September 2006 Page 2

> WANNA "GET INVOLVED" IN MISSOURI ART?

"Missouri Citizens for the Arts (MCA) will host its Annual Meeting and Arts Advocacy Award Reception on Wednesday, October 25, 2006 in Columbia, Missouri. This event will kick off MCA's 27th year of successful advocacy on behalf of the arts in Missouri by honoring Governor Matt Blunt, Senator Chuck Gross, and Representative Allen Icet with the 2006 Arts Advocacy Award. MCA will also present the Frederick H. Laas Memorial Award, paying tribute to our much missed, long-time board member Fred Laas. Dr. Barbara Harbach and Joan Lipkin will be this year's Fred Laas Memorial Award recipients. The honorees have consistently risen to the urgent call to support the arts and education, giving a voice to creative expression and motivating others to follow in their footsteps.

Annually, MCA presents its Arts Advocacy Award to individuals, arts organizations, and businesses that promote public funding for Missouri's arts industry on a sustained basis and with measurable results. This year we recognize Governor Matt Blunt, Senator Chuck Gross, and Representative Allen Icet for their leadership in appropriating an additional $2.7 million for the arts in Missouri last session. These elected officials have served Missourians for many years, improving the quality of the arts in our state.

The Frederick H. Laas Memorial Award celebrates individuals who carry on the great tradition of providing artistic opportunities and education to all people, the goal so embodied in Fred's commitment to the arts in Missouri. Dr. Barbara Harbach, Professor of Music at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, has toured extensively as both a concert pianist organist and harpsichordist. A past winner of the Missouri Arts Council, Arts Education Awards, Harbach is most known for her Women in the Arts series, a multi-venue celebration of women creators present and past, in partnership with arts organizations from the St. Louis metropolitan area.

Our second Fred Laas Award recipient, Joan Lipkin, is the founding artistic director of That Uppity Theatre Company in St. Louis, where she founded the nationally-acclaimed Alternate Currents/Direct Currents Series, The DisAbility Project, The Louies and As American as Apple Pie. A past recipient of a Missouri Arts Award, a Visionary Award and an Arts for Life Lifetime Achievement Award among others, Lipkin has made a tremendous impact on inclusive arts education and accessibility throughout her career. This year MCA is proud to salute Harbach and Lipkin with this special award in memory of the late Fred Laas.

In addition to honoring the recipients of the Arts Advocacy and Fred Laas Awards, members of Missouri Citizens for the Arts hold their Annual Meeting to elect directors and approve the arts advocacy agenda to educate elected officials in the upcoming legislative session. The general public is invited to attend this meeting, which begins at 3:00 pm at the Columbia Convention and Visitors Bureau & Chamber of Commerce. The awards presentation and reception begin at 5:00 pm at the Perlow-Stevens Gallery. For registration information, call Missouri Citizens for the Arts at (314) 383-6644.

Founded in 1980, Missouri Citizens for the Arts is a statewide organization that promotes the whole of Missouri's arts industry to public and private sectors. This non-partisan, grassroots organization's work supports the arts by addressing public issues on both the state and federal levels. By uniting members on issues of mutual concern and representing these concerns to elected officials and public agencies whose actions affect the industry, MCA seeks to secure a stable and growing base of public financial support for the arts and to ensure access to the arts for all Missourians."

mo4arts@swbell.net
#314.383.6644
http://www.missouricitizensforthearts.org