The Art of Opportunity

How a $10,000 scholarship, mentorship and chutzpah helped AUArts graduate Dayna Loepp create the Calgary Stampede poster — and graduate debt-free. 

If you’ve recently walked just about anywhere in downtown Calgary, chances are you’ve seen the work of Dayna Loepp (BDes ’26, VCD). The freshly minted AUArts graduate is the creative hand and winner of the 2026 Calgary Stampede poster, When the Grass Dances — a wickedly vibrant painting of Grass Dancer Tyrone Sitting Eagle of the Siksika Nation.  

The achievement came with more than city-wide visibility. Loepp also received the $10,000 Dustin Peers Memorial Scholarship, helping her graduate debt-free and affirming her path as an emerging artist and designer. 

From First Entry to First Prize 

With 30,000 copies dotting the globe, the 22-year-old graphic artist remembers how it all began — her first Stampede in 2023. Having moved from Steinbach, MB, to study at AUArts, Loepp was living in Mission at the time when she woke to the crackle of fireworks and found a crowd gathered on her front lawn, gazing skyward. Capturing the communal awe of those glittery explosions inspired her first Stampede poster entry and sparked a fascination with the Stampede’s longstanding commitment to Western art.  

It was through the 114-year-old poster program that Loepp met Sitting Eagle — the subject of this year’s poster. It was during a series of mentorship sessions connecting student artists with seasoned professionals and First Nations members that Sitting Eagle shared the origins of the Grass Dance, a warrior act that blesses and prepares the ground before setting up camp. After numerous conversations with Sitting Eagle and his family, who shared photographs capturing the raucous energy of the dance, Loepp chose to paint him. You’ll see that beneath the painting’s whirl of beads and feathers lies a quieter moment: a contemplative figure gazing downward. 

“It’s as though Tyrone is looking at one of his kids,” says Loepp, “suggesting that someone will follow him. I tried to imply a theme of continuation through his gaze.”  

While the poster program has evolved over the past century, the most significant change occurred in 2019 when it became the Youth Poster Competition, explains Marsha Gordon, collections researcher with the Calgary Stampede. “Before that we had commissioned professional artists, but the shift happened when we decided to create educational opportunities for young artists while maintaining the poster’s role as a visual ambassador for the Calgary Stampede. 

“Interestingly, the current competition has much in common with the earliest Stampede Posters,” adds Gordon. “The 1912 poster relied on artwork by an established Western artist, Charlie Russell, while today’s posters continue to emphasize original fine art as a way of visually representing the spirit and identity of the Calgary Stampede. The Stampede’s founder, Guy Weadick, believed artists played an important role in preserving a way of life that was rapidly disappearing in the early 20th century. In fact, Weadick never stopped believing that artists helped document and celebrate the history, culture and mythology of the West.” 

Beyond appearing in the Stampede Parade, displaying more of her art in BMO’s Western Oasis gallery, seeing her poster wrap around the Calgary Stampede president’s truck and several speaking engagements, Loepp wasn't sure how this opportunity would shape her emerging career.  

Ask veteran artist Paul Van Ginkel, however, and the winner of the 2007 Stampede poster is quick to say it forever altered his work. Since Van Ginkel has been involved with the Stampede, he has staged 22 exhibitions in the Western Showcase and in 2023 was commissioned to paint an oil celebrating 100 years of chuckwagon racing at the Stampede. The original was later reproduced on a 16 X 28 ft. mural on the north side of the Nutrien Building in Stampede Park. His original Stampede poster was also auctioned off and made into canvas prints for which he received a $7,500 fee, and 1/3 of the auction price plus 5% of the print sales. 

A Gift that Keeps on Giving!

Although Van Ginkel didn’t finish his final year of studies, at what was then called ACAD, he left tremendously skilled. The Calgary Herald offered him an irresistible opportunity as an editorial illustrator that he just couldn’t refuse. Since then, he estimates he’s created close to 2,300 paintings and enjoyed being a full-time artist for 43 years with works in galleries around the globe.  

“May I be so lucky,” grins Loepp, who would love to land work at a creative agency. We met Loepp at the Stampede’s Sam Centre where her poster is hanging. She spoke about the Stampede, her artwork and how she finished art school, debt-free. Following are excerpts from the conversation.  

It is so rare to hear of someone graduating debt-free from university — how did you do it? 

Winning the $10,000 Dustin Peers Memorial Scholarship for the Stampede poster was a game changer. I continued to work part-time (as a house cleaner and at a restaurant, Fine Print), but that scholarship was a huge boost. Not only financially, but it was also very validating.  

Have you won any other awards?  

Yes, I’ve been so lucky this year. I also won a Student Anvil Award for Editorial at Ad Rodeo earlier this year. The professors are very good at sharing ways to gain exposure and encouraging students to get involved in industry events.  

Do you have any advice for others in an AUArts program? 

Yes. Now is the time to be brave — to be a little out there.  

Even if you’re thinking ‘I don't know how this is going to pay off,’ you never know until it does. And remember, the world may not be moving as fast as people say. You have time to decide what feels right for you. 

What was one of the most difficult decisions you made at AUArts? 

When I entered the program, I thought I wanted to paint. But after a year, I thought if I painted for a living, I may love it less. I was too emotionally invested in painting and realized I wanted to keep it that way. So, I switched to graphic design, and it turns out I love it. It’s now my favourite thing! 

Are you worried your creativity could be replaced by AI? 

Not at all. AI can’t replace strategy and human emotion or nuance or taste. But we, as artists, can add it to our workflow for efficiency purposes. We can’t just close our eyes and pretend AI is not there … of course there are a lot of ethical things to be worked out, and it does need to be babysat. I embrace it, but lightly. 

We know this was your third attempt in creating a Stampede poster — what exactly is the process? 

It’s long. About a year or so before you ever start painting, there’s an orientation day and then a day where you pitch two or three concepts. The top 30 artists then hone their skills through masterclasses, mentorship and studio time with local artists. If you advance beyond that to the next level, you’re in the top eight, where you receive one-on-one mentorship and more artistic coaching as well as exposure to Western culture and First Nations individuals who help explain and enhance your work. Then you have about another six months to finish the piece.  

What was your connection to Tyrone Sitting Eagle? 

I wanted to do him justice and his art justice, so I kept him in the loop the whole time. At first, we spent a lot of time discussing the history and symbolism behind the grass dance. Then I met Tyrone in person at Stampede and got to show his family the painting when it was about 75% complete, so I was able to get more input from them before I finished it. Being able to present tobacco and sweet grass and thanks to his family was very … wonderful. I will never forget when his grandmother broke out in tears. We were all enormously touched by the whole process.  

The Calgary Stampede’s relationship with artists has been long and fruitful, and its connections to AUArts reflect the Stampede’s important role in fostering emerging artists in Alberta, adds Gordon. “Recent winners of the poster competition who have studied at AUArts include Brooklyn Payne (BFA '22, Painting), Lloyd Templeton (BDes '23, VCD), Elora Kiddle (BDes '24, VCD) and now, Dayna Loepp.” 

For Loepp, the Dustin Peers Memorial Scholarship did more than ease the financial pressure of her final year. It gave an emerging artist room to take a creative risk, pursue an ambitious opportunity and begin her career with greater freedom. Its impact will continue well beyond this Stampede season.