Cottage Life is named magazine of the year at National Magazine Awards

TORONTO, ON (May 26, 2017) – The National Magazine Awards Foundation (NMAF) presented the winners of the 40^th anniversary National Magazine Awards at a gala this evening in Toronto at the Arcadian Court. Nearly 300 of Canada’s top magazine writers, artists, editors, art directors, publishers, and other guests representing 75 nominated magazines gathered to recognize and celebrate excellence in the content and creation of Canadian magazines in 2016.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau delivered a welcome message to the audience via video, congratulating the nominees and winners and praising the important work of Canada’s magazine creators.

"As writers, photographers, artists, and more, you tell the stories we need to hear to understand our world and our place in it. And for forty years, the National Magazine Awards Foundation has supported this vital cause. This year marks 150 years since Confederation, and as we look forward to the next 150 years, your leadership and your storytelling will continue to shape our country for the better."

—Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

The Foundation presented Gold and Silver Medal awards in 25 categories at a ceremony co-hosted by Kim Pittaway, Michael de Pencier, and D.B. Scott—three of Canada’s most respected journalists and publishers, and all former winners of the Foundation Award for Outstanding Achievement. Indigenous writer and Gold Medalist in the Essays category, Alicia Elliott, delivered the keynote address, urging all Canadian magazine creators and publishers to recognize their role in educating and informing the public about the complex social and cultural issues of our time, including empowering Indigenous voices and perspectives in the media.

Visit magazine-awards.com to view the complete list of winners and read the full text of all winning articles. Download the entire list [PDF] of nominees and winners. @MagAwards.

“Forty years ago the NMAF set about building a coalition of institutions to form the foundation of what would become the National Magazine Awards. The goal was to create a truly national program that would recognize individual excellence in the many aspects of the magazine industry. Forty years later that legacy has endured. Tonight we have recognized the outstanding work of Canada’s magazine creators. Congratulations to all the nominees and winners—you have truly inspired the future of great journalism in this country.”

—Nino Di Cara, President, NMAF

MAGAZINE OF THE YEAR

Canada’s 2017 Magazine of the Year is Cottage Life. The award for magazine of the year goes to the publication that most consistently engages, surprises, and serves the needs of its readers. The award is judged according to four criteria—overall quality, impact, innovation, and brand awareness—and success relative to the magazine’s editorial mandate.

“With a clear and creative editorial strategy that is loyal to their brand, audience, and business, Cottage Life continues to diversify its mandate, grow its readership, and excel at publishing. The magazine’s tone is perfectly playful, its stories educate and delight, and its story packaging is alluring. Cottage Life has demonstrated creativity and excellence in evolving its brand through events, shows, and multimedia—reinventing itself again and again. And throughout its evolution, the magazine itself remains fresh and fascinating.”

—The National Magazine Awards Jury

Honourable Mention for Magazine of the Year went to Explore, Nouveau Projet, Ricardo, and The Kit Compact.

INDIVIDUAL HIGHLIGHTS    

• Writer Nancy Macdonald won two awards: A Gold Medal in Profiles for “This is How I’m Going to Die” (Maclean’s), about the Leviathan II disaster; and a Silver Medal in Investigative Reporting for “Justice Is Not Blind” (Maclean’s), about the bias against Indigenous Canadians in the judicial system.
• Mary Rogan won the first NMA Gold Medal for Long-Form Feature Writing, for her story “Growing Up Trans” (The Walrus). It’s Rogan’s third National Magazine Award and first since 1999.
• Victoria writer and journalist Amorina Kingdon was named Canada’s Best New Magazine Writer for her investigative story, “The Questionable Science of Vancouver’s Port Expansion” published in Hakai Magazine. Honorable Mention for Best New Magazine Writer went to Eternity Martis (Hazlitt), Kyle Edwards (Maclean’s), Sharon J. Riley (Maisonneuve), and Viviane Fairbank (Ryerson Review of Journalism).
• Art director Domenic Macri of Report on Business won the Gold Medal for Best Magazine Cover (“General Dynamics”), his and the magazine’s fifth gold medal in this category since 2006.
• Pierre Fortin (L’actualité) won the Gold Medal in Columns, for his Québec « Économie » coverage. This is Fortin’s fourth gold medal in Columns since 2003. 
• Indigenous poet Selina Boan won the Gold Medal in Poetry for a suite of poems in The New Quarterly, including “Meet Cree: A Practical Guide to the Cree Language.” This is her first National Magazine Award.
• Richard Kelly Kemick won the Gold Medal in Fiction for “The Unitarian Church’s Annual Young Writer’s Short Story Competition” (The New Quarterly), his second NMA after winning gold last year in One of a Kind. Kemick also received an Honourable Mention in Fiction and in One of a Kind this year.
• Indigenous writer Alicia Elliott won the Gold Medal in Essays for “A Mind Spread Out on the Ground” (The Malahat Review). 
• Don Gillmor won his twelfth National Magazine Award since 1997, a Silver Medal in Essays for “A Poet Self-Destructs” (The Walrus).
• Joe Castaldo won the Gold Medal in Investigative Reporting for “The Last Days of Target” (Canadian Business). He won the Silver Medal in the same category in 2015. 
• In Personal Journalism, Edmonton writer and visual artist Benjamin Hertwig won the Gold Medal for “The Burn” (Prairie Fire). The story of the late John Hofsess, “By The Time You Read This I’ll Be Dead” (Toronto Life), about assisted dying and preparing to take his own life, won the Silver Medal.
• Photographer and art director Peter Ash Lee won the Gold Medal in Portrait Photography (“Marina Abramovic” Corduroy), his fourth National Magazine Award.
• Gérard DuBois won the Gold Medal in Illustration, for « Une vie sexuelle pour les prêtres ? Pourquoi pas ? ». It is DuBois’ fourth National Magazine Award and first since 2013.
• Andrew Braithwaite won the Gold Medal in Service Journalism for “Canada’s Best New Restaurants 2016” (Air Canada enRoute), marking the second consecutive year he and the magazine have won gold for their annual feature on Canada’s newest culinary hotspots.
• Ray Ford won his eighth National Magazine Award since 2000 with a Silver Medal in Short Feature Writing for “The Cutting Edge” (ON Nature). 

MAGAZINE HIGHLIGHTS

• L’actualité led all magazines with 3 Gold Medals, winning the top prize in Feature Writing, Columns, and Illustration. 
• The Walrus led all magazines with 6 awards (2 Gold Medals and 4 Silver Medals). This is the tenth time in the magazine’s history that The Walrus has won the most total awards at the NMAs.
• Report on Business won 3 awards, including a Gold Medal for Best Magazine Cover (“General Dynamics”) and Silver Medals in Best Service Editorial Package and in Profiles.
• The New Quarterly won the Gold Medal in Fiction and in Poetry, marking the second time that the Waterloo Region literary magazine has swept both awards (also doing so in 2003 at the 25th anniversary National Magazine Awards). 
• NOW Magazine’s “Love Your Body” issue was a double winner, taking the Silver Medal in Portrait Photography and the Silver Medal in Best Words & Pictures.
• Globe Style Advisor swept the Gold and Silver Medals in the category Lifestyle Photography.
• Nouveau Projet won 2 Gold Medals, in Art Direction of a Single Magazine Article (« Le politique est personnel ») and in Words & Pictures (“Rosemont Petite-Syrie”). Nouveau Projet won Magazine of the Year in 2015 and was a finalist this year.
• The online magazine Hazlitt won 2 Silver Medals, in Fiction and in One of a Kind. Today’s Parent won 2 medals: Gold in Best Service Editorial Package (“Breast of Luck”) and Silver in Art Direction of a Single Magazine Article (“Give Peas a Chance”).
• 7 magazines won a National Magazine Award for the first time: Atlantic Business Magazine; Caribou; esse Arts + Opinions; Hakai Magazine; Jeu, Revue de théâtre; Listed; and SAD Mag.

FOUNDATION AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT

Penny Caldwell, publisher and vice-president of Cottage Life Media, was presented with the 2017 Foundation Award for Outstanding Achievement, the highest individual honour in the Canadian magazine industry, which recognizes an individual's innovation and creativity through contributions to the magazine industry.

“Penny’s career exemplifies the best of what it means to lead a magazine: a deep respect for the audience, a commitment to the highest quality, a desire to innovate, and a dedication to respecting and fostering the talent of those with whom she works.”

—Kim Pittaway, 40^th Anniversary National Magazine Awards co-host

To read more about Penny Caldwell and the Outstanding Achievement Award visit magazine-awards.com/oa.

40^TH ANNIVERSARY NATIONAL MAGAZINE AWARDS: TOP WINNERS

Magazine	GOLD	SILVER	HM
L’actualité	3	0	10
The Walrus	2	4	8
Nouveau Projet	2	0	6
The New Quarterly	2	0	2
Report on Business	1	2	8
Maclean’s	1	1	4
Globe Style Advisor	1	1	1
Canadian Business	1	1	0
Today’s Parent	1	1	1
Hazlitt	0	2	4
NOW Magazine	0	2	1

Won 1 Gold Medal: Air Canada enRoute; Caribou; Corduroy; Cottage Life; Geist; Hakai Magazine; Jeu, Revue de théâtre; The Malahat Review; Prairie Fire; Precedent

Won 1 Silver Medal: Atlantic Business Magazine; Châtelaine; esse Arts + Opinions; Listed; MoneySense; New Trail; ON Nature; PRISM International; Toronto Life

First-time NMA winners: Atlantic Business Magazine; Caribou; esse Arts + Opinions; Hakai Magazine; Jeu, Revue de théâtre; Listed; SAD Mag

ABOUT THE 40^th ANNIVERSARY NATIONAL MAGAZINE AWARDS

Nearly 300 members of the Canadian magazine industry—publishers, editors, art directors, writers, photographers, illustrators, circulators and more—joined sponsors and other guests at the Arcadian Court for the 40^th anniversary National Magazine Awards gala.

This year, 197 Canadian magazines from coast to coast to coast—English and French, print and digital—entered the best of their editorial and design to the National Magazine Awards, submitting the work of more than 2000 writers, editors, photographers, illustrators, art directors and other creators. The NMAF’s 112 volunteer judges nominated a total of 202 submissions from 75 different Canadian magazines for awards in 25 written, visual, integrated and special categories.