Centre College music professor Vince DiMartino, a ubiquitous presence in Central Kentucky jazz circles, is the recipient of the artist award in the Governor's Awards in the Arts. Photo from Centre.edu.
The 2008 Governor's Awards in the Arts will be presented at 10 a.m. Wednesday in the rotunda of the State Capitol Building in Frankfort.
This year's awards mark two big changes: The award presentations have been shifted from the winter to the fall. Also, it will be the first round of Governor's Awards presented by Steve Beshear, who was elected last fall. The recipients this year include a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, one of Lexington's highest profile musicians, and a Lexingtonian who heads up one of theater's most unlikely success stories.
Here are the recipients:
- Retired Brown-Forman chairman and CEO Owsley Brown II wins the Milner Award, given for individual commitment to the arts. Brown was active with numerous Louisville organizations, including Actors Theatre of Louisville and the Kentucky Opera.
Fort Knox native and playwright Suzan-Lori Parks will receive the National Award for a Kentuckian who has had a nationwide impact in the arts. Among Parks' achievements are the Pulitzer Prize-winning Topdog/Underdog and the project 365 Days/365 Plays. She was also a 2001 recipient of a MacArthur Foundation Genius Grant. Photo, right, by Stephanie Diani.
- Vince DiMartino is the Artist Award winner. The Centre College music professor and trumpeter is a ubiquitous presence in Central Kentucky jazz circles both as a performer and educator, and he has performed on stages around the world. DiMartino is also co-founder of the Great American Brass Band Festival, each June in Danville.
Kentucky Repertory Theatre in Horse Cave wins the Community Artist Award. The 23-year-old professional theater defied convention by opening and thriving in a town of just 2,000. The theater is directed by Robert Brock, a Henry Clay High School and University of Kentucky graduate. Photo from imagesglasgow.com.
Nicholasville's Charlie Hughes wins the media award for his twice-monthly Kentucky Literary Newsletter which promotes literary arts throughout the state. Photo from Wind Publications.
- Louisville based ear X-tacy and its owner John Timmons get the business award for support of the arts.
- The City of Covington wins the government award for utilizing the arts to revitalize its downtown.
- Owensboro's Julie Ann White will receive the education award for her work in Owensboro Public Schools where she is a fine arts specialist and founded the school system's annual Fine Arts Festival.
- The Cowan Community Action Group wins the folk heritage award for making traditional arts a centerpiece of its educational outreach.
All honorees will receive Upward Glance, a sculpture by Louisville artist William M. Duffy.
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