Wed 2/26 @ 6pm
The Cleveland Arts Prize is the oldest award of its kind in the US. The award’s history dates back to 1960 when the Women’s City Club of Cleveland hosted a series of lectures designed to create a dialogue in order to assess the city’s cultural landscape. In the final lecture, composer Klaus George Roy suggested establishing an annual tradition of identifying and honoring Cleveland’s most outstanding talents.
The Women’s City Club’s Martha Joseph was inspired to establish the Arts Prize within the structure of the Women’s City Club. Now an independent non-profit organization, the Cleveland Arts Prize is the largest and most prestigious award available to local artists.
Organizers will host their annual benefit, Eyes on the Prize, at the Transformer Station. The evening will include art, food, drinks and a variety of fun. Guests will have an opportunity to meet some of the former prize winners — and even bid on their work.
“The Cleveland Arts Prize is very excited to be hosting our annual fundraiser this year at the Transformer Station especially since Laura and Fred Bidwell won a Cleveland Arts Prize last year,” explains CAP Interim Director, Alenka Banco. “I am excited – the evening is going to be a lot of fun. Great people, live auction, silent auction of Arts Prize winners’ work, food, drinks and entertainment by: The DJs of BUMPIN at The Happy Dog, Lawrence Daniel Caswell of Soul Music & Other Music for The Soul, Charles McGaw of WRUW’s On The One, & Darrick Grant of WCSB’s Eclectic Soul.”
While the exact extent of its cultural impact is difficult to measure, it’s clear that CAP has contributed greatly to our community’s rich culture. For more than 50 years, CAP has worked hard to recognize the efforts of our city’s most talented and skilled residents.
CAP has an established legacy of supporting locals who make Cleveland a “cool” place to live. It’s an incentive for the city’s artists to become active, engaged members of their community. This isn’t just an award recognizing talent or skill; CAP specifically targets the area’s most engaged artists in Visual Arts, Music/Dance, Theatre/Dance, Literature and Design (as well as special, uncategorized awards).
This, it seems, is the secret to the award’s success. It encourages our region’s most talented residents to not only stay here, but to become active and influential in our community. Further, CAP offer these passionate citizens tools and resources to make the biggest, most positive impact possible.
The proof of this impact may not be immediately understood economically, but residents can see it all around us. Our city’s cultural landscape is one of our region’s strongest assets, and our arts community is one of our greatest resources. Northeast Ohio’s arts community has never been bigger or stronger. Through various public art projects, exhibitions and installations, Cleveland’s artists have literally changed the landscape of our community.
If you agree that the arts are crucial to the development of the region, be sure to stop by the Transformer Station for Eyes on the Prize. Your donation is an investment in our region’s cultural legacy.
Cleveland, OH 44113