MANCHESTER, NH – The convergence of business and art delivers the unexpected.
It was an evening like no other filled with art exhibits, live music, dance performances and well-deserving award winners at the 39th Annual Arts Awards Gala.
On May 8, the New Hampshire Business Committee for the Arts (NHBCA) held its signature annual event for more than 300 attendees at the DoubleTree by Hilton Manchester Downton. McLane Middleton law firm, Savings Bank of Walpole and Summit Supply were among the winners for their outstanding support of the arts and culture through donations of time, funds and resources such as cross-promotions to benefit their communities, individual artists and arts organizations in and around New Hampshire.
“Celebrating the outstanding award winners’ accomplishments tonight was exhilarating,” said Tricia Soule, NHBCA executive director. “All of them are deeply committed to supporting the arts because they believe in art’s ability to positively impact our communities and transform lives – sometimes in very unexpected ways. I was so impressed with the quality of applications we received and can tell you that the Awards Selection Committee definitely had their work cut out for them when it came down to determining the winners.”
McLane Middleton was honored with the Boundless Generosity Award for its commitment to volunteerism and overarching philosophy that their attorneys should be active participants in their communities. The firm’s relationships and support of the cultural pillars of the state from the Capitol Center for the Arts to the Palace Theater to Opera North to Manchester Community Music School and many others, are passed down from one attorney to another, ensuring these arts organizations benefit both from a long history of stewardship and the infusion of new energy and ideas around the board room table.
Savings Bank of Walpole received the Dyed-in-the-Wool Award for supporting nearly two dozen performing, visual and youth arts organizations in the Monadnock region for more than five consecutive years. By investing in the artistic life of their region at a level comparable or higher than businesses twice their size, the bank was lauded for embodying “what it means to be a community bank.”
The Fanfare Award was presented to Summit Supply for creatively promoting The Music Hall on the company’s fleet of service trucks with custom wraps that advertise the theatre. With multiple trucks traveling through Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine, Summit Supply provides The Music Hall with an innovative and far-reaching marketing campaign without the exorbitant cost.
Derek Lucci of Amherst won the Bayberry Financial Services Artrepreneur Award for his founding of Open Sky, a skills-based acting program for incarcerated men in the NH State Prison system. The actor, director, writer and educator’s organization has reached over 650 incarcerated residents who either participated in or attended one of 11 performances (followed by audience discussion) of the Sam Shepard play “True West.”
The Northeast Delta Dental Artsbuild Community Award was presented to Kimball Jenkins for partnering with My Turn to help reduce barriers of access to arts experiences for young people while helping to connect with creative placemaking through art and centering traditionally underrepresented voices. The partnership resulted in a public mural in Concord, designed and executed by a group of teenagers who received mentoring and feedback from artistic, business and civic leaders in everything from project management to budgeting and community development.
Winners were awarded a fused glass sculpture created specifically for the event by Manchester-based artist Verne Orlosk. Each award was accompanied by a certificate made by calligraphy artist Adele Sanborn.
In addition to sharing the stories of this year’s award winners, the event was a celebration of artistic excellence built upon the theme of ‘Business and art deliver the unexpected.’ The evening did, indeed, surprise and delight. Classical ballet was performed by eight dancers from Ballet Misha to classical music blended with rock ballads that was performed by the Concord Community Music School Players. Lebanon-based abstract artist Roger Goldenberg created improvisational paintings inspired by the music and dance movement. The event culminated with Ballet Misha’s dancing to a cello rendition of Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody which was followed by a spectacular guitar solo of the song played by Zeb Cruikshank.
Presenting Sponsors were NH Business Review and New Hampshire Magazine. The Premier Performance Sponsor was NH Dance Collaborative. Bayberry Financial Services was the naming sponsor of the Artrepreneur Award and Northeast Delta Dental served as the naming sponsor of the Artsbuild Community Award.
The New Hampshire Business Committee for the Arts presents the awards annually to recognize and honor outstanding individuals, businesses and organizations for support of arts and culture in the Granite State. The NHBCA was founded to educate, motivate and recognize business support of and participation in the arts. For more information contact the NHBCA at 603-228-4797 or visit www.nhbca.com.