or to apply for the Hazee Awards, click here.

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Martin.Martinson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: MartyMartyPxP1