The South Carolina Arts Commission is happy to announce four unique and deserving 2024 recipients of the South Carolina Governor’s Awards for the Arts, the state’s highest award for exceptional achievement in practicing or supporting the arts.
The SCAC presents the Governor’s Awards for the Arts annually each spring. The appointed members of the agency’s Board of Directors vote on nominees recommended by a panel for the award. In 2024, the SCAC board approved the recommendations of the following honorees from their respective categories to be recognized for outstanding achievement and contributions to the arts in South Carolina:
- LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT: Campbell Frost, Columbia
- INDIVIDUAL: Diane Frankenberger, Summerville
- ARTS IN EDUCATION: Dr. Minuette Floyd, Columbia
- ORGANIZATION: South Carolina Philharmonic, Columbia
“Through their unwavering dedication, talent, and commitment, this year's recipients exemplify the very essence of South Carolina's artistic spirit. Their contributions not only enrich our cultural landscape but also ensure that the arts are accessible to all. The Governor's Award is a testament to their exceptional achievements and a sincere appreciation for their invaluable role in shaping and enhancing life and culture across our state,” SCAC Executive Director David Platts said.
A committee appointed by the SCAC Board of Directors reviews all nominations. After a rigorous process and multiple meetings, the panel sends to the board a recommendation from each category with a nomination for its approval. Serving on the panel in 2024 were Dr. Sarah Lynn Hayes (Rock Hill), Glenis Redmond (Mauldin), and Regi Strickland (Lexington).
Recipients of the South Carolina Governor’s Awards for the Arts and Jean Laney Harris Folk Heritage Awards are honored during a broadcast presentation of the South Carolina Arts Awards, which are expected to air on South Carolina ETV this May at a date and time to be announced later.
About the 2024 Governor’s Award for the Arts recipients
Campbell Walker Frost, Jr. (Lifetime Achievement), born in Columbia in 1942, became fascinated with art at age 4 when watching a neighbor mix colors on an artist’s palette. In 1957, Frost’s first published work of art, a pencil sketch, appeared in the nationally syndicated daily newspaper feature “Ripley’s Believe it or Not.” He served in the U.S. Army and, later, the Army Reserves before earning his Bachelor of Fine Arts at the University of Tennessee in 1973. Frost returned to Columbia as an art instructor for organizations ranging from Midlands Technical College to the South Carolina Department of Corrections, at the old Central Correctional Institution, as part of an SCAC program at the time. He also served on the SCAC’s Crafts Truck portable classroom, sharing his skills with citizens in underserved areas. Other art instruction gigs occurred over the years across the Midlands: Sesquicentennial State Park, Cardinal Newman High School, the erstwhile Paint Box store in Columbia, and Michael’s and Hobby Lobby crafts stores throughout the region. Today, Frost maintains art instruction roles with the Orangeburg County Council on Aging and, once a week, at Spring Valley Presbyterian Church in Columbia. He briefly attempted service as a judge at various regional art competitions but withdrew because he perceived a conflict of interest: too many of his students were making submissions.
In the Lowcountry, Diane Frankenberger (Individual Category) is known in Summerville as a powerhouse of wisdom, knowledge, discernment, passion, and humility. The community builder who works to create a more colorful South Carolina, she inspires and assists anyone interested in creating with textiles; from children looking to sew their first doll to artists exhibiting in world-class institutions. In 2018, Frankenberger’s idea to turn the old Summerville Town Post Office into a free-to-all nonprofit community art center took shape in 2020. The thriving center of creativity, arts education, art studios, and art exhibitions—free and open to the public—welcomes more than 25,000 people of all ages a year. As the owner of People, Places, and Quilts, a fabric store and educational space in its 34th year (named one of the Top 10 Quilt Shops in North America), her impact on the arts, for the state of South Carolina and beyond, is immeasurable.
Dr. Minuette Floyd (Arts in Education Category) a former elementary art teacher, is a professor of art education at the University of South Carolina School of Visual Art and Design. Her research interests focus on multicultural art education, interdisciplinary art instruction, and documentation of folk traditions through photography. Committed to providing unique experiential opportunities for students both in and out of the classroom, she led service-learning programs to London and South Africa. A grant she wrote provided funding for 10 first-generation college students to travel with her to Ghana in May of 2023, using art experiences to open dialogue and learn about other cultures. She directs the Young Artist’s Workshop, in which art education majors design and teach comprehensive units of instruction to children from the greater Columbia area and provides scholarships for underrepresented youth to attend this program. Floyd serves as the professor of record for the state education department’s Curriculum Leadership Institute in the Arts since 2002.
An independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, the South Carolina Philharmonic (Organization Category) performs and promotes high-quality, professional symphonic music, serving the community’s needs for cultural development and education, entertainment, and tourism since 1964. Music Director Morihiko Nakahara’s introduction in 2008 ushered in a “New Era of Artistic Excellence” that enabled the orchestra to become the Midlands pre-eminent performing arts group. While the SCP is committed to performing live symphonic music and providing dynamic educational opportunities in the Midlands, it embraces its responsibility to be a vibrant part of the cultural fabric of our diverse community. Though known for performances of live symphonic music on stage, staff and musicians work closely with local partners to develop inclusive, educational and outreach programs to fill the community’s needs by committing to provide music for everyone in it.
About the South Carolina Arts Commission
The mission of the South Carolina Arts Commission is to promote equitable access to the arts and support the cultivation of creativity in South Carolina. We envision a South Carolina where the arts are valued and all people benefit from a variety of creative experiences.
A state agency created by the South Carolina General Assembly in 1967, the SCAC works to increase public participation in the arts through grants, direct programs, staff assistance and partnerships in artist development, arts industry, arts learning, creative placemaking, and folklife and traditional arts. Headquartered in Columbia, S.C., the SCAC is funded by the state of South Carolina, by the federal government through the National Endowment for the Arts, and other sources. Visit SouthCarolinaArts.com or call 803.734.8696, and follow @SCArtsComm on Facebook, Instagram, and X for #Arts4SC and #SCArtists content.
