NLAC Arts Awards
2010 Artist of the Year: Jessica Grant
2010 Arts Achievement Award: Marie Sharpe
The 26th annual Arts Awards took place Saturday, April 30, 2011 at the Reid Theatre in St. John’s.
Check back in the coming weeks to learn more about the other award winners...
Jessica Grant
Jessica Grant
St. John’s writer Jessica Grant is the author of the hugely successful 2009 novel Come, Thou Tortoise, and the 2004 story collection Making Light of Tragedy.
Come, Thou Tortoise won numerous awards including the 2009 Winterset Award, the 2009 Amazon.ca First Novel Award, the 2010 Downhome Fiction Award, the 2010 Ontario Library Association Evergreen Award, and the National Post’s 2010 Canada Also Reads competition. It was also a Globe and Mail Best Book for 2009. Their review called it, “extraordinary, original, and simultaneously both deep and lightheartedly charming.”
The book has been published in the UK, Germany, and the Netherlands; and the film rights have been optioned by Pope Productions of St. John’s.
Jessica’s short fiction and non-fiction have been published in various literary magazines, journals, and most recently, in Elle Canada and the Globe and Mail.
She teaches Creative Writing and introductory English at Memorial University and has been Writer-in-Residence at the university during the recent winter semester.
Q and A with Jessica Grant...
When/how did you get bitten by the artist bug?
Jessica Grant: I think I was bitten instead by its cousin, the let’s-pretend bug, followed by the let’s-write-down-what-I’ve-been-pretending bug. That happened very early, the first bite.
When did you realize art would be a career for you? How do you make that work?
Jessica Grant: I don’t think of myself as having a career. I’m against careers. I just write. I do it because I love it, and because I couldn’t not do it. I’ve been very lucky that I’ve been able to make ends meet. I’ve had a lot of support. I also teach.
What achievement have you been most proud of?
Jessica Grant: Writing my novel, Come, Thou Tortoise.
Who would play you in the movie of your life?
Jessica Grant: I’d rather be impersonated than played, I think, by Greg Malone.
What artist has made an impact on your career?
Jessica Grant: That’s a tough question, because so many have affected me, probably in ways I don’t understand. But if you mean, who has had an effect on my decision to become a writer, then I’d say my grandmother. She was an opera singer and a great lover of art. She made art my religion. That was a great gift.
Marie Sharpe
Marie Sharpe
Marie Sharpe has been the Costume Designer and Wardrobe Manager at the Arts and Culture Centre in St. John’s since 1974. Over this time she has created and catalogued an amazing collection of over 25,000 costumes and accessories. As custodian of this enormous cultural resource, she has maintained the delicate balance between preserving and maintaining the collection, and making it available to the arts community.
A talented costume designer, Marie has a true love and understanding of the theatre. A lighthearted perfectionist, she cares about every little detail. Constantly in demand, she is one of the hardest working people in the St. John’s arts community. Her many credits for movies, TV shows, and stage plays are testimony to her talent and skill. Her costumes are used by nearly every theatre company in the province. From school performances, to community theatre, to feature film, Marie Sharpe is the master.
Marie has recently retired from the Arts and Culture Centre. She says she could have retired before now, but just couldn’t bear to leave. But she says she’s not leaving the industry altogether – she plans to stay connected to the arts community and already has a few projects lined up.
Q and A with Marie Sharpe...
When/how did you get bitten by the artist bug?
Marie Sharpe: In high school at Holy Heart I was a member of the Drama Club. I loved being a Munchkin in the Musical Wizard of Oz. It was my first and last acting gig, but it gave me a taste for the theatre that stayed with me.
When did you realize art would be a career for you?
Marie Sharpe: After I graduated from MUN I was offered an opportunity to work on Costumes at the St. John’s Arts and Culture Centre. I became very comfortable, very quickly.
How do you make that work?
Marie Sharpe: My job as Costume Designer is to respect, support and reassure the actors who bring characters to life, by providing them with clothing choices that help them tell the story. As well as tons of hard work and long hours.
What achievement have you been most proud of?
Marie Sharpe: I would say my biggest achievement would have to be the costume collection as it exists at Arts and Culture Centre. There were some costumes there when I first started in 1974, but over the years it has grown into a huge collection and a great asset to the arts community.
Who would play you in the movie of your life?
Marie Sharpe: I can’t imagine anyone wanting to play me, but it would have to be someone short and with a good sense of humor and a quick wit. Maybe Robin Williams.
What artist has made an impact on your career?
Marie Sharpe: Every actor that I have had the opportunity to dress for a performance.
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