Durham Resident Recognized for Artistic Excellence

*Press release from the Connecticut Office of the Arts

A total of thirty-nine (39) Connecticut artists have been awarded grants through the Artist Fellowship Program:

• 5 artists have been recognized for the $5,000 Artist Fellowship Excellence Award
• 30 artists for the $3,000 Artist Fellowship Award
• 4 artists have been identified for the $1,000 Emerging Recognition Award

The Artist Fellowship Program recognizes the artistic excellence of individual Connecticut artists in a variety of disciplines and allows these artists the opportunity to pursue new works of art and to achieve specific creative and career goals. The program is highly competitive: over 235 applicants were received for the 2018 round with applications reviewed by 48 professional panelists representing a wide array of artistic disciplines.

The following artists have been awarded an Artist Fellowship Excellence Award in the amount of $5,000:

Mara Lieberman, West Hartford
Discipline(s): Dramatic Writing, Playwriting

Olive Alice, Branford
Discipline(s): Performing Arts, Songwriting, Music Composition, Soundscape and Folk Music

Ted Thomas, Norwalk
Discipline(s): Performing Arts, Choreography, Ballet, Modern/Contemporary Dance

Camille Eskell, Norwalk
Discipline(s): Visual Arts, Mixed Media, Works on Paper, and Sculpture

Marcela Staudenmaier, New Haven
Discipline(s): Visual Arts, Illustration, Children’s Book Illustration, and Works on Paper

The following artists have been awarded an Artist Fellowship Award in the amount of $3,000:

In the Community/Teaching Artist category:

• Anna Sanko, Rockville
• JeAndra Davis-Marcellin, Windsor

In the Digital Media & Film category:

• Jenifer McShane, Guilford
• Jeff Bemiss, Enfield

In the Literary Arts category:

• Tricia Bauer, West Redding
• Leslie Bulion, Durham
• Melanie Faranello, West Hartford
• Benjamin Grossberg, West Hartford
• Lynn Houston, North Haven
• Leslie Johnson, Coventry
• Linda Zajac, Vernon

In the Performing Arts category:

• Jim Allyn, Newtown
• Noah Baerman, Middletown
• Amy Beth Kristen, New Haven
• Tawnie Olson, New Haven
• Steven Raider-Ginsburg, New Haven
• Tarishi Shuler, West Haven
• Nicole Stanton, Amston
• Carl Testa, New Haven

In the Visual Arts category:

• David Borawski, Hartford
• Gary Burnley, Ridgefield
• Robert Calafiore, West Hartford
• Jan Cunningham, New Haven
• Geoffrey Detrani, Hamden
• Joseph Fucigna, Weston
• Caroline Guimarey, Bridgeport
• Leeah Joo, Middlebury
• KK Kozik, Sharon
• Sabrina Marques, Hamden
• Mari Skarp-Bogli, Bristol

The following artists have been awarded an Emerging Recognition Award in the amount of $1,000:

• Amanda Bloom, New Haven (Literary Arts, Fiction, Poetry)
• Monique Atherton, New Haven (Visual Arts, Photography, Peformance Art)
• Joe Bun Keo, Hartford (Visual Arts, Installation, Sculpture, Mixed Media)
• Destiny Palmer, East Haven (Visual Arts, Mixed Media, Sculpture, Painting)

Congratulations to the 2018 Artist Fellowship awardees!

REGISTER NOW FOR CONNECTICUT ARTS DAY!
Wednesday, April 25, 2018

Connecticut Arts Day celebrates Connecticut’s investment in and support of the arts and reaffirms the significant role the arts play in our state.

The day includes special performances, engaging panel discussions, exciting presentations, networking opportunities, the Connecticut Arts Hero Awards and the presentation of a Lifetime Achievement Award to Judy Dworin, founder of The Judy Dworin Performance Project!

Connecticut Arts Day has been made possible in part by the National Endowment for the Arts.

REGISTER NOW!

Again, congratulations to the Connecticut artists being honored with an Artist Fellowship Award! We thank you for your interest in our programs and wish you well as you continue to create amazing works of art!

Sincerely,

Kristina Newman-Scott, Director of Culture
& the Connecticut Office of the Arts staff:
Tamara Dimitri
Adriane Jefferson
Bonnie Koba
Rhonda F. Olisky
Lourdes "Lu" Rivera
Jane Schneider

Image via Shutterstock