Cultural Arts Murfreesboro Announces Launch of the Cultural Arts Laureate Program
By Pam Williams, Cultural Arts Coordinator, Murfreesboro Parks and Recreation –
Cultural Arts Murfreesboro is excited to announce the launch of Murfreesboro’s first artist Laureate program, a distinguished honor for local artists that will give chosen recipients the opportunity to educate and engage the community in their field of expertise. Inspired by many other cities that have successful Laureate Programs, Murfreesboro Parks and Recreation will launch the Cultural Arts Laureate Program for in 2017, accepting submissions beginning March 1st.
A Laureate is a person who has been honored for achieving distinction in a particular field. A Laureate is officially appointed by a government or conferring institution, and is often expected to create art in their medium for special events and occasions. Over a dozen national governments have Poet Laureates as well as many local governments, and many have branched out to other Laureates such as Painter Laureate, Photographer Laureate, and many others including more general Fine Art Laureates.
The Cultural Arts Program will appoint three Laureates- a Poet Laureate, a Painter Laureate, and a Photographer Laureate. They will serve as the City’s selected Laureate for a one year term and during that time will complete new work inspired by Murfreesboro, will exhibit their craft at city events, and will complete a number of community outreach arts-related projects that will target non-traditional and under-served audiences. Each Laureate will also receive a $500 monetary award.
The goals of beginning the Cultural Arts Laureate Program are to give experienced individual artists an opportunity to share their talents with their community, to give youth citizens and new artists role models within their own community, and to encourage and nurture a growing arts culture in Murfreesboro. The desired outcomes of this initiative are that each year the selected Laureates will use their craft to make impacts on their community that they will find rewarding and continue to give time to after their term, and that the community will be served by the arts and lives will be enriched by the work the Laureates accomplish.
Ideal candidates are well established, professional artists who are living and working in Murfreesboro and have an interest in using their talents to enrich our community. A reception will be held in honor of the selected Laureates which will launch the beginning of their one year term. Applicants will be required to submit a proposal for how they plan to fulfill certain obligations such as advocacy events, community outreach projects, and a collaborative project with the other chosen Laureates. Submissions will be accepted March 1st through April 30th. Interested professional artists can find the application guidelines at: www.culturalartsmurfreesboro.submittable.com.
For more information contact Pam Williams at pwilliams@murfreesborotn.gov, 615-642-3148
