interview

Art and Politics: Interviews with G. Hamilton Southam

We’re very excited that today is the release of a Dundurn book on the history of the National Arts Centre, Art and Politics.

The author, Sarah Jennings, is a political/cultural journalist who served for nearly a decade as the CBC’s national arts reporter from Ottawa. She’s provided us with some of the MP3’s of her interviews in preparation for her book, and for the next three days we’ll be sharing them with you.

Today, we give you Sarah’s clips from Sarah’s interview with G. Hamilton Southam, a member of the wealthy Southam publishing family and the man who took on the assignment to build the National Arts Centre, subsequently becoming its first director general.  His links to power through his personal friendship with then-Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson were crucial to allowing the project to be completed in the face of runaway costs. Mr. Pearson had decided that the new NAC would be his Centenial Project for the Capitol.

Now, most government building projects would require lengthy tenders and architectural competitions. Mr. Southam was able to go directly to the P.M. and allowed to go ahead and choose his own architect. Mr. Southam  was age 90 when he gave this interview.  He died on July 1, 2008.

[audio:01 Track 01.mp3]

The question of rising costs for construction was a huge political problem and led to questions in the House of Commons. Southam comments on the rise in costs

[audio:02 Track 02.mp3]

On runaway costs – Southam comments on why he was able to keep going, despite the costs

[audio:03 Track 03.mp3]

Tomorrow, interviews with Marcel Masse, Marti Maraden, and Robert Lepage.

For more information on Art and Politics, visit our website at: http://www.dundurn.com

To learn more about the National Arts Centre, see: http://www.nac-cna.ca/

© 2009 Defining Canada.