Windsor Mayor's Arts Awards

Mayor's Arts Award statue, logo, and 2020 recipient holding award

2024 Windsor Mayor's Arts Awards and Windsor Endowment for the Arts 

The City of Windsor and the Windsor Endowment for the Arts (WEA) celebrated over twenty artists, arts organizations and supporters with a special celebration on May 31, 2024, honouring the 2024 recipients of the Windsor Mayor’s Arts Awards (WMAAs) and the WEA awards (WEAs) and grants. Mayor Drew Dilkens and WEA President Stephanie Barnhard co-hosted the celebration at historic Mackenzie Hall in Sandwich Town. The celebration was inspired by a theme of “Building Bridges” and the transformative power of connection, and fostering understanding and collaboration among diverse communities. For the second time, the event included a special In Memoriam presentation honouring some of those members of the arts community who passed away over the last two years while acknowledging the role the arts play in helping us process grief. Cellist Karen McClellan performed “In Memory Of...” by Windsor composer Anh Nguyen to accompany the reading of the names. 

View the full list of 2024 WMAAs and WEAs recipients.

2024 Windsor Mayor's Arts Awards Recipients

  • Individual Artist - Marty Gervais
  • Arts Organization - Windsor Light Music Theatre
  • Arts Volunteer - Capitol Theatre Volunteer Group

"Congratulations to all of the recipients and nominees for the 2024 Windsor Mayor’s Arts Awards and the WEA Awards and Grants," said Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens. "It was great to spend an evening honouring and supporting the artists, arts organizations, volunteers, and teams of people working every day as part of the creative community across Windsor and Essex County. The arts make our community vibrant, and I was honoured to share the stage with WEA and to represent a city that proudly invests in the arts while understanding how vital they are to our quality of life, and to developing and strengthening our community."

Previous Windsor Mayor's Arts Awards Recipients

2022

  • Individual Artist - Kaitlyn Karns 
  • Arts Organization - Windsor Feminist Theatre
  • Arts Volunteer - Pam Rodzik, Art Windsor-Essex (formerly Art Gallery of Windsor)

2020

  • Individual Artist - Christy Litster
  • Arts Organization - Arts Collective Theatre (ACT)
  • Arts Volunteer - Rod Turton, Windsor Light Music Theatre

2018

  • Individual Artist - Dr. Bruce Kotovich
  • Arts Organization - Arts Council Windsor & Region (ACWR)
  • Arts Volunteer - Mr. Peter Wasylyk, Art Windsor-Essex (formerly Art Gallery of Windsor)

2016

  • Individual Artist - Erin Armstrong
  • Arts Organization - Literary Arts Windsor, BookFest Windsor
  • Arts Volunteer - Elissa Abboud, Windsor Women Working With Immigrant Women

2014

  • Individual Artist - Leslie McCurdy
  • Arts Organization - Downtown Music Initiative
  • Arts Volunteer - Peter Coady, Windsor International Film Festival (WIFF)

About the Windsor Mayor's Arts Awards

The Windsor Mayor's Arts Awards (WMAAs) celebrate and recognize those individuals and organizations that support locally developed arts – providing exciting, surprising and meaningful opportunities to strengthen Windsor’s creative community. Only Windsor residents are eligible for the WMAAs. Submissions are now closed, but will open again in 2026. There are three categories for the WMAAs:

  • Submission Form - Windsor Mayor's Arts Awards
  • Individual Artist - $1,000, plus a keepsake award. Presented to an individual artist engaged in a broad spectrum of activities having to do with creating, practicing or demonstrating art. Art is broadly conceived to include all genres and disciplines, including performance, visual, literary, media, and design.
  • Arts Organization - $1,000, plus a keepsake award. Presented to an arts organization that demonstrates a clear commitment to creating, practicing and demonstrating art within the community.
  • Arts Volunteer - $500, plus a keepsake award. Presented to an individual that supports the arts by providing their own time and services without receiving payment for their volunteer work.

Submission Guidelines - Windsor Mayor's Arts Awards

  • Submission Form - Windsor Mayor's Arts Awards
  • Nominees must be Windsor residents
  • Nominees may be self-nominated or nominated by a peer
  • Nominees must be engaged in their art or arts organization within the city of Windsor
  • A nominee may be nominated for only one award per award year 
  • City of Windsor staff members are not eligible for an award

Submission information must include:

  • One 5 x 7 digital photograph of the nominee. Please note, the image may be used in marketing materials to promote the Windsor Mayor's Arts Awards.

Please provide one electronic copy of each of the following:

  • Signed and fully completed Submission Form
  • Support documents as requested below
  • A brief description (maximum 250 words) highlighting the contribution you believe the candidate (nominee) has made to the arts and the arts community in the City of Windsor

Please provide one electronic copy of support documents, which could include the following:

  • List of accomplishments, awards or recognition relevant to the submission
  • List of published works and/or performance appearances
  • Sample of the nominee's commitment of time and energy to an organization
  • Sample of the nominee's work (photocopies - please do not send originals)
  • Other relevant materials that would support the success of the application

Please note that support documents should not be more than a maximum of 5 pages/attachments in total.

Submitting your form electronically

Please send your Windsor Mayor's Arts Awards Submission Form and all required support materials to culturalaffairs@citywindsor.ca by email.
Please type Windsor Mayor's Arts Awards Nomination/Application in the subject line of your email.

Submissions to the City of Windsor’s Windsor Mayor’s Arts Awards are subject to the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act. The personal information is collected under the authority of the Municipal Act, Section 10. This personal information may be used for the purpose of processing the submission form and may become part of the public agenda at a City Council meeting or committee meeting. Questions about this collection may be directed to the Manager of Culture & Events, 519-253-2300 ext. 2726 or by mail to Freedom of Information Coordinator, Office of the City Clerk, Room 530, 350 City Hall Square West, Windsor, ON, N9A 6S1. If someone is nominating someone else for one of these awards, we ask that they inform the nominee in advance so that the nominee has adequate time to submit the supporting documents along with the nomination/application package.