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ART ENCOUNTER NEWS:
RECENT AWARDS, RECOGNITIONS, AND GRANTS
| In the last few months, Art Encounter has received a number of special awards and recognitions across all of our program areas, from Chicago to Evanston. We are moved by the recent attention, and grateful to those who have honored us for our work. Read more below, and thank you for your support! | | LEA PINSKY & JOANNA PINSKY NAMED IN NEWCITY’S ART 50 | | |
Art Encounter is humbled to be recognized in Newcity Magazine’s 2026 Visual Vanguard Art 50 list! Our Executive Director, Lea Pinsky, as well as our Co-founder and Artistic Director, Joanna Pinsky, have been included in this year’s list of distinguished Advocates and Supporters, along with several other notable Chicago area arts leaders. Writer Susan Aurinko highlighted their impact in bringing “empowerment to artists and art to the public in their Art Encounter programming.” You can read the full article on the Newcity website. Pictured: Lea and Joanna posing with Newcity's September 2026 Arts and Culture issue
| | MASH-UP AWARD FROM EVANSTON CHAMBER OF COMMERCE | | |
We were delighted to be chosen as a recipient of this year's Mashup Moolah grant, which supports local organizations and businesses that are making a meaningful difference in the Evanston community. The grant was awarded by the Evanston Chamber of Commerce in honor of their annual fall Mashup event, which brings together 500+ leaders and members of Evanston’s business, civic, nonprofit, and university communities for a unique celebration featuring all-you-can-eat food and drinks from dozens of local restaurants. Pictured, from left: Patrick Hughes (Mashup), Andy Vick (Downtown Evanston), Lea Pinsky, Joanna Pinsky, Dustin Harris, and Peter Braithewaite (Mashup) at the award ceremony
| | LEGACY BUSINESS AWARD FROM CITY OF EVANSTON | |
The Evanston Legacy Business Alliance will be honoring Art Encounter at their 3rd annual celebration this October, recognizing our organization as a long-standing community-serving business which represents a valuable cultural asset to Evanston residents. Given that we are nearing our 50th anniversary in 2028, we are touched by this notable recognition! The Evanston Legacy Business Alliance works to support the continued viability and success of Evanston's longstanding businesses as a way to strengthen the local economy, build resiliency in the city's business districts, and preserve the city's unique character and living heritage.
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| NEW GRANTS TO SUPPORT COMMUNITY PROGRAMS | | We were grateful to receive several grants this season in support of a range of community outreach programming. First, the Illinois Arts Council will be funding our ARTiculations program, a 10 week in-school art and writing residency, in two Chicago elementary schools: North River School in Albany Park and Darwin School in Logan Square. An additonal grant from the Albert and Anne Mansfield Foundation will also allow us to expand ARTiculations to an additional new Chicago Public School this year. Art for All, our partnership program with the Center for Independent Futures, has received a generous grant from the Evanston Arts Council for continued programming. And a grant from Union Pacific's Community Ties Giving Program will be providing support for our mural program, which has taken on six new mural projects this year! Pictured, from left: ARTiculations students, Art for All participants, and artists painting a 2026 mural | | CHICAGO MURAL COMPETITION WON FEATURING EXCEPTIONAL ARTIST COLLABORATION | | |
After a very competitive submission process through the City of Chicago's Department of Cultural Arts and Special Events, Art Encounter has been chosen for a major mural project in Chicago’s 34th ward this fall. Uplifting a busy area of the Fulton River District neighborhood, this mural will bring together three of Chicago’s most accomplished mural artists – Max Sansing, Jordan Nickel (Pose), and Jeff Zimmermann – to collaborate on a piece that celebrates the unique history and character of the Fulton River District. We are thrilled to lead and support this history-making collaboration. Installation will take place in October, followed by a neighborhood celebration. Pictured, from left: muralists Max Sansing, Jordan Nickel, and Jeff Zimmermann with their design
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Art Encounter community programs depend on the support of grants and the generosity of individual donors.
Please consider a donation today!
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Art Encounter is a non-profit organization dedicated to educating, inspiring, and connecting people of all ages and backgrounds through interactive encounters with visual art. We believe that there are many ways to see, and that meaningful encounters with original art can open a window to learning and self-discovery. Our broad range of programs foster community, creativity, and a greater understanding of ourselves and the world around us.
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