2022 ArtWell Awards Recap (Photos)

ArtWell’s biennial Awards was held in person this year for the first time since 2018, and what a magical night it was! If you missed the Awards or if you just want to reflect on this evening of art, community, and joy, we’ve got you covered. A full recap of the festivities including photos is provided below.

On Thursday, October 27th we all gathered at the Logan Hotel for a celebration of creativity and community, as we honored three visionary leaders—Majd Ahmad (Alumni Leader Award), Susan Teegen (Miki Young ArtWell Leader Award), and Stacy Holland (Visionary Leader Award)—with special performances and a night to remember.

To start off the evening, Cinqcopation (a Philly-based string collective) played beautifully as guests conversed and enjoyed hors d'oeuvres and drinks inside or out in the courtyard lit by string lights and cozy fire pits.

During the cocktail reception, guests also had the opportunity to peruse our mobile art gallery or check out our recently published Retrospective.

The Mobile Art Gallery featured work from several of our talented Teaching Artists, including Cathy Cohen, Jennifer Eckenrode, Jessica Eldredge, Nile Livingston, Jillian Rock, and Nella Rohan. Proceeds from art sales support both the artist and ArtWell’s mission.

Thursday evening was also the first debut of “ArtWell: Ten Years of Art and Community,” a retrospective published by Black Minds Publishing (led by ArtWell’s talented Teaching Artist, Enoch the Poet). This compilation of images, artwork, and poetry from the last ten years of ArtWell’s two decades of work provides a glimpse into the transformative power of art. More details coming soon!

As the drumbeat began, the HeartBeat Ensemble (vibrant musicians Marcy Francis, Jan Jeffries, and Asumanne Sillá) led everyone to the ballroom, and ArtWell Program Director, Briana Clarke, joined the stage to welcome everyone and kick off the evening’s program. Our next performance was Enoch the Poet, who read two poems written by ArtWell students, one from Baldi Middle School and the other from Al Aqsa Islamic Academy.

Majd Ahmad - ArtWell Alumni Leader Award

Cathy Cohen, ArtWell Board Member, Teaching Artist, and creator of the We the Poets program, presented the ArtWell Alumni Leader Award to Majd Ahmad. As it turns out, Cathy had been Majd’s third grade poetry teacher at Al Aqsa Islamic Academy. Majd went on to become an educator at Al Aqsa, where he continued to support ArtWell programs and introduce them to his students. He is now an entrepreneur and has recently opened his own deli named Delicozy. Upon accepting the award, Majd spoke of ArtWell’s impact on him and in his community. He even shared one of his own poems in Arabic!

Stacy Holland, Ed. D. - Visionary Leader Award

Helen Cunningham, a longtime friend and colleague of Stacy Holland, introduced her as the recipient of this year’s Visionary Leader Award. Stacy Holland is the Executive Director at Elevate 215 (formerly Philadelphia School Partnership), and she has nearly 30 years of experience developing and implementing education solutions for children.

In celebration, three young dancers from the Monarch Dance Academy graced the stage with their movements and art form.

Susan Teegen, MDiv, GPCC - Miki Young ArtWell Leader Award

Patricia Pearce, Board Member and long-time friend of ArtWell, introduced Susan Teegen as the recipient of this year’s Miki Young ArtWell Leader Award. Susan Teegen is the Founder of ArtWell, and she led the organization collaboratively with vision and creativity for over two decades. To celebrate her legacy and community-driven spirit, we will be renaming the one of the awards in her honor. Moving forward, it will be named the Susan Teegen Visionary Leader Award!

Upon receiving the award, Susan spoke about her gratitude for everyone in the ArtWell community and the journey she has experienced as the organization’s Founding Executive Director. She also expressed her joy to be passing leadership over to ArtWell’s new Executive Director, Malia Gilbert. Susan said on stage to Malia, “Thank you for saying yes. I believe in your wings, and I believe in the wings of the ArtWell community.”

Blessings and Welcoming of New Executive Director, Malia Gilbert

To mark this special occasion and transition in leadership, Angela Steel joined the stage to offer blessings for both Susan and Malia as they embark on their exciting next chapters. Everyone in the room joined in with their voices to welcome Malia and express ArtWell’s commitment to imagination, healing, social justice, spirituality, community, and love.

Malia then shared with everyone her deep commitment to the impact of ArtWell’s work and her excitement to help further its mission. She shared, “I too dream of creating spaces where imagination can take flight, where healing is carefully nurtured, where social justice is centered, where spirituality is valued, where community uplifts and informs identity, and where love can envelop and protect every young person. ArtWell weaves this dream into reality every day, and even with 42,000+ lives touched by our programing, there’s still so much work to do and so many youth in need of the self-actualization that ArtWell provides.”

Malia also referenced our new fundraising campaign, the Bright Future Fund, which will allow ArtWell to move forward with strength and continue to provide our healing and engaging programs for Philadelphia’s young people. More information is coming soon!

To close out the program, Rev. Katie Aikins from Tabernacle United Church, the birthplace of ArtWell, led us all in song. We formed a large circle in the ballroom and sang together, “We Shall be Known,” by MaMuse. Guests stayed for a while longer to enjoy a lovely coffee bar and dessert reception.

The 2022 ArtWell Awards was a momentous celebration, and we are grateful to everyone who made the evening so special. Thank you to all who attended, as well as our brilliant honorees and performers whose words and creativity graced the stage. The evening wouldn’t have been possible without the support of our generous sponsors – thank you!

If you couldn’t attend the Awards, we’re sorry to have missed you and hope you can join us in the future. Stay tuned for more upcoming events.

There are also many ways to get involved with ArtWell or support our mission. To learn more, click here.