Announcing the 2026 Graduation Award Winners

This year, 36 students were honoured with graduation awards for their exceptional work and achievements.

In Emily Carr University of Art + Design’s (ECU) centennial year, the Class of 2026 was a historic cohort who presented a diverse range of dynamic and engaging works at The Show, our annual student exhibition. 

Our esteemed group of judges conferred 36 graduation awards and 19 honourable mentions to students for their phenomenal achievements. In total, 36 students received awards valued at $26,150 based on their works and screenings exhibited both in-person and online at The Show, their GPAs, or a combination of the two. 

Several students received multiple awards and honourable mentions:

• Ashley Johnsgaard won the John C. Kerr Chancellor Emeritus Awards for Excellence in Media Arts and an honourable mention for The President’s Media Awards for Excellence – Best in 2D or Experimental Animation for their project Princess Dina Bo Bina, shared with co-director Ella Hiebert.  

• Miranda Firmston won the Basically Good Media Lab/New Media + Sound Art Student Research Award and received an honourable mention for The President’s Media Awards for Excellence – Media Sound Arts for their project, Noise Floors/Welcome Back! 

• Saanvi Bhatt won the Ecological Design Graduation Award and The Wood Co-Op/Forestry Innovation Investment in Wood Design Industrial Design Graduation Award for their project, Seasons of Coexistence. 

• Sasha Bishop won the John C. Kerr Chancellor Emeritus Awards for Excellence in Design and received an honourable mention for the Emily Carr Alumni Association Graduation Award for Community Engagement for their project, ALL HANDS ON DIRT.  

• Audrey Allanson received two honourable mentions for the DESIS Radical Sustainability Award and Emily Carr Alumni Association Graduation Award for Community Engagement for their project A New Hope [Chest].  

The university sincerely appreciates the ongoing support of our valued donors, who help nurture emerging and innovative artists. Our juries, composed of industry experts, curators, and seasoned artists and designers, carefully considered all entries when choosing the winners.   

We are grateful to our jurors and everyone who assisted with the awards process. The full list of honourees is below:   

Explore their outstanding, award-winning work and videos on The Show online exhibition site. You can browse through the pieces and find the artists’ social handles to follow their work beyond graduation.  

2026 Graduation Award Winners + Honourable Mentions