Richard Carver Award

For Emerging Writers

The Carver Award recognizes an emerging writer with one to two works that are either self-published or published through a small, independent publisher.

Richard Carver—a former president of NDAC—moved to Nelson from Ottawa in 2001. He had worked for The Ottawa Citizen and after that had a distinguished career with the National Library for twenty years. His move connected him with an engaged and vibrant community where he could explore his own passions of writing and painting. Richard served as a cultural volunteer and supported many young artists in the Nelson community before his death in 2009.

The Nelson and District Arts Council is proud to honour Richard Carver’s contributions to the Kootenay arts scene, with the support of the Carver Family. The award recipient must be a West Kootenay resident with a published work of any genre.

Nominations

Nominees are judged across three criteria: quality of work, the strength of the nomination, and community engagement.

Past Recipients

2013 – Darcee O’Hearne

2014 – Jane Byers

2015 – Susan Dancer and Avi Silberstein

2016 – Donna MacDonald and Alanda Greene

2017 – Diana Morita Cole

2018 – Morty Mint and Ernst Hekkanen

2019 – Rayya Liebich

2020 – Danielle LaRocque

2021 – Sarah Beauchamp

2022 – Zaynab Mohammed

2023 – Ellen Burt

2024 – Ari Lord

Resources

Richard Carver Award Nomination Form

Nominations are closed 

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About NDAC

The Nelson and District Arts Council (NDAC) offers arts and culture programming, education, and advocacy to over 15,000 artists and art-lovers in the Nelson area. 

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Explore Past Work

Enriching Our Community. Browse the projects that have helped foster creativity and community in our region
Left Photographer: Carlos Rubio
Top Artist: Zaynab Mohammed
Right Artist: Ellen Burt
Right Photographer: Stephanie Myers
Image #1 Photographer: Carlos Rubio
Image #2 Artist: Zaynab Mohammed