S.C. Arts Commission announces Artist Fellows
June 28, 2016
The South Carolina Arts Commission Board has awarded Individual Artist Fellowships to four South Carolina artists in the categories of prose, poetry, dance: choreography and dance: performance. Each artist receives $5,000.
This year’s fellows:
• Prose: Jeremy Griffin, Horry County
• Poetry: Walt Hunter, Greenville County
• Dance Choreography: Jonathan Tabbert, Charleston County
• Dance Performance: Journy Wilkes-Davis, Richland County
Fellowships recognize and reward the artistic achievements of South Carolina’s exceptional individual artists. Fellowship awards are made through a highly competitive, anonymous process and are based on artistic excellence only. The fellowship awards bring recognition that may open doors to other resources and employment opportunities.
“South Carolina’s artists enhance our quality of life and are vital to the creative industries that contribute to the state’s economy,” said S.C. Arts Commission Executive Director Ken May. “It is fitting that we recognize the work of successful artists who use their talents and passion to benefit our thriving arts community and inspire others.”
The S.C. Arts Commission board approves fellowships based on recommendations made by out-of-state review panelists, who select fellows based solely on a review of anonymous work samples. This year’s judges were Anton DiScalfani (prose), assistant professor at Auburn University and author of the New York Times bestseller, The Yonahlossee Riding Camp for Girls; Jericho Brown, (poetry), assistant professor in the creative writing program at Emory University in Atlanta and author of two award-winning books of poetry, Please and The New Testament; Bala Sarasvati (choreography), director of Concert Dance Company and modern dance coordinator for the University of Georgia; and Daniel Gwirtzman, (dance performance) assistant professor at Kennesaw State University in Georgia and director of the New York City-based Daniel Gwirtzman Dance Company.
Individual artists working in visual arts, craft, media screenwriting and media production can apply for the FY2018 fellowship awards. Applications open Aug. 15, 2016, and the deadline to apply is Nov. 1, 2016.
For more information about S.C. Arts Commission programs and services, visit www.SouthCarolinaArts.com or call (803) 734-8696.
Prose Fellow
Originally from Louisiana, Jeremy Griffin is a lecturer in the Department of English at Coastal Carolina University in Conway, S.C. He is the author of a collection of short fiction from Stephen F. Austin State University Press titled A Last Resort for Desperate People: Stories and a Novella. His stories and poems have appeared in such journals as the Indiana Review, the Mid-American Review, and Shenandoah. In addition, he has been a book reviewer for several publications, including the Colorado Review and the Iowa Review, and has written essays for Popmatters.com.
He received his B.A. in philosophy from Virginia Commonwealth University and his M.F.A. in creative writing from Virginia Tech. Prior to moving to South Carolina, he taught at Virginia Tech and the Virginia Military Institute. He lives in Myrtle Beach with his wife Karen and an overweight orange tabby who sleeps on her back.
Poetry Fellow
Walt Hunter is assistant professor of world literature at Clemson University. He holds an A.B. summa cum laude in English and American Literature and Language from Harvard College and a Ph.D. in English from the University of Virginia. His writing on contemporary poetry and poetics has appeared or is forthcoming in ASAP/Journal, ARCADE, College Literature, Cultural Critique, Essays in Criticism, Jacket2, Modern Philology, symploke, and elsewhere. His poetry has appeared or is forthcoming in the Boston Review and Prelude.
He lives in Greenville with the poet Lindsay Turner.
Dance: Choreography Fellow
Jonathan Tabbert began his dance training at the Dayton Ballet School and The Harid Conservatory and received additional training at the School of the Hartford Ballet, Houston Ballet Academy and American Ballet Theatre. He had an illustrious performance career as a principal dancer with the Charleston Ballet Theatre, as well as being a guest artist for the North Carolina State Ballet and the Greenville Ballet. After 12 years as a staff member of the Charleston Ballet School, he became the director of the Palmetto City Youth Ballet. He was also a company teacher for the Charleston Ballet Theatre, with his choreography being a staple in the repertoire, and he received a performance grant from the Harkness Foundation for his ballet Jubilee. Other credits include guest teacher and/or choreographer for the Gem City Ballet, Victoria Ballet Theatre, Burklyn Ballet Theatre and The Charleston County School of the Arts. Tabbert is co-founder/director and resident choreographer of Ballet Evolution and its school, Charleston Dance Institute.
Dance: Performance Fellow
Born in Fort Hood, Texas, Journy Wilkes-Davis began his ballet training at age 14 under Shannon Greenberg and Dagoberto Nieves in Savannah, Ga. Afterwards, he danced with the Signature Dance Ensemble in Rocky Mount, N.C. Wilkes-Davis has danced with the Columbia Classical Ballet and the Columbia City Ballet, where he was promoted to principal dancer in 2012. He has performed as a guest artist with Hilton Head Dance Theatre, Coastal Ballet USA, Charleston City Ballet, Greensboro Ballet, USC Dance Company, and Montgomery Ballet.
His experience includes roles in Mark Diamond’s A Streetcar Named Desire, Paul Taylor’s Company B, Balanchine’s Serenade, Lila York’s Celts, and Rick McCullough’s Triptych and Rite of Spring, among others, as well as in classics such as Majisimo, Satanella, Albrecht in Giselle, Romeo in Romeo and Juliet, Prince Desire in The Sleeping Beauty, and Snow King, Arabian and a Sugarplum Cavalier in the Nutcracker. In 2016, he and his wife Anna co-directed, choreographed, and danced in the H.E.R.O. Dance Benefit, which partnered with Columbia Music Festival Association to bring in professional dancers to support our nation’s military.
About the S.C. Arts Commission
The South Carolina Arts Commission is the state agency charged with creating a thriving arts environment that benefits all South Carolinians, regardless of their location or circumstances. Created by the South Carolina General Assembly in 1967, the Arts Commission works to increase public participation in the arts by providing services, grants and leadership initiatives in three areas: arts education, community arts development and artist development. Headquartered in Columbia, S.C., the Arts Commission is funded by the state of South Carolina, by the federal government through the National Endowment for the Arts and other sources.
