cleveland arts prize

Cleveland Arts Prize promotes creativity in Northeast Ohio by honoring artists for artistic excellence and recognizes community leaders who help regional arts flourish. Cleveland Arts Prize (CAP) was established by the Women’s City Club in 1960, and continues today as the nation’s oldest municipal arts award and an ongoing platform for celebrating Northeast Ohio’s exceptional arts community. In its earliest years, the group commissioned the Arts Prize medal, launched a scholarship program and established an endowment that secured the annual awarding of prizes.

Discipline Prize Criteria:

A body of original work that consistently exemplifies the highest level of artistic excellence as shown by but not limited to:

• Mastery of traditional skill and willingness to challenge status quo
• Awareness and/or acknowledgment of contemporary and/or changing schools of thought respective to discipline
• High level of continuity between artist statement and work
• Regional, national and/or international recognition*
• Contributions to the canon of knowledge that will endure beyond the artist's life*

*These criteria will be assessed relative to career level.

Applicants will be placed into career levels based on the following requirements:

Emerging Artist Award: Candidate is currently living in Northeast Ohio and has created significant work or projects and shows remarkable promise for further development of their artistic careers.

Mid-Career Artist Award: Candidate is currently residing or has previously resided in Northeast Ohio and whose work has received both regional and national recognition.

Lifetime Achievement Award: Candidate who has worked or has been influential in the Northeast Ohio region over a period of decades and whose artistic achievements have brought distinction to the artist individually and to our region as a whole.