SC Arts Commission Press Releases
S.C. Arts Commission Board Re-launches State’s Highest Award in the Arts Program with Special Awards
Sept. 21, 2009
Media Contacts:
Milly Hough
(803) 734-8698
(803) 734-8620
COLUMBIA, S.C. –The S.C. Arts Commission Board today elected to award best-selling author Pat Conroy and celebrated artist Jonathan Green with Elizabeth O’Neill Verner Governor’s Awards for the Arts’ Lifetime Achievement Awards. Public nominations for the state’s highest awards in the arts are now being accepted. Guidelines and nomination forms are now available. Nominations are due by Jan. 15, 2010.
“This is a great thing for South Carolina, a spirit-raising recognition of two of our most accomplished, talented artists, one a master of words and one a master of images,” said S.C. Arts Commission Chairman Bud Ferillo.
Conroy’s fifth novel and ninth book is “South of Broad,” named for a part of his favorite city, Charleston. He currently lives in Fripp Island, with his wife, the novelist Cassandra King.
Green, a resident of Daniel Island, is best known for depicting the people and landscape of the Lowcountry. His work, which has been exhibited in major venues nationally an internationally, reflects an intrinsic sense of history and place.
The board’s recognition of these individuals will re-launch the Elizabeth O’Neil Verner Governor’s Awards for the Arts’ program, which was suspended in 2009 due to budget restrictions. The awards are presented to South Carolina businesses, organizations and individuals for their achievement or contributions to the advancement of the arts. Nominations can be made in the following categories:
- Arts in Education: open to S.C. individuals and/or institutions whose primary function is arts education.
- Organization: open to S.C. organizations who contribute to the advancement and/or support of the arts. May include: arts discipline organizations, arts councils, arts advocacy groups, guilds, arts departments of organizations, educational institutions, etc.
- Government: open to S.C. individuals and/or institutions generally described as a unit of state, local, count or municipal government, or elected/appointed officials.
- Business/Foundation: open to S.C. individuals or companies/foundations whose participation, support, and/or contributions have benefited the maintenance and growth of the arts.
- Individual: open to S.C. individuals who have demonstrated exceptional achievement and statewide impact through their leadership, support, and advancement of the arts. May include: arts professionals such as managers, administrators; arts supporters such as patrons, promoters, donors, etc.
- Individual Artist: open to S.C. artists of exceptional talent and creativity, in any discipline, whose contribution to the arts has helped guide and influence directions, trends and aesthetic practices across the state or to national or international levels.
A committee appointed by the S.C. Arts Commission reviews all nominations and makes recommendations to the board for final approval. The awards will presented during a ceremony at the State House May 6. An evening celebration presented by the South Carolina Arts Foundation will follow the State House presentation ceremony. More etails will be announced as plans are finalized.
For more information about the Elizabeth O’Neill Verner Governor’s Awards for the Arts, call (803) 734-8696.
About SCAC:
The South Carolina Arts Commission is the state agency charged with creating a thriving arts environment that benefits all South Carolinians, regardless of their location or circumstances. Created by the South Carolina General Assembly in 1967, the Arts Commission works to increase public participation in the arts by providing services, grants and leadership initiatives in three areas: arts education, community arts development and artist development. Headquartered in Columbia, S.C., the Arts Commission is funded by the state of South Carolina, by the federal government through the National Endowment for the Arts and other sources. For more information, visit www.SouthCarolinaArts.com or call (803) 734-8696.
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