Alanis Obomsawin Recipient of the 63rd Edward MacDowell Medal

July 23, 2023

More than a thousand arts lovers from around the region gathered on Sunday, July 23 as the 63rd Edward MacDowell Medal was presented to esteemed filmmaker Alanis Obomsawin during a free and open-to-the-public celebration.

After a brief award ceremony, visitors enjoyed a picnic lunch before artists-in-residence opened their studios to the public, giving attendees the unique opportunity to look behind the scenes of the nation’s oldest artist residency and speak with the creators about their work.

Obomsawin was selected by a panel chaired by Tabitha Jackson, former director of the Sundance Film Festival. Joining her on the panel are Bird Runningwater, who guides the Sundance Institute’s investment in Native American and Indigenous filmmakers; MacDowell Fellows and filmmakers Natalia Almada, Rodney Evans, and So Yong Kim; MacDowell Fellow and Board Member Julia Solomonoff, and board member Josh Siegel, film curator at The Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Award-winning speaker and best-selling author Jesse Wente gave the presentation speech on Obomsawin’s impact on the culture and her career in documentary filmmaking.

View videos and images of the day below.

Alanis Obomsawin portrait. Wearing all black and donning a silver brooch and earrings, she smiles brightly.

Julie Artacho photo, courtesy National Film Board of Canada

MacDowell's 2023 Medal Day ceremony was attended by more than 1,000 arts lovers on July 23, 2023.

MacDowell's Madam Chairman of the Board and Fellow Nell Painter speaks about the histories we all need to face in her welcoming remarks.

Christine Fisher addresses her first Medal Day crowd on a sunny and warm Medal Day when MacDowell honored filmmaker Alanis Obomsawin as its 63rd Edward MacDowell Medalist.

Chi Kaitano addresses the Medal Day crowd in her new role as executive director and talks about her plan to sustain and amplify the venerable legacy of MacDowell.

Resident Director David Macy explains the renaming of Kirby Studio to Van Zorn Studio during the July 23rd 2023 ceremony celebrating 63rd Edward MacDowell Medalist Alanis Obomsawin.

Best-selling author Jesse Wente, chair of Canada's Council for the Arts, speaks about Alanis Obomsawin's impact on the culture.

Read author and Fellow Nell Painter's welcome to visitors under the Medal Day tent

Read Board President Christine Fisher's words to the gathered arts lovers on Medal Day

Read new Executive Director Chiwoniso Kaitano's first address to the 2023 Medal Day crowd

Read Resident Director David Macy's tribute to Michael Chabon and Ayelet Waldman

Read introductory speaker Jesse Wente's eloquent address contextualizing Alanis Obomsawin as the 63rd MacDowell Medalist

Read Alanis Obomsawin's heartfelt acceptance of the Edward MacDowell Medal

Scenes from the Afternoon

Alanis Obomsawin joyfully holds her medal in her hands. She is wearing a red dress and a silver brooch and standing in front of a stone building surrounded by greenery

Medal Day guests walk along dirt roads and pathways, making their ways throughout MacDowell's grounds. A large white tent is set up in the field, awaiting the start of the ceremony

A crowd of over 1,000 gathers under a large white tent to hear speeches and watch Ms. Obomsawin receive her Medal. Sitting in rows of chairs, they all face the stage where a woman stands at a podium

Under a large, white tent, over 1000 people sit in chairs facing a stage. Six people are on the stage awaiting their turn to speak to the audience. A row of flowers lines the edge of the stage and one woman stands at the podium

Madam Chairman of the Board Nell Painter stands at a podium and speaks to the crowd. She is centered in the image with only the white vinyl of the tent behind her.

President of the Board Christine Fisher stands at a podium and speaks to the crowd. She is centered in the image with only the white vinyl of the tent behind her.

Executive Director Chiwoniso Kaitano stands at a podium and speaks to the crowd. She is centered in the image with only the white vinyl of the tent behind her. Along the bottom of the image, you can see a row of flowers

On a small stage under a large white tent, the ceremony speakers sit in a row, one of them, Resident Director David Macy, stands at the podium and speaks to the audience. The front of the stage is lined with flowers.

Resident Director David Macy stands at a podium and gestures with his hands. Behind him is only the white vinyl of the large tent

Two people in the audience sit in chairs, laughing with one another. The man, with his hand to his face, looks at the woman who is looking straight ahead. Other audience members are seen in the background, also sitting in rows of chairs

1000 plus people sit in rows of chairs under a large white tent. They're all clapping and smiling.

Jesse Wente, a tall man, stands at a podium, gesturing with his hand, and addresses the audience. To his right on stage, two women sit in chairs waiting their turn to speak to the crowd. The front of the stage is lined with a row of flowers.

Three people sit side by side on the stage. On the left, a woman smiles warmly as she looks on to the other two. The woman in the center smiles emotionally as the man embraces her and kisses her on the forehead.

Alanis Obomsawin stands at a podium and addresses the audience. She is wearing a crimson red dress and is smiling warmly

Two women stand with one another on stage. The woman in the front, Alanis Obomsawin, grins as she holds up the Medal she just won. The other woman, Madam Chairman of the Board Nell Painter, stands behind her, looking at her and smiling proudly.

On a sunny afternoon people gather at tables and on picnic blankets to eat lunch. Three people, seated at a table with pastel colored linens and flowers, smile for the camera.

A little boy holding two picnic baskets stands and looks toward the other picnickers. Behind him is a table set with pastel linens.

Donning hats and summer-y clothes, a group of people sit on a blanket and enjoy a picnic lunch

A group of 10 or so people walk up a dirt pathway toward the James Baldwin Library, a building made of stone and large windows.

A man and a woman talk and laugh together while inside an artist studio. There are large, boldly colored artworks hanging on the wall behind them.

A woman stands and admires large, boldly colored paintings hung on a wall. Her hands are held neatly behind her back,

A woman walks toward a long wall adorned with numerous canvases, each demonstrating many stages of progress.

A woman sits at a piano and sings. Gathered around her in the small room are nearly a dozen people.

A small group of people stand around one woman, an artist. The artist is wearing a blue apron and smiling. They are all in brightly lit room

Groups of people walk up and down a dirt road that leads to artist studios. The road is lined with thick, green forests on each side.

A small group of people tour an artist studio. They all have their backs toward the camera as they study the artwork hung on the walls. The artist stands at a table in the center of the room smiling brightly

Two people stand next to an artist who sits on a stool. They are talking and laughing with one another as they admire the artists work that is hung on the walls around the studio.

Groups of people walk down a dirt road. The road is lined with thick, green forests on each side and the sun is shining through the trees..

Six people pose together for a portrait. Three people stand in the back while the other three sit together on a wooden bench. Behind then are lush, green gardens and a stone building.

Two women stand together in a garden, smiling brightly. The woman on the left is holding the Medal that she has just been awarded.

A woman, wearing a crimson red dress and silver brooch, smiles joyfully.

Alanis Obomsawin, Recipient of the 63rd Edward MacDowell Medal

Alanis Obomsawin is an Abenaki filmmaker who was born in New Hampshire. Her landmark documentaries such as Kanehsatake: 270 Years of Resistance (1993) and Incident at Restigouche (1984) are some of the 56 films to her credit. Obomsawin began her career as a singer, writer, and storyteller, but came to the attention of Canada’s National Film Board and was appointed consultant for Indigenous filmmaking at the public production company. She began making her own films in 1971, has received numerous international honors, and her work was showcased in a 2008 retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. She is a Companion of the Order of Canada (C.C.), Grande Officière of the Ordre national du Québec (G.O.Q.), and a member of the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec (C.A.L.Q.), and holds other distinctions and honorary degrees.

Learn more about Alanis Obomsawin

Medal Day Host Committee

Laina Barakat
Joslyn Barnes
Constellation Records
Deirdre Fitzgerald, MONIFF Festival Programmer
Michael Chabon*
Ayelet Waldman*
Yance Ford*
Lorenzo Fusi, The Currier Museum
Amy Jenkins*
Joshua Marston*
Isabel Sandoval*
Elisabeth Subrin*
Pacho Velez*
Lana Wilson*
University of Nebraska Press

*denotes MacDowell Fellow

About the Edward MacDowell Medal

The Edward MacDowell Medal has been awarded annually since 1960 to an individual artist who has made an outstanding contribution to their field. These artists include Leonard Bernstein, John Updike, Georgia O'Keeffe, I.M. Pei, Stephen Sondheim, and Toni Morrison. The artistic discipline in which the award is given rotates in order to celebrate all of the creative fields practiced at MacDowell. Following the ceremony, visitors enjoy a picnic lunch and tour open studios. Both the award ceremony and the open studios are free, and open to the public.

Thank You to Our Sponsors

Medal Day History

Discover the History of Medal Day

Ceremony Participants

Nell Painter

Madam Chairman of the Board

Christine Fisher

President, Board of Directors

Chiwoniso Kaitano

Executive Director

David Macy

Resident Director

Jesse Wente

Introductory Speaker

Alanis Obomsawin

63rd Edward MacDowell Medalist

Alanis Obomsawin Film Screenings in the James Baldwin Library

Christmas at Moose Factory (1971, 13 min) ........................................... 2 p.m.

Richard Cardinal: Cry from a Diary of a Métis Child (1986, 29 min) .... 2:30 p.m.

Incident at Restigouche (1984, 46 min) ..................................................... 3 p.m.

Edward MacDowell Medalist

Discipline: Film/Video – documentary

Alanis Obomsawin

Learn more about Alanis Obomsawin

Artists of Medal Day

Learn about our artists-in-residence, and discover a little about their processes and current projects. Visit the artists in their studios on Medal Day after lunch and until 4 p.m. It's a rare opportunity for the public to get a look at where art is made at MacDowell.

Learn about the Artists

Past Medal Days