Representatives from British Columbia’s top magazines gathered in Toronto over the weekend to celebrate the best in Canadian magazine publishing at the National Magazine Awards. 

This year, Victoria-based Western Living Magazine received the top prize for outstanding visuals in the Home and Garden category for The Comeback — photographed by Martin Tessler, art directed by Paul Roelofs and styled by Nicole Sjöstedt. Vancouver’s SubTerrain magazine received a silver award in the fiction category for The Beguiling, written by Zsuzsi Gartner.

In total, 12 B.C. magazines were nominated for 17 national awards, including Western Living, Vancouver Magazine, subTerrain, explore, Geist, PRISM International, BC Business, The Malahat Review, ROOM, Event and first-time nominees SAD Mag and Reel West. These publications demonstrate the broad depth of talent that exists in B.C.’s magazine industry and are read by more than one million people around the world.

British Columbia has a diverse magazine industry that publishes more than 300 magazines, producing content of interest to local, regional, national and international audiences. B.C.’s magazine industry stimulates jobs for publishers and writers, as well as printers, illustrators, photographers, designers, art directors, advertisers, editors and retailers. Covering topics ranging from lifestyle, leisure and interior design to business, trade and investment, B.C.’s magazine sector distributes publications in both print and increasingly in digital, via a variety of web and mobile channels.

Magazine publishing in British Columbia is one of many diverse sub-sectors in the province’s creative economy. B.C.’s creative sector as a whole is a key contributor to the Province’s economy and job creation, responsible for approximately 85,000 quality jobs. The sector is also one of the most rapidly growing in the global economy and is a major generator of investment and export earnings, while supporting vibrant communities.

British Columbia’s economy expanded 3% in 2015, with the province leading all other regions in terms of economic growth for the first time since 1997. Building B.C.’s creative economy will attract new investment, foster innovation and create new jobs for British Columbians.

Quotes:

Shirley Bond, Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training, and Minister Responsible for Labour –

“Congratulations to all of the nominees and the two winners of the 39th annual National Magazine Awards, celebrating excellence in Canada’s magazine publishing industry. Thank you all for your contributions to the creative sector of British Columbia.”

Prem Gill, chief executive officer, Creative BC –

“B.C. has a vibrant magazine industry that produces award-winning content on a wide range of topics that range from the arts and business to interior design and B.C.’s film and television industry. We look forward to working with B.C.’s magazine publishers to help them succeed in this competitive industry which produces a wide range of print and online content that British Columbians enjoy reading. According to the Magazine Association of Canada, an estimated eight in 10 Canadians read magazines and 92% of those read in print or across both print and digital platforms.”

Learn More:

Full list of National Magazine Awards Winners: http://ow.ly/iIaD301dfHw

Creative BC: http://www.creativebc.com

Magazines BC: http://www.magsbc.com

BC Jobs Plan: http://ow.ly/3VSB300Z24z

Creative Economy Strategy: http://gov.bc.ca/creativeeconomy

A backgrounder follows.