About

By supporting and mobilizing Canadian creative talent, the Middlebrook Prize for Young Canadian Curators aims to inspire positive social change through creativity and connectedness in a time of unprecedented economic, environmental, social, and cultural challenges.

The first of its kind in Canada, during an annual call for submissions, the Middlebrook Prize invites curators under the age of 30 to submit an innovative proposal for an exhibition at our gallery partner, Art Gallery of Guelph.

Statement from Randall Howard, Prize Co-Founder

Middlebrook Prize is unique in bringing a modern mentorship approach to build a cohort of leaders who will shape the future in Canada’s visual arts community,. Informed by playbooks from the technology startup ecosystem, the prize focuses support and attention on young professionals at a critical point in their careers, when opportunities are few and far between and resources are typically scarce. The applicants, all under 30 years of age, are among the country’s best and the brightest young curators, scholars and artists. They are asked to demonstrate, through a proposal, their intellectual curiosity and considerable creative insights around the construction of an exhibition, and in return the winner is given a venue, an audience and the necessary support to disseminate their ideas to the broader public. Middlebrook is a national prize with national and international reach, while maintaining a commitment to community engagement and social innovation.