The Greater Columbus Arts Council (GCAC) today announced the recipients, nominees and finalists of the 2022 Community Arts Partnership (CAP) Awards. The individual and employer award recipients are being recognized for their exemplary support of the arts; in addition, two community projects will receive awards recognizing achievements in innovation and community caring.
All award recipients and nominees will be honored at the free Big Arts Night celebration on Thursday, Nov. 3 from 5-7:30 p.m. at the Southern Theatre and Westin Great Southern Hotel. The Columbus Makes Art Excellence winners also will be announced, and GCAC’s Artists Elevated and Ray Hanley Award recipients will be celebrated at the event. The event is free but seat reservations are required. To reserve seats go to my.cbusarts.com/4672.
“Our board had their work cut out for them in selecting the award recipients from this year’s exemplary nominees,” said Tom Katzenmeyer, president and CEO of GCAC. “Every single nominee, individual and organization has done important work in Columbus – from bringing the arts to youth in under-served neighborhoods and leading our long-time institutions, to supporting local community groups, giving voice to historically marginalized communities and helping veterans heal through the arts. We applaud their amazing contributions to our city’s cultural fabric.”
The individual and employer award winners are:
Tobi Furman, nominated by Michael Stinziano, is the recipient of the Arts Educator Award, presented each year to an individual who has made a significant contribution to providing arts education opportunities to students K-12 within a school system or in after-school programs or activities. Furman is the founder of The Artmobile, an art studio on wheels providing access and exposure to the arts and art experiences for youth 3-14 living in under-served neighborhoods.
Hanif Abdurraqib, nominated by Bryan Loar, and Dr. Orlay Alonso, nominated by Steven Glaser, are recipients of the Emerging Arts Leader Award, presented to an individual 40 years of age or younger who has had a significant, positive effect in helping the arts in central Ohio flourish through leadership, innovation, creativity and/or investment. Award-winning poet and essayist Abdurraqib has been the driving force behind grassroots community events like the People’s Back to School party, an extension of the People’s Mural of Columbus. Alonso has made a significant impact on the central Ohio community through performing, teaching, managing, producing, recording, partnering and advocating for the arts.
Nannette Maciejunes, nominated by Stephen Wittmann, and Nancy Strause, nominated by Sue Porter and Edwaard Liang, are the recipients of the Michael B. Coleman Arts Partner Award, presented each year to a civic, community or business leader who is a role model for long-term and exemplary support of the central Ohio arts and cultural community because of their significant contributions of time, effort and/or financial resources. Maciejunes has served as the executive director of the Columbus Museum of Art for the past 20 years, overseeing the expansion of the museum and its exhibitions. Strause has been a champion of the arts in central Ohio for nearly five decades, including playing a vital role at BalletMet since its founding.
Kaufman Development/Gravity, nominated by Johnny Riddle, and the VA Central Ohio Health Care System, nominated by Mary Skrenta, received the Employer Award. Kaufman Development received the award for their support of the local arts community through mural commissions, donations, partnerships with Franklinton Arts District events and more. The VA Central Ohio Health Care System received the award for its Veterans Arts Initiative, which offers a variety of arts programming to help veterans engage with the VA and its resources.
The individual Community Arts Partnership recipients will receive works of art by Daric Gill, Lance Johnson, Ardine Nelson, Stephanie Rond, Carol Snyder and Rachel Stern.
In addition, the Arts Council awarded two Dale E. Heydlauff Community Arts Innovation Awards. The awards, named after Heydlauff in 2020 in honor of his contributions to the arts, each come with a prize of $2,500. They are presented to innovative arts and cultural projects or initiatives that have addressed the unprecedented and challenging circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic and/or the protests resulting from social injustice, by creating something that helped lift up or provide relief to others in the community.
The two winners of the Dale E. Heydlauff Community Arts Innovation Awards are:
Columbus Black History Bus/Virtual Tours, nominated by Shawn Thomas, was created by author and historian Rita Fuller-Yates following her release of her book Columbus Black History — Images from our Past, Volume I. Her bus tours are interactive productions featuring music, video and photos, guided by Fuller-Yates herself.
TransVisibility, nominated by multiple people, is a project created by photographer Emma Parker to help connect the larger community to inclusion, equity and social justice by giving voice to the Trans and Non-Binary community through their photographs and personal quotes.
On Nov. 3, GCAC will announce the winners of the 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 will be given in each category of organizations with budgets of under $1 million and those with budgets of $1 million and over.
The 2022 nominees are:
Organizations with budgets of under $1 million
- A Tribe for Jazz: An Exploration of Emotions and Color Through Jazz Music
- Peggy R. McConnell Arts Center: Post No Ills, featuring Lance Johnson
- We Amplify Voices: Life Stories
Organizations with budgets of $1 million and over
- CATCO: School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play
- COSI: Dr. B in 3
- Opera Columbus: 40 Days of Opera
GCAC’s annual Community Arts Partnership Awards honor the Columbus community for its active support of central Ohio’s artists and arts organizations. Nearly 30 organizations and individuals were nominated this year.
To see a complete list of nominees, visit the Community Arts Partnership Awards page here: www.gcac.org/events/community-arts-partnership-awards
The 2022 Big Arts Night event is supported in part by Bath & Body Works and PNC Bank. The Columbus Makes Art Excellence Awards are supported by Huntington.
Mission of the Greater Columbus Arts Council: To support and advance the arts and cultural fabric of Columbus. www.gcac.org
The Greater Columbus Arts Council receives major financial support from the City of Columbus, Franklin County Commissioners and the Ohio Arts Council.
For translations of this release and other pages, please see the dropdown menu at the top right corner of gcac.org.
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CONTACT: Jami Goldstein
(614) 221-8492
jgoldstein@gcac.org
