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Arts Commission News

MAC Announces 2008 Recipients for Governor's Awards for Excellence in the Arts

DATE:            January 2, 2008

CONTACT:     Susan Dobbs, Public Relations Director

                   601/359-6031 or sdobbs@arts.state.ms.us

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

JACKSON— The Mississippi Arts Commission (MAC) is delighted to announce the outstanding recipients of the 2008 Governor’s Awards for Excellence in the Arts.  These recipients will be honored at the 20th annual public ceremony at 10 a.m. Friday, February 8, at Galloway United Methodist Church in downtown Jackson.   This year’s five awards and recipients are:

 

Leadership in the Arts              Mississippi Museum of Art

                                                        Jackson

 

Arts Patron                                   Emma McCain

                                                        Meridian

 

Artistic Excellence                     Lallah Miles Perry

                                                        Jackson

 

Literary Excellence                    Natasha Trethewey

                                                        of Gulfport, MS

Lifetime Achievement               Charley Pride

                                                       of Sledge, MS

 

“The Mississippi Arts Commission together with the Governor’s Office, is honored to celebrate this incredible group of artists, arts patrons and arts-based institutions.  This year we had approximately fifty nominations, which made the selection process very difficult for the judges,” said Malcolm White, the Arts Commission’s Director.  “This year marks the 40th Anniversary of the Mississippi Arts Commission, and I can’t think of a better group of recipients to represent this special year for the agency.   We hope all Mississippians will join us in honoring the vast and remarkable artistic traditions of this state.”

Awards are made to individuals and organizations for outstanding work in visual, literary and performing arts, community development through the arts, and arts patronage. (Recipients do not have to currently reside in Mississippi, but they must have significant ties to the state through some years of residency.)

Artist Bill Dunlap, who received a Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts in 1991, will again serve as master of ceremonies, as he has since 1992.

 

The Arts Commission is proud to have artist Fletcher Cox, Governor’s Awards recipient in 2006, to design and construct the awards this year in the manner of his “cooked and raw” project in which wood as it is in nature is combined with finely milled and finished boards. 

 

The commemorative poster was designed by Vidal Blankenstein and features photography by Tom Joynt. The upcoming series of posters will feature arts facilities across the state that have received a grant through the Mississippi Arts Commission’s Building Fund for the Arts.   This year’s poster image is an interior shot of the magnificent Grand Opera House of the MSU Riley Center in Meridian.  Closed in 1927, the theater remained virtually untouched until its reopening in 2006.  The Building Fund for the Arts is made possible through the Mississippi Legislature and state general obligation bonds to provide high-quality facilities for arts and cultural activities. (Posters will be available, free of charge, from the Commission.)

Sponsors make the awards activities possible.  This year’s Premier Partners are A T & T, Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi, The Clarion-Ledger; and Communication Arts Company.  Luckett Communications, LLC is a Principal Partner. Grand Patrons include Chevron Products Company; Lawrence and Jan Farrington; Jane and Wood Hiatt (Hiatt-Ingram Fund of the Community Foundation of Greater Jackson); Mr. & Mrs. Tom Howorth; John N. Palmer Foundation; Carol T. Puckett; and Sanderson Farms, Inc.; Patrons include Canizaro Cawthon Davis Architects; Melody & John Maxey; and Trustmark National Bank.  Donors include Delta and Pine Land Company; Stuart & Karen Irby; Holly & Alan Lange; Jess Pinkston, Jr.; River Oaks Health System; and David M. Trigiani, FAIA.

The Mississippi Arts Commission is a state agency, funded by the Mississippi Legislature, the National Endowment for the Arts, The Wallace Foundation, Donna & Jim Barksdale, The Phil Hardin Foundation, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Mississippi Foundation, and other private sources.  MAC is the official grants making and service agency for the arts in Mississippi. The agency serves as an active supporter and promoter of arts in community life and in arts education.

The Governor’s Awards ceremony at 10:00am on Friday, February 8th at Galloway United Methodist Church in Jackson is free and open to the public.

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