National Building Museum Announces 2017 Honor Awardees
May 4, 2017
Paula Poundstone Emcees Gala Honoring Award Recipients Brookfield Properties and National Endowment for the Arts, with special tribute to Richard T. Anderson, president emeritus of the New York Building Congress
WASHINGTON, D.C.—The National Building Museum will present its Honor Award to Brookfield Propertiesand the National Endowment for the Arts at its Annual Gala on May 16, 2017, recognizing their profound commitment and lasting contributions to public art, community building, and creative place-making. The evening will be hosted by returning emcee Paula Poundstone of NPR’s “Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me” and will feature a special tribute to Richard T. Anderson for his service to the New York Building Congress. Sabrina Kanner, senior vice president of design and construction of Brookfield Properties, and chairman Jane Chu of the National Endowment for the Arts will be present to accept the award.
Honor Award recipient Brookfield Properties, one of the world’s largest real estate firms, owns and operates properties in major cities around the globe. The firm has become an industry leader in activating buildings with cutting-edge art and performances in the public realm through its program, Arts Brookfield. Drawing traffic to retail stores and restaurants, this program provides entertainment and illumination to property residents, workers, and visitors at no cost.
The second awardee, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), gives Americans the opportunity to participate in the arts, exercise their imaginations, and develop creative capacities. Established by Congress in 1965, the NEA is one of the largest grant makers to arts organizations in the nation; last year it recommended more than 2,400 grants in nearly 16,000 communities. The majority of these grants go to small and medium sized organizations and support projects that benefit audiences that otherwise might not have access to arts programming.
“Brookfield Properties and the National Endowment for the Arts have been invaluable partners to countless communities across the nation,” said Chase W. Rynd, president and executive director of the National Building Museum. “We look forward to demonstrating our respect and admiration for these organizations with the Honor Award.”
The gala program also includes a special tribute to Richard T. Anderson. Emeritus president of the New York Building Congress, Anderson will be recognized for 20 years of service as an advocate for builders and owners, bridging the gap between developers and government. His promotion of America’s foremost urban centers played an instrumental role in spurring the wave of contemporary revitalization across many cities.
The National Building Museum bestowed its first Honor Award in 1986 to recognize individuals and organizations that have made important contributions to the nation’s building heritage. Recipients are selected from a wide variety of backgrounds to call attention to the many factors that determine the form and quality of the built environment. The first recipient of the Honor Award was J. Irwin Miller in 1986. Other past honorees include Lady Bird Johnson, Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Cindy and Jay Pritzker, New Orleans Habitat Musicians’ Village founders Harry Connick, Jr. and Branford Marsalis, DuPont, and The Associated General Contractors of America.
This year’s Annual Gala includes a late-night after party, featuring live music from the “original” Moonlighters, open bar, late night snacks, and dancing until midnight.
About the 2017 Honorees
Brookfield Properties is a leading owner, operator and developer of office and multifamily assets around the globe. Their urban development, redevelopment projects, and signature office properties define the skylines of dynamic cities around the world, including New York, London, Berlin, Toronto, and Sydney. The company’s development strategy is driven by the desire to create innovative, sustainable and enjoyable work places and residential communities that are flexible and adaptive.
Brookfield’s experienced, multidisciplinary project teams closely integrate its development, leasing and operations functions to ensure its developments are planned and executed to successfully meet the needs of the communities in which they are located. In furtherance of its commitment to the local communities, Arts Brookfield was created in 1989 to bring public spaces to life through art. From concerts, theater and dance to film screenings and art exhibitions, Arts Brookfield presents exciting, world-class cultural experiences to hundreds of thousands of people, for free, each year in both indoor and outdoor public spaces at Brookfield’s premier properties in New York, Los Angeles, Denver, Houston, Washington, D.C., Toronto, London, Perth and Sydney.
Established by Congress in 1965, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is the independent federal agency whose funding and support gives Americans the opportunity to participate in the arts, exercise their imaginations, and develop their creative capacities. Through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal agencies, and the philanthropic sector, the NEA supports arts learning, affirms and celebrates America’s rich and diverse cultural heritage, and extends its work to promote equal access to the arts in every community across America.
The NEA’s funding is project-based and goes to thousands of nonprofits each year, including the National Building Museum, along with partnerships and special arts initiatives, research and other support that contributes to the vitality of our neighborhoods, students and schools, workplace and culture. The NEA is the only funder, public or private, that provides equal access to the arts in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories, supporting activities such as performances, exhibitions, healing arts and arts education programs, festivals, and artist residencies. Even further, a significant percentage of NEA’s grants go to those who have fewer opportunities to participate in the arts, including funding activities that take place in high-poverty neighborhoods, and to organizations that reach underserved populations such as people with disabilities, people in institutions, and veterans.
Media RSVP
Contact Emma Filar, efilar@nbm.org or 202.272.2448, ext. 3458.
About the National Building Museum
The National Building Museum is America’s leading cultural institution dedicated to advancing the quality of the built environment by educating people about its impact on their lives. Through its exhibitions, educational programs, online content, and publications, the Museum has become a vital forum for the exchange of ideas and information about the world we build for ourselves. Public inquiries: 202.272.2448 or visit www.nbm.org. Follow us on Twitter: @BuildingMuseum and Facebook: www.facebook.com/NationalBuildingMuseum.