2 local residents among recipients of 2019 Governor’s Awards for the Arts & Humanities
Two local residents are among the 10 recipients of the 2019 Georgia Governor’s Awards for the Arts and Humanities.
Gov. Brian Kemp and Georgia first lady Marty Kemp announced the awards Thursday during a ceremony in the State Capitol. The local recipients are:
- Rick McKnight, education program manager at the RiverCenter for the Performance Arts in Columbus.
- Christopher Johnson, assistant professor, visual arts program director and fine arts coordinator at Andrew College in Cuthbert.
McKnight “serves and supports” arts and education in Columbus “through his programmatic, philanthropic and fundraising efforts,” the news release says.
He has helped increase access to arts education for students in the Muscogee County School District through the ArtsREACH Program at the RiverCenter.
“As the founding chair of the Columbus Cultural Arts Alliance, McKnight partnered with city and community leadership to designate a portion of the lodging tax for arts initiatives that contribute to tourism and economic development, and more than $2 million has been directed to local arts agencies as a result,” the news release says. “McKnight was part of a five-person project development team that conceptualized, planned, built and funded the RiverCenter for the Performing Arts.”
Johnson is a “regionally celebrated and recognized visual artist whose public murals have brought renewed interest to an array of Georgia communities,” the news release says.
That includes the five-stories tall mural in downtown Columbus he painted this past summer.
“Johnson’s murals blend subjects drawn from local history and celebrate unique and significant contributions that southwest Georgia has made to American culture and history,” the news release says. “. . . Johnson’s murals have sparked discussions about the way Georgia’s communities think about their own identities and about the contributions Georgia continues to make to the country.”
The awards are presented in partnership with the Georgia Council for the Arts and Georgia Humanities. According to the Georgia Humanities website, these awards recognize and honor individuals and organizations that have made outstanding contributions to the civic or cultural vitality of the state.
A committee evaluated the nominations and recommended 10 recipients selected by the governor and first lady. In addition to McKnight and Johnson, the other recipients are:
- Lucinda W. Bunnen for visual arts philanthropy in Atlanta.
- Hermina Glass-Hill for humanities in Midway and Kennesaw.
- Angelica Hairston for music and arts leadership in Decatur, Atlanta, statewide and the Southeast.
- Kathy Prescott and Grady Thrasher for arts and humanities philanthropy in Athens and Atlanta.
- Common Good Atlanta for humanities education in Atlanta, Buford, Forsyth, Hartwell and Newton County.
- Jessye Norman School of the Arts for arts education in Augusta, Evans and Richmond County.
- Madison-Morgan Conservancy for humanities and historic preservation in Madison and Middle Georgia.
- Mercer University Press for humanities in Macon and statewide.
