When parliamentarians return to Ottawa in a few weeks to kick off the 2024 sitting, there are a few bills from MPs and senators that will be worth keeping an eye on and one in particular relating to the establishment of a Parliamentary Visual Artist Laureate.
BILL S-202
The bill to create a parliamentary visual artist laureate
This piece of legislation proposes amendments to the Parliament of Canada Act to create a new position titled Parliamentary Visual Artist Laureate, with the mandate of representing Canadian art for a two-year term.
The bill, proposing a spinoff to the existing parliamentary poet laureate, has been a topic of consideration for years in Ottawa, so long that the artist that inspired the legislation died amid a cancer battle in 2020 while pushing to see his idea become a reality and its initial sponsor Sen. Patricia Bovey who since has retired from the Upper Chamber.
After unanimously passing the Senate in December 2021, it sat unmoved in the House of Commons until June 2023. In November, the House Canadian Heritage Committee completed a brief study, passing two amendments to the bill aimed at securing linguistic and artistic diversity in the role. Will 2024 finally be the year that this initiative is adopted?
Source : CTV News
The nomination of Court Painter is not a given should the legislation pass however once parliamentarians become aware that Court Painter would make himself available for the appointment it would indubitably lead to a quick passage of Bill S-202 and subsequent appointment of you know who!
To support his consideration ,we present a remarkable selection of Court Painter’s “Canadiana theme” images. These masterworks unequivocally affirm his credentials as an unrivaled force in the realm of Canuck artistic prowess—a true virtuoso as the preeminent face painter and extraordinary dabbling maestro of the Great Dominion. Each stroke of his brush is a testament to unparalleled talent, leaving an indelible mark that resonates with exuberance, praise and obvious content for a Heritage Moment.
