The much anticipated Aga Khan Museum is planned to open in 2014. In anticipation of this occasion, the Council for Canada partnered with the Aga Khan Museum (AKM) in organizing an art competition for children and youth.
The theme of the competition was "My Museum. What will the AKM mean to my community and me?" Participants were asked to look at objects from the museum's collection and use them as inspiration for creating their own original works of art. The original interpretations were then submitted for judging to AKM officials.
The judges were impressed by the high quality of the entries, which made it difficult to choose the winners. The judges were also struck by the way that the participants approached what the Museum meant to them through artworks. The winning entries were chosen for their heightened relevance to the Aga Khan Museum, as well as their very strong ideas about what the museum can be. The judges also agreed that the competition demonstrated the importance of connecting people to art from the earliest stage possible.
The Museum Director, Henry Kim, thanked the community for their impressive response to the competition, especially as children were preparing for the end of the academic year. "It is fantastic to see how excited the community in Canada is about the opening of the Aga Khan Museum next year. The works of art that we saw demonstrated real maturity and great creativity. Thank you to everyone who took part."
The winners were selected as follows:
Primary (Grade 3 and under):
Alhenanoor Nasir Virani
Greenland Jamatkhana, Don Mills, ON
Upper Primary (Grade 4 - 8):
Aadam Nanji
South Jamatkhana, Calgary, Alberta
Secondary (Grade 9 - 12):
Bianca Baldan
Etobicoke Jamatkhana, ON
Congratulations to all the children and youth who participated.