Honor outstanding contributions to the arts!

Help the South Carolina Arts Commission honor those who create and support the arts in our state! Nominate deserving individuals and organizations for the 2014 Elizabeth O’Neill Verner Governor’s Awards and the 2014 Jean Laney Harris Folk Heritage Awards. The nomination deadline for both awards is Dec. 16.

Lt. Gov. Glenn McConnell, left, greeted the 2013 Verner Award and Folk Heritage Award recipients (or their designees) at the Statehouse.

(Related: Take a look back at last year’s Verner Award recipients and Folk Heritage Award recipients.)

The Verner Award honors arts organizations, patrons, artists, educators, businesses and government entities who excel in their roles as creators, innovators, supporters and advocates of the arts. Is there a business or government agency in your community that goes above and beyond to support the arts, or an individual who works tirelessly to advance the arts? The Verner Award not only recognizes artists and organizations who create and present art, but also organizations and individuals whose support makes the arts possible.  If someone you know has made outstanding contributions to the arts, nominate them for a Verner award!

The Folk Heritage Awards are presented by the S.C. General Assembly to practitioners and advocates of traditional arts significant to communities throughout the state. The award for traditional artists recognizes those who practice art forms that have been transmitted through their families and communities. The award for traditional arts advocates recognizes individuals and groups that have worked to further traditional culture in the state. Do you know a traditional artist committed to keeping the tradition alive or an arts advocate who works to promote traditional culture in South Carolina? Nominate them for a Folk Heritage Award!

The Verner awards are named after the late artist Elizabeth O’Neill Verner, who achieved an international reputation for her etchings and pastels. The Folk Heritage Awards are named after the late Rep. Jean Laney Harris, who was an outspoken advocate for South Carolina’s arts and cultural resources. The South Carolina Arts Commission partners with McKissick Museum at the University of South Carolina to administer the Folk Heritage Awards.

Both awards ceremonies will take place in the spring at the Statehouse.

Read the nomination guidelines and review the application for the Verner Awards and the Folk Heritage Awards. You’ll also find the list of all previous recipients online. Contact Rusty Sox, (803) 734-8899, if you have questions about either award.