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Greater Columbus Arts Council Announces 2019 Community Arts Partnership Winners

in Press Releases October 31, 2019 3 min read

COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Greater Columbus Arts Council (Arts Council) today awarded three employers and three individuals with a 2019 Community Arts Partnership (CAP) Award for their exemplary support of the arts, as well as two awards for projects recognizing achievements in innovation, risk and artistic excellence.

Employer Award winners are:

Ahlum & Arbor Tree Preservation, which received the award in the Small Employer category for companies with fewer than 50 employees. Ahlum & Arbor Tree Preservation was nominated by the Franklin Park Conservatory & Botanical Gardens. They received an award by Columbus artist Jacci Delaney, Citrus Volume.

CASTO, which received the award in the Medium Employer category for companies with 50-500 employees. CASTO was nominated by the Franklinton Arts District. They received an award by Columbus artist Edward Boateng, Columbus Skyline.

CoverMyMeds, which received the award in the Large Employer category for companies with more than 500 employees. CoverMyMeds was nominated by 2×2 Hip-Hop Festival and Wild Goose Creative. They received an award by Columbus artist Said Oladejo-Lawal, Hear My Harmonies.

In addition the three individual award winners announced in September were recognized and presented their award. The awards were an original piece created by Columbus artist Celeste Malvar-Stewart. The individual winners are:

Aziza and Tony West, nominated by Suzan Bradford Kounta, are the recipients of this year’s Arts Educator award.

Columbus City Council President Shannon Hardin, nominated by Larry James, is the recipient of this year’s Michael B. Coleman Arts Partner award.

Betsy Pandora, nominated by Amy Tillinghast, is the recipient of this year’s Emerging Arts Leader award.

The individual awards were presented by PNC Bank Regional President Mary Auch and Michael B. Coleman. Employer awards were presented by Columbus City Council President Shannon G. Hardin and Columbus City Council Members Emmanuel V. Remy and Priscilla R. Tyson.

The Arts Council’s annual Community Arts Partnership Awards honor the Columbus community for its active support of central Ohio’s artists and arts organizations. More than 19 businesses and individuals were nominated this year.

The Arts Council also presented two Columbus Makes Art Excellence Awards recognizing outstanding achievements in innovation, risk and artistic excellence in a performance, exhibition, program or project. One $10,000 award was given in each category of organizations with budgets of under $1 million and those with budgets over $1 million. The awards were presented by Arts Council Board Chair Michael Bongiorno.

The 2019 Nominees were:

Organizations with budgets of under $1 million

  • Columbus Gay Men’s Chorus, Stonewall 50
  • Columbus Modern Dance Company, Martha Graham at Generations of Art: The Sunami Family Exhibition
  • Mark Lomax, 400: An Afrikan Epic
  • Momentum, The Harlem Renaissance
  • What? Music and Arts Festival

The 2019 winner of the Columbus Makes Art Excellence Award for an organization with a budget under $1 million is Momentum for The Harlem Renaissance.

Organizations with budgets of $1 million and over

  • Columbus Museum of Art, I, Too, Sing America: The Harlem Renaissance at 100
  • COSI, COSI Science Festival
  • Opera Columbus and ProMusica Chamber Orchestra, The Flood

The 2019 winner of the Columbus Makes Art Excellence Award for an organization with a budget of $1 million and over is Opera Columbus and ProMusica Chamber Orchestra for The Flood.

See videos of Individual Art Award winners and Columbus Makes Art Excellence Award nominees on YouTube.

Each year, the Arts Council staff selects nominees for the Columbus Makes Art Awards. The Arts Council’s board of trustees meets prior to the Community Arts Partnership Awards luncheon to select a winner.

For more information about the Community Arts Partnership Awards or to see a complete list of nominees in all categories go to: www.gcac.org/events/community-arts-partnership-awards

The 2019 Community Arts Partnership Awards are presented by PNC. Columbus Makes Art Excellence Award sponsors are Engie and L Brands Foundation. Supporting sponsor is Big Lots. Patron sponsors include Cardinal Health; Crabbe, Brown & James LLP;  Crane Group; Grange Insurance; Ice Miller; Nationwide; Robert Weiler Company; Smoot Construction; thinkCSC; and Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease. Media sponsors include CityScene Magazine and WOSU Public Media.

Mission of the Greater Columbus Arts Council: To support and advance the arts and cultural fabric of Columbus. www.gcac.org

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CONTACT: Jami Goldstein
(614) 221-8492
jgoldstein@gcac.org