The Alberta Craft Awards recognize individuals and groups who make meaningful contributions to Alberta’s craft culture — and in 2025, the Alberta University of the Arts (AUArts) community was proudly represented across multiple award categories. From emerging practitioners to established artists and educators, AUArts students, alumni and faculty were recognized for their leadership, creativity and lasting impact on the province’s vibrant craft community.
Awarded biannually, the Alberta Craft Awards celebrate excellence, innovation and dedication within Alberta’s craft community.
Early Achievement Award
Winner: Gurpreet Kaur (Current MFA Student)
The Early Achievement Award recognizes an emerging craftsperson or student who has demonstrated exceptional achievement to date and strong potential for future impact. The award includes a $1,000 prize and is open to Alberta Craft members in the student, general or professional categories.
In 2025, the Early Achievement Award was presented to Gurpreet Kaur, a current Master of Fine Arts student at AUArts, in recognition of her exceptional achievement as an emerging craftsperson.
“My work reflects hybridity, cultural translation, and memory, engaging threads as both material and metaphor. The act of weaving allows me to situate myself between past and present, homeland and diaspora, and to translate lived experience into material form.” — Gurpreet Kaur (current MFA student)
Excellence Award
Winner: Phillip Bandura (BFA ’05, Glass; MFA ’22, Craft Media)
Nominees: Leah Petrucci (BFA ’10, Glass); Natalie Gerber (BFA ’03, Fibre; MFA ’25, Craft Media)
The Excellence Award honours an established craftsperson who excels in their area of practice and demonstrates sustained artistic achievement. The award includes a $1,000 prize and is open to Alberta Craft members across student, general and professional categories.
The 2025 Excellence Award nominees included three accomplished AUArts alumni whose practices span glass, fibre and craft media: Leah Petrucci, Natalie Gerber and Phillip Bandura.
The Excellence Award was awarded to Phillip Bandura, a glass artist whose career reflects both technical mastery and a deep commitment to the craft community in Alberta and beyond.
“Phillip is an accomplished glass artist whose career reflects exceptional artistic achievement and a deep commitment to the craft community in Alberta and internationally. His work exemplifies innovation, technical mastery, and meaningful engagement with themes of identity, culture, and belonging.” — Leah Petrucci (BFA ’10, Glass)
Tom McFall Honour Award
Winner: Sky Weir (AUArts Continuing Education Instructor)
The Tom McFall Honour Award recognizes a volunteer, supporter, teacher, or craftsperson who has made a significant contribution to Alberta’s craft culture. The award includes a $1,000 prize and celebrates individuals whose commitment has strengthened the craft community over time.
In 2025, the Tom McFall Honour Award was presented to Sky Weir, an AUArts Continuing Education Instructor, in celebration of her enduring contributions as a teacher, supporter, and fibre artist.
“As a teacher, supporter, and fibre artist, Sky has had an enduring impact on Alberta’s craft culture through decades of work across multiple dimensions. Her commitment to craft is long-enduring.” — Tanya Yeomans
Sky's recognition through the Tom McFall Honour Award highlights the essential contributions of educators and mentors who support craft not only through their own practice, but through the communities they help build.
