Hon. Jane Cordy: Honourable senators, isn’t it amazing how artists capture us — how they capture the world. We need art. We need the beauty, the truth and the points of view that are reflected back to us. Art is everywhere; it surrounds us, and sometimes we somehow manage to miss it. Art defines us and shapes us — it helps to shape what we do here, and it defines and influences debate on public policy and government. The importance of art in public discourse is too often minimalized or taken for granted.

Hon. Jane Cordy: Honourable senators, isn’t it amazing how artists capture us — how they capture the world. We need art. We need the beauty, the truth and the points of view that are reflected back to us. Art is everywhere; it surrounds us, and sometimes we somehow manage to miss it. Art defines us and shapes us — it helps to shape what we do here, and it defines and influences debate on public policy and government. The importance of art in public discourse is too often minimalized or taken for granted.

Artists sometimes need champions — those who know their value and advocate tirelessly on their behalf. Senator Bovey has been one of those champions. Throughout the entirety of her career as an art historian, museologist, gallery director, professor and arts consultant, she has spent a lifetime working on behalf of Canadian artists in her home province of Manitoba, across Canada and throughout the world.

This continued with her appointment to the Senate of Canada in 2016. As a senator, she made it a focus to promote, celebrate and protect Canadian artists. This included introducing bills such as Bill S-208 and Bill S-202, as well as bringing Canadian art within the walls of the Senate of Canada building. Most notably, she curated the first ever installation of works by Black Canadian artists to be displayed in the Senate of Canada. She’s also been a tireless promoter of Indigenous artists and protecting their livelihoods from the counterfeit trade.

Colleagues, Senator Bovey has been a strong voice for Manitobans in Ottawa, and has been an invaluable member of our group. As we — the Progressive Senate Group, or PSG — were finding our footing as a new group, Senator Bovey was the first to decide to join our small but mighty group. In many ways, her optimism was a big part of the early and continued success of the Progressive Senate Group.

I, for one, have appreciated being able to lean on her and bounce ideas off her — always assured that I would receive her honest, measured thoughts. I will miss our dinners together where we had many discussions and many laughs, and solved many problems.

As you take your retirement from this place, you can take comfort knowing that you have served your province and Canadians well. You have been a wonderful colleague. We will miss your presence in the Senate.

You are so deserving of this time with your family, particularly your grandchildren, and they are deserving of the energy and time that you have so generously shared with us over the past seven years. Knowing you, I imagine that your days will remain as full as ever, promoting and championing Canadian art, artists and the Senate.

I hope that you will also allow yourself some time to rest. Enjoy this fresh canvas for this fresh new adventure. I wish you the very best.

Hugs!

Hon. Jane Cordy: Honourable senators, isn’t it amazing how artists capture us — how they capture the world? We need art. We need the beauty, the truth and the points of view that are reflected back to us. Art is everywhere; it surrounds us, and sometimes we somehow manage to miss it. Art defines us and shapes us — it helps to shape what we do here, and it defines and influences debate on public policy and government. The importance of art in public discourse is too often minimalized or taken for granted.

Artists sometimes need champions — those who know their value and advocate tirelessly on their behalf. Senator Bovey has been one of those champions. Throughout the entirety of her career as an art historian, museologist, gallery director, professor and arts consultant, she has spent a lifetime working on behalf of Canadian artists in her home province of Manitoba, across Canada and throughout the world.

This continued with her appointment to the Senate of Canada in 2016. As a senator, she made it a focus to promote, celebrate and protect Canadian artists. This included introducing bills such as Bill S-208 and Bill S-202, as well as bringing Canadian art within the walls of the Senate of Canada building. Most notably, she curated the first ever installation of works by Black Canadian artists to be displayed in the Senate of Canada. She’s also been a tireless promoter of Indigenous artists and protecting their livelihoods from the counterfeit trade.

Colleagues, Senator Bovey has been a strong voice for Manitobans in Ottawa, and has been an invaluable member of our group. As we — the Progressive Senate Group, or PSG — were finding our footing as a new group, Senator Bovey was the first to decide to join our small but mighty group. In many ways, her optimism was a big part of the early and continued success of the Progressive Senate Group.

I, for one, have appreciated being able to lean on her and bounce ideas off her — always assured that I would receive her honest, measured thoughts. I will miss our dinners together where we had many discussions and many laughs, and solved many problems.

As you take your retirement from this place, you can take comfort knowing that you have served your province and Canadians well. You have been a wonderful colleague. We will miss your presence in the Senate.

You are so deserving of this time with your family, particularly your grandchildren, and they are deserving of the energy and time that you have so generously shared with us over the past seven years. Knowing you, I imagine that your days will remain as full as ever, promoting and championing Canadian art, artists and the Senate.

I hope that you will also allow yourself some time to rest. Enjoy this fresh canvas for this fresh new adventure. I wish you the very best.

Hugs!

Hon. Dennis Glen Patterson: Honourable senators, I, too, rise to pay tribute to the first art historian to be appointed to the Senate of Canada. It’s never easy to take on the mantle as the first of anything. Senator Bovey has brought art into many aspects of the Senate, whether through her bill, An Act respecting the Declaration on the Essential Role of Artists and Creative Expression in Canada — which passed in the Senate — or in the art showings she has organized throughout the precinct. The Senate’s appreciation for art will forever be changed by her advocacy.

However, I got to know Senator Bovey on a different level when she was the deputy chair of the Special Committee on the Arctic, which I was privileged to chair. Through that committee, I got to see first-hand the passion that Senator Bovey has for Canada’s Arctic. I saw how eager she was to learn about the lived experiences of northerners and how hard she worked to help address the many issues facing the North.

At the time, there was only one senator appointed for the entire Arctic — our colleagues Senators Anderson and Duncan had yet to be appointed — so finding Senator Bovey, who was such a willing and capable ally, was a refreshing and major relief. We travelled together throughout the Arctic, and that brings with it a special bond.

Northern Lights: A wake-up call for the future of Canada was the report we produced, and it brought forward one key recommendation above all recommendations: that decisions about the North be for the North and by the North. This shows that passion I spoke of earlier. She joined me as we insisted that this recommendation be written several times throughout the report and that it be central to the media messaging.

We heard witnesses in Ottawa, and we travelled across the North. I remember flying all the way to Nain only to be fogged in at the last minute. We wrote the report in 18 short months, and may I add that we assembled our report at the same time as our government was working on its new Arctic policy framework to guide Arctic policy until 2030. Many respected observers noted that our report was a welcome — and dare I say even better — comprehensive, focused and forward-looking contribution to Arctic policy development.

Senator Bovey, we will miss your calm, measured voice, your fierce advocacy and your friendship, and I know you will continue to be an eloquent advocate for the arts in everything you do. We look forward to hearing about your next chapter. You and I will keep in touch on a goal we share — progress on the creation of a Nunavut heritage centre. We’ll make sure you come back to Nunavut, where I know a big part of your heart is, but I am really happy you will now be able to enjoy extra time with your family and beloved grandchildren, whom I know you love so much. Qujannamiik. Thank you. Taima.