The Vermont Arts Council has honored its 2021 Arts Award recipients in a series of short video tributes about their work as well as a video message from Governor Phil Scott. The video tributes are in lieu of an in-person ceremony, which was canceled this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Award recipients are:
- Sydney Lea of Newbury, Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts — the highest honor presented to an artist by the state of Vermont — for the wide-ranging scope of his work, which included serving as Vermon't poet laureate.
- Pamela Polston of Burlington, Walter Cerf Medal for Outstanding Achievement in the Arts, for her outstanding, sustained contribution to the arts and its impact on Vermont’s cultural life.
- Steffen Parker of Williston, Ellen McCulloch-Lovell Award in Arts Education, for his long-time involvement in mentoring Vermont’s young musicians.
- Mara Williams of Brattleboro, Margaret L. (Peggy) Kannenstine Award for Arts Advocacy, for her work as chief curator of the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center, from which she recently retired.
- Lydia Clemmons of Charlotte, Arthur Williams Award for Meritorious Service to the Arts, for her stewardship of the historic Clemmons Family Farm and for nurturing African American and African diaspora culture across Vermont, building upon the creative vision and legacy of her parents, Jackson and Lydia Clemmons.
The Arthur Williams Award is the only award selected by the staff of the Vermont Arts Council. The governor selects the recipient of the Governor’s Award from a list of nominations compiled from across the state and vetted by the Arts Council. The other awards are determined by an outside panel from a list of nominations, which are solicited from around the state each spring.