Tampa Bay Businesses for Culture & the Arts, “TBBCA,” 29th annual Impact Awards, held Thursday, October 18th, drew over 400 business, higher education and community leaders from across the bay. The non-profit organization’s signature event purposefully underscored private sector support for the arts as economic drivers, catalysts for innovation, creativity, transformation and development, and important cornerstones of our society.
USF Graphicstudio, the third largest university print and publishing atelier in the U.S., led by Director Margaret Miller, was recognized with TBBCA 2018 Innovation in Arts & Education Impact Award. Celebrating its 50th year as a leading center for excellence and collaborations, USF Graphicstudio has attracted to the Tampa Bay area acclaimed artists from around the world, including James Rosenquist, Robert Rauschenberg, Christian Marclay, Diana Al-Hadid, Alex Katz, and hundreds of others.
Stanton Storer was lauded with TBBCA 2018 Patron of Culture & the Arts Impact Award, Storer’s support for the arts has had a transformative impact on our community’s museums, galleries and artists for two decades. One of the area’s most generous cultural patrons, the pharmaceutical oncology consultant’s beneficiaries include USF Institute for Research in Art & Graphicstudio; Museum of Fine Arts, St. Petersburg; Tampa Museum of Art; and many more. His extensive art collection includes world famous as well as emerging artists. He supports arts education through two USF scholarship funds.
Renowned artist Mernet Larsen was celebrated and honored with the TBBCA 2018 Lifetime Artistic Achievement Impact Award. For over 35 years as a professor at USF, Larsen educated, influenced and inspired an entire generation of artists. Now in her mid-70’s, Larsen is at the center of global critical acclaim as one of the most important and impactful artists of our time, with artwork in museums including the Whitney Museum of American Art, LACMA, Carnegie Museum of Art, the Walker Art Center, Tampa Museum of Art, and private collections.
The video presentations on the three honorees were created in collaboration with Glenn Horn, Creative Director of ChappellRoberts and TBBCA Board Director. The videos debuted at the event can be viewed on TBBCA’s website at www.tbbca.org/ImpactAwards2018
The Impact Awards also featured a performance by Siobhan Monique, the first Art Stars Scholarships Vocal Music Recipient when the TBBCA program was started by the late Charlie Hounchell. In just 10 years, TBBCA has awarded financial tuition assistance to over 60 young talents like Siobhan Monique to help them pursue higher education and careers in the arts.
About TBBCA
TBBCA is a non-profit founded in 1989, one of 11 national Business Committees for the Arts, part of the private sector network and national pARTnership Movement of Americans for the Arts. TBBCA mission is to unite Tampa Bay businesses to champion arts and culture for a prosperous community, because the arts are good for business, and business is good for the arts. Through pARTnerships and programs, TBBCA connects, motivates and recognizes the business community’s leadership and support of arts and culture as vital TBBCA is a 501 (c) (3) #CH32681 www.tbbca.org contact:susanaweymouth@tbbca.org