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In This Issue
- OC Arts Awards Nominations Being Accepted
- Creative Edge Lecture Next Week
- Grand Central Art Center Awarded Warhol Grant
- Sherry Main Named to ArtsOC Board
- California Arts Council Seeks Panelists
- In Memoriam
- Member Mixer on April 9 at Serendipity Labs
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Nominations Being Accepted for 26th
Orange County Arts Awards
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2025 Orange County Arts Awards honorees (front, left to right): Dr. Ana Jimenez-Hami, Orange County Children’s Therapeutic Arts Center - Outstanding Arts Organization; Arnold Holland, Dean of the California State University, Fullerton College of the Arts - Outstanding Contribution to the Built Environment for their new visual arts complex; Genevieve Williams – Emerging Arts Leader; Richard Stein – Special Recognition; Jorg Dubin - Helena Modjeska Cultural Legacy Award for Artist; Patrick Brien, President and CEO of Arts Orange County; (rear, left to right): Jared Mathis - Helena Modjeska Cultural Legacy Award for Arts Patron (for himself and for the Moulton Family); Bin He – Outstanding Artist.
Photo by Tony Lattimore Photography.
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Nominations are now being accepted for the 26th Orange County Arts Awards to be held on September 29 in the Samueli Theater at Segerstrom Center for the Arts. Awards are presented for work in these categories: Helena Modjeska Cultural Legacy Awards for extraordinary contributions to arts and culture over a lifetime, Achievement Awards for outstanding work completed in one or more years, and Emerging Artist/Arts Leader Awards. Please note that awards are not always given in every category each year. The deadline for nominations is March 15.
View the Call for Honorees and access the Nominations Form here.
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Creative Edge Lecture Featuring
U.S. Poet Laureate Arthur Sze
Just Ahead on March 3
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Arts Orange County will present a live, in-person talk by United States Poet Laureate, Arthur Sze, at its 16th Creative Edge Lecture on Tuesday, March 3, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. in the Irvine Barclay Theatre. Sze was appointed by the Library of Congress as the 25th Poet Laureate of the United States on September 15 of last year. He is the first Asian American to hold the position. Since 1972, Sze has published twelve collections of poetry, receiving a 2024 National Book Foundation Science and Literature Award, and the 2019 National Book Award for Poetry. His 2014 collection, Compass Rose, was a finalist for the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry. Admission to the lecture is free of charge thanks to the generosity of sponsors, but reservations are required through the Irvine Barclay Theatre ticket office.
The Creative Edge Lecture, which focuses on the importance of innovation and creativity in all human endeavors, is presented in partnership with the Orange County Department of Education and the 4th District PTA.
Ticket reservations may be made here.
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Grand Central Art Center Awarded
Warhol Foundation Grant
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Grand Central Art Center announced last month that it has been awarded a multi-year grant from The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts in support of its artist-in-residence program. This marks their fourth multi-year program support grant from the Foundation since 2014, a testament to the center’s commitment to fostering innovative, socially engaged art practices.
Read more here.
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Sherry L. K. Main Named to
Arts Orange County Board
| Arts Orange County announced that Sherry L. K. Main has been named to its Board of Directors. Sherry is Vice Chancellor of Strategic Communications and Public Affairs at UC Irvine, where she oversees strategic communications, marketing, government relations, and community engagement across the campus and UCI Health. She works at the intersection of public mission and private and civic partnership, building bridges between institutions, industries, and communities to foster meaningful collaboration and long-term impact. Sherry serves as Board Chair for the Greater Irvine Chamber of Commerce, a board member of the Irvine Barclay Theatre, and an advisory board member to The CLUB Silicon Valley. She has been recognized as a PR News Top Women Changemaker and a Silicon Valley Business Journal Woman of Influence, and was appointed in 2017 by then UC President Janet Napolitano to advise the UC Board of Regents on matters impacting the University of California’s 200,000 employees. | |
California Arts Council Seeks Grant
Review Panelists for 2026
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The California Arts Council has officially announced its open call for applicants to serve on peer-review panels for its 2026 grant season. Prospective candidates must be California residents age 18 or older with experience in a wide range of artistic, cultural and social practices. This is a valuable opportunity to gain insight into the granting process, both from the perspective of a panelist and a grant writer.
Read more here.
| Robert Graulich, co-founder and Chair Emeritus of Lyric Opera of Orange County, passed away on February 14 at the age of 85. He was a retired corporate and federal government executive with 40 years of experience in government and private industry. He served as a Peace Corps Volunteer in Malawi, and following his return was awarded a Congressional Fellowship. Bob once made the Billboard Hot 100 with his doo-wop group, The Pendulums. His life went on to include service as a congressional speechwriter, Director of the Peace Corps in Malawi and Malaysia, CEO of one of the earliest renewable energy companies, and leadership roles in countless charitable foundations. | No Square Theatre announced the passing of longtime patron Dana Cook earlier this month. After a years-long absence from the stage, Dana returned to performing last summer in Bye Bye Birdie, marking her first show after retiring and her hopeful return to the art form she loved so deeply. The company issued an announcement saying that Dana was known not only for her talent on stage, but also for her kindness, generosity, and unwavering support of fellow actors and production teams both on and off the stage. | | |
Arts Orange County will be hosting its Spring Member Mixer on Thursday, April 9 from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. in partnership with Serendipity Labs. This special evening will be an opportunity to connect with fellow members, as well as prospective members, in an exciting new venue that shares ArtsOC's mission to help further the arts. Please note that while the event is free to attend, there is a $10 charge to park.
RSVP by April 3 to Karen Ahola by clicking here.
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We acknowledge with respect our presence on the ancestral lands of the
Juaneño Band of Mission Indians - Acjachemen Nation and the Tongva People.
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