Nominations Open For Royal Oak's Community Arts Award

ROYAL OAK, MI — It’s time for locals to nominate their favorite Royal Oak artist for an annual accolade in the city.

The Royal Oak Commission for the Arts is accepting nominations for the 5th Annual Community Arts Award. The award is presented during the Celebration of the Arts festival. Nomination forms will be available through May 7 on the city’s website at romi.gov/art.

The Community Arts Award is given annually to individuals from the Royal Oak community who have made substantial contributions to promoting art and culture in Royal Oak. Previous submissions have included musicians, dancers, sculptors, and painters.

Created in 2015, the past winners of the award have included Royal Oak residents such as Laurie Eisenhardt, Bob Jones, Susan Wedley and Rose Marie Floyd.

“Our community is filled with artists and creators; neighbors, family and friends, who are deserving of recognition and awards,” said Jason Gittinger, chair of the Royal Oak Commission for the Arts and founder of The Detroit School of Rock and Pop Music. “Each year we reach out to Royal Oak to bring these fine arts leaders forward so that we can make the tough choice of highlighting one for all of us to celebrate. I know we will have difficult task ahead of us once again as we get to the selection process this year.”

The Celebration of the Arts is an annual event to celebrate artistic contributions made by residents of Royal Oak. The event began as a celebration of the middle school being awarded a new sound system for its auditorium. Since its inception, it has grown to the premier community event to showcase locally produced art.

The Royal Oak Commission for the Arts was created in 2012 to support arts and culture in the City of Royal Oak. The commission holds events such as the Summer Concert Series, Art Explored, and East 11 Mile Road Public Art Program