Last Monday at Cipriani in New York City, Americans for the Arts celebrated the Alliance for Young Artists and Writers, the nonprofit organization that presents the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards and provides additional opportunities for creative teens to be recognized for their talents and to earn scholarships for their education.
Founded in 1960, Americans for the Arts is the nation's leading nonprofit organization for advancing the arts and arts education. Their National Arts Awards recognizes and celebrates the contributions and accomplishments of national leaders who are advancing the arts in the United States, and this year, the Alliance took home the 2018 Arts Education Award!
During the ceremony, fashion designer Zac Posen, who received recognition in the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards when he was a teen in 1999, presented the honor to Virginia McEnerney, Executive Director of the Alliance. He credited the recognition program for providing encouragement at a young age and helping him pursue his career in fashion, saying, “it reinforced in me that I had a creative voice.” Other renowned Awards alumni who have gone on to become leaders in their fields include Andy Warhol, Truman Capote, Richard Avedon, Sylvia Plath, Kay WalkingStick, Ken Burns, Stephen King, Lena Dunham, and Richard Linklater.
To make the occasion even more special, the Arts Education Award was presented during the 95th anniversary of the Scholastic Art & Writing Awards! Congratulations to everyone at the Alliance!
Take a look at the social media posts from the Americans for the Arts awards ceremony below, and for more coverage of the event, check out this article at Vogue.
We had an incredible night at the #NationalArtsAwards! Thank you to @Americans4Arts for honoring us with the Arts Education Award, presented to us by @Zac_Posen! Congratulations to the other awardees @mavisstaples @aiww @Justin_Peck & #annziff and to host @StephenAtHome pic.twitter.com/hbWaLndvvH
— Scholastic Awards (@artandwriting) October 25, 2018
What A huge Honor to present the @americans4arts award to @artandwriting tonight! Both are important and vital Organizations that keep the arts and creativity thriving in our country! Thank you for a wonderful evening! pic.twitter.com/ftppGD88rF
— Zac Posen (@Zac_Posen) October 23, 2018
