OTTAWA.- The Hnatyshyn Foundation announced that Joe Friday has been appointed Chair of its Board of Directors.

Joe Friday practiced law in both the private and public sectors, most recently serving as Canada’s Commissioner of Public Sector Integrity from 2015 to 2023. Joe was the founding Chair of the Carleton University Art Gallery and is currently the Vice-Chair of the Advisory Board of the Agnes Etherington Art Centre at Queen’s University, as well as the Vice-President of the Friends of the Vancouver Art Gallery.


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Joe succeeds Cynthia White Thornley who led transformative changes in the Foundation’s programming, as illustrated by the disbursement of over one million dollars to Canadian artists during her tenure. In 2024, she proposed that the Foundation increase the value of nearly all grants and awards, and create new programs to further support artists. Cynthia sagely steered the Foundation following the death of Gerda Hnatyshyn, strengthening the Foundation’s governance during a challenging transition.


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“Joe understands the importance of Canadian art and comes to us with a wealth of experience including on arts boards. I believe he will do a fabulous job and I am so thankful that he has accepted this challenge. While we had several excellent candidates, I really cannot think of a better person to have joined the Board and become our Chair,” stated Cynthia White Thornley.

“The arts are how we make meaning in and how we make meaning of the world; how we tell each other, the world and ourselves who we are. Supporting artists is essential to defining what it means to be Canadian. And proudly celebrating our identity has perhaps never felt more important than it does at this time. It is an honour and a privilege to help build on the incredible legacy and indelible influence of Ray and Gerda Hnatyshyn through the continuing work of this Foundation,” stated Joe Friday.

The Hnatyshyn Foundation is a private charity established by the late Right Honourable Ramon John Hnatyshyn, Canada’s twenty-fourth Governor General, to assist emerging and established artists in all disciplines with their schooling, training and career development. The Hnatyshyn Foundation is federally incorporated as a registered charity. The Foundation’s office is situated on the traditional unceded territory of the Anishinaabe Algonquin Nation. Our programs operate across the traditional territories of all Indigenous Peoples on the land known as Canada.



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