-Sobey was a major supporter of the Centre and the arts in Atlantic Canada-

Confederation Centre of the Arts is mourning the passing this week of one of the region’s most devout patrons of the arts.

Donald C.R. Sobey, C.M. passed on March 24 leaving behind his wife Beth, their three children, and five grand-children. Sobey was a major supporter of the Centre, and was one of the most generous and devoted patrons of the arts in Canada. Confederation Centre’s lower west exhibition gallery bears his family’s name.

In 2016, The Donald R. Sobey Family Foundation provided $150,000 to enable the gallery to partner on, and present, the major touring Kent Monkman exhibition Shame and Prejudice A Story of Resilience. Many members of the Sobey family have served on the Centre’s national board, including his son Robert.

“Confederation Centre of the Arts is deeply grateful for the many decades of support it has received from the Sobey family in general, and Donald Sobey specifically,” says CEO Steve Bellamy. “There are very few individuals in the region who have been such generous supporters of the arts and the Centre. Our deepest condolences to his family and many friends.”

Sobey served as a Trustee of the National Gallery of Canada for 14 years, including two consecutive terms as Chair of the Board. In 2002, as Chair of the Sobey Art Foundation, he oversaw the creation of the Sobey Art Award, Canada’s preeminent prize for contemporary Canadian art. In 2003 he received the Keith Kelly Award for Cultural Leadership by the Canadian Conference for the Arts.