Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts
This award is the most distinguished recognition bestowed by the State of Vermont. Accordingly, it is reserved for Vermont artists who have had a profound impact on their field within the state of Vermont and beyond. The governor selects the recipient from a list of nominations compiled from across the state and vetted by the Arts Council.
Criteria
The Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts is awarded to a person (or persons) of distinction in the arts who:
- currently living and resides in Vermont
- has a regional (New England), national, or international reputation in their chosen field as evidenced by third-party acclaim or reviews from independent sources
- has a significant public following as well as peer recognition/acclaim in Vermont
- has a significant body of work revealing his/her talent and skill available for review by the Council
- shows evidence of having a strong commitment to Vermont and the role that the arts plays in its quality of life
Recipients
2023 – Leslie Fry, sculptor
2022 – Larry Bissonnette, visual artist and disability rights advocate, award video; Jarvis Green, theater actor, director and founder, award video
2021 – Sydney Lea, author, award video
2020 – John Fusco, writer, filmmaker, and musician, award video
2019 РFran̤ois Clemmons, singer, composer, playwright, author, and activist
2018 – Chris Miller and Jerry Williams, sculptors
2017 – David Macaulay, author/illustrator
2016 – Eric Aho, visual artist
2015 – Grace Potter, singer/songwriter
2014 – Galway Kinnell, poet
2013 – Warren Kimball, visual artist
2012 – Karen Hesse, author
2012 – Archer Mayor, author
2012 – Sharon Robinson, cellist
2012 – Stephen Stearns, professional clown/teacher
2011 – Julia Alvarez, writer
2010 – Eric Bass and Ines Zeller Bass – photos | award ceremony video
2008 – Rob Mermin, Circus Smirkus founder – award ceremony video
2007 – Ed Koren, illustrator
2006 – Jaime Laredo, musician
2005 – Howard Frank Mosher, author
2004 – Jane Beck, founder Vermont Folklife Center
2003 – Frank Gaylord, sculptor
2002 – Robert DeCormier, conductor/arranger/composer
2001 – Katherine Paterson, writer
2000 – Ernest Kinoy, screenwriter
1999 – Sabra Field, printmaker
1998 – Jay Craven, filmmaker
1997 – Karen Karnes, potter
1996 – Michael Singer, landscape architect
1995 – Pat Adams, painter
1994 – Steve Paxton, dancer/choreographer
1993 – Grace Paley, writer
1992 – Louis Calabro, musician/conductor
1991 – Daniel Urban Kiley, landscape architect
1989 – Efrain Guigui, conductor
1988 – David Mamet, writer
1986 – Ralph Steiner, photographer/cinematographer
1985 – Elsa Hilger, musician
1984 – Marcel Moyse, composer/musician
1983 – George Tooker, painter
1982 – Julius Held, Meyer Schapiro, and John Kouwenhoven, art historians and writers
1979 – Bernard Malamud, writer
1978 – Peter Schumann, actor/founder of Bread and Puppet Theatre
1977 – Blanche Honegger Moyse, conductor/ co-founder of Brattleboro Music Center
1975 – Ivan Albright, painter
1974 – Clara Sipprell, photographer
1973 – Hayden Carruth, poet
1972 – Alan Carter, conductor/founder of Vermont Symphony Orchestra
1971 – Walter Piston, composer
1970 – Aileen Osborn Webb, crafts administrator
1969 – Luigi Lucioni, painter
1968 – Carl Ruggles, composer
1967 – Rudolf Serkin, musician
Submit a Nomination
Nominations are accepted throughout the year. For information about how to submit a nomination, click here.