After a great deal of deliberation, the Rozsa Foundation has made the difficult decision not to hold the Rozsa Awards in the fall of 2020. We were optimistic when we released our Call for Nominations that we would be able to gather by October, but it is now our understanding that in light of the current pandemic crisis, gatherings like the Rozsa Awards may not be appropriate or comfortable for people to attend by that time.
The Rozsa Awards were developed to honour the philanthropic efforts of Drs. Ted and Lola Rozsa and they are unique in the country in recognizing, celebrating, and promoting the profession of arts managers and the dedication of board chairs. However, in our current situation, the existing format and structure of the awards no longer feels appropriate.
We briefly looked at moving the event online, but concluded that the full benefit of the Rozsa Awards depends on the arts community being physically together. We have instead made the decision to focus our efforts on supporting the arts sector in Calgary and area through our grants and arts leadership programs as organizations, artists, and administrators navigate completely unique challenges.
Rest assured that we are committed to finding other ways to recognize, celebrate, and promote arts managers and board chairs throughout 2020, while honouring the Rozsa Foundation's 30th Anniversary.
“These are creative and challenging times for the Arts in Alberta. Arts organizations are finding ways to pivot with reduced staff who are working remotely, support artistic excellence, engage with their audience, pause or provide alternative programming for their audience, market online, and raise funds,” explained Arts Leadership Director Geraldine Ysselstein.
“Although it may look different this year, we will continue to find ways to recognize the excellent work of arts managers, board chairs, and their teams. And we will look forward to celebrating with you at the next Rozsa Awards in 2021.”
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