News Room
Read the latest arts news
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Americans for the Arts today announced that urban designer Paola Aguirre Serrano has been awarded the 2022 Jorge and Darlene Pérez Prize in Public Art & Civic Design. A first-of-its-kind national recognition program established by the Jorge M. Pérez Family Foundation, the prize includes a cash stipend of $30,000 plus opportunities for Aguirre Serrano to participate in discussions about her work with national leaders in the arts and other allied fields.
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Americans for the Arts announced today the recipients of the 2022 Americans for the Arts Leadership Awards at Americans for the Arts’ Annual Convention. Given annually, the awards recognize the achievements of individuals and organizations committed to enriching their communities through the arts.
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Americans for the Arts announced today that Adriane Jefferson, director of the Department of Arts and Cultural Affairs for the City of New Haven and the executive director of New Haven Festival Inc, has been awarded the 2022 American Express Emerging Leader Award at Americans for the Arts’ Annual Convention. The award recognizes an exceptional new and/or young arts professional for their exemplary leadership, deep engagement with community, and strong commitment to advancing the arts.
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The Alene Valkanas State Arts Advocacy Award honors an individual at the state level whose arts advocacy efforts have dramatically affected the political landscape. Crystal Young is the Executive Director of the Utah Cultural Alliance and is motivated by an intense desire to leave the world better than she found it.
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The American Express Emerging Leader Award recognizes visionary leadership by an individual who is a new and/or young arts leader who demonstrates an ability to engage and impact their community. Adriane Jefferson is currently the Director of Cultural Affairs for the City of New Haven and the Executive Director of New Haven Festivals Inc., where she is leading the city on cultural equity and anti-racism initiatives.
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The Selina Roberts Ottum Award for Arts Leadership recognizes an individual working in arts management who has made a meaningful contribution to their local community and who exemplifies extraordinary leadership qualities. Julie Garreau (Lakota name Wičhaȟpi Epatȟaŋ Wiŋ) is an enrolled member of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, and is the executive director of the nonprofit Cheyenne River Youth Project (CRYP) in Eagle Butte, South Dakota.
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Americans for the Arts leadership and staff are saddened to learn of the passing of longtime partner, patron, and friend William (Bill) J. Lehr Jr. His legacy of support for arts advocacy, both nationally and in his home state of Pennsylvania, will live on in the many nonprofits, public-private organizations, government entities, and the lives of individual artists that he impacted during his decades long leadership and support in the arts sector.
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On Thursday, April 28, 2022, Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-CA-13) introduced the Equity Through the Arts and Humanities Act (H.R. 7627), which would create a grant program to support arts and humanities projects that work to dismantle systemic racism through the arts and humanities.
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Americans for the Arts today announced its May 18–20 Annual Convention, bringing the creative field together in person for the first time since 2019. Through 22 sessions held in D.C.’s historic Omni Shoreham Hotel, participants will celebrate the transformative, collective strength of creative workers and cultural organizations across the United States; listen to and learn from creative leaders offering wisdom on the way forward; and better understand how the nonprofit arts field can build an equitable arts, culture, and creative economy together as we reemerge and rebuild from the pandemic.
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Americans for the Arts Action Fund is pleased to announce the addition of four new members to its board of directors: Nolen V. Bivens, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts; Patrick Brien, executive director of the Riverside Arts Council; Colleen Jennings-Roggensack, vice president for cultural affairs for Arizona State University and executive director of ASU Gammage; and Felix Sanchez, chairman and co-founder of the National Hispanic Foundation for the Arts.