The Department of Art and Art History presented the first Philip Perry and Family Fund Awards at the Capstone Exhibition reception on May 1.
Toan Vuong and Adrian Armstrong, who each received their Bachelor of Fine Arts in studio art in May, were the first recipients of this newly created prize of $1,000 each. The awards will be presented to two students each semester at the Capstone Exhibition.
Perry is a UNL alumnus who received his Master of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees from the College of Education and Human Sciences. He is CEO of Perry Reid Properties-Management and is CEO and President of Perry Associates, Inc., and Perry Reid Properties-Development. He has currently developed and manages more than 30 properties in more than 21 cities across a three-state area of Nebraska, Kansas and Iowa.
As a member of MEDICI, a friends group that supports the Department of Art and Art History at UNL, Perry wanted to help students in the department.
“We talked about a variety of ways he could help and realized that while we have ways of rewarding excellence while the students are in school, we didn’t have any award that would help students who were going out into the world,” said Peter Pinnell, chair of the Department of Art and Art History. “The award rewards both excellence and potential.”
So Perry made a donation to the University of Nebraska Foundation last Fall to create the Philip Perry and Family Fund.
The award will be presented annually to two students at each Capstone event. Students are selected by a vote of the family and votes of the Perry Family after viewing the Capstone Exhibition.
Vuong is a Nebraska-born artist who received his BFA with an emphasis in printmaking. In addition to his studio practice, he has worked with organizations such as the LUX Center for the Arts, Lincoln Arts Council and the Sheldon Museum of Art to encourage community creativity. He also teaches art to young Nebraskans through Nebraska Extension. This year, he created the award for the Nebraska Young Artist Awards in the Hixson-Lied College of Fine and Performing Arts.
Armstrong is from Omaha, Neb. Last Fall, he had three pieces accepted into the Soo Visual Arts Center’s juried exhibition “Untitled 10” in Minneapolis, Minn.