Joplin, 2012 Creative Community | The Butterfly Effect: Dreams Take Flight , community mura l led by Dave Lowenstein
NOMINATE FOR THE 2025 MISSOURI ARTS AWARDS
CELEBRATING ARTS HEROES
Every year since 1983, through our annual Missouri Arts Awards, the Missouri Arts Council has honored our state’s arts heroes—people, organizations, and communities who have made profound contributions to the culture of Missouri. Here are our 2024 heroes.
Are you, your organization, or your community an arts hero? Let us know!
Categories
Arts Education | Individual or organization that has made significant contributions to arts education either through enhancing the education curriculum within the school system or through creating educational opportunities in the arts outside the school setting
Arts Organization | Outstanding organization actively producing, presenting, or serving the arts
Creative Community | Community (municipality, village or town, business district, tax district, neighborhood association, etc.) that uses the arts to promote economic growth and/or attract tourism, businesses, or residents
Individual Artist | Outstanding artist creating traditional/folk art, electronic media, literary, visual, or performing arts
Leadership in the Arts | Individual who has significantly influenced the arts as a leader
Philanthropy | Individual, organization, foundation, or business that has made significant donations to the arts
Who Is Eligible?
Individuals, organizations, and community nominees must be reside in Missouri to be eligible.
Past Missouri Arts Awards recipients are not eligible to be nominated. Review the list of prior award recipients to make sure your nominee hasn’t already been honored. (Missouri Arts Council board members, staff, the selection committee, and their families are also not eligible.)
How to Nominate
Nominees may self-nominate in every category. This is recommended to avoid duplication of nominations and to ensure accuracy and completeness. Only in the Leadership in the Arts and Philanthropy categories will we accept external nominations, although we stilll recommend self-nominations. Multiple nominations will be combined, and nominees will be informed to ensure accuracy and consent. Make sure that the narrative and supplemental materials are tailored for the nomination category. When you nominate, click on the appropriate category in the form, and the checkbox will be selected. Click again to deselect. Choose only one category at a time.
Selection Process
The honorees are selected by an independent panel of distinguished representatives of Missouri’s arts community throughout the state. The panel’s choices are approved by the Missouri Arts Council board and announced in early November. The designated panel reserves the right to close an award category if nominations do not meet specified criteria.
For More Information
Contact Virginia Sanders, special projects coordinator, at 314-340-6851 or virginia.sanders@ltgov.mo.gov.
TIPS FOR A GREAT NOMINATION
Creating a compelling case to be honored in our Missouri Arts Awards is not difficult. Here are how-to tips from Virginia Sanders, our special projects coordinator.
- Tell real stories, not just list statistics. “How has your nominee had a lasting effect on someone’s life? How has it helped your community?”
- Small is beautiful. “A small organization, an artist from a small town, an event on a small scale may be having a large impact. A nominee doesn’t have to be big, just worthy.”
- Go beyond dignitaries for your letters of support. “It’s great to have your legislator, but letters from everyday people who have benefited are powerful, too.”
- Be succinct. The maximum length for your narrative is two pages. For support materials, the limit is three files. “For an organization, the narrative should include a clearly written history and stories of how helpful the organization has been.”
- Check your nuts and bolts. “Go back over your application to make sure all your links actually open.”
- Don’t be discouraged if you don’t win this year—come back next year. “Use your first nomination as the basis and update it with your latest achievements.”
Cathy and Tom Sakiyama, Chesterfield, 2018 Philanthropy honorees