The Missouri Arts Council named Leigh Gerdine College of Fine Arts Dean Peter Sargent as the 2014 honoree for Leadership in the Arts. Sargent received the award on Feb. 5, at a ceremony in the Capitol Rotunda in Jefferson City.
For three decades, the Missouri Arts Council (MAC) and the State of Missouri have honored Missouri’s “arts heroes.” Celebrating people, organizations, and communities that have made profound and lasting contributions to the cultural and artistic climate of the state.”
Sargent, a New England native, began a career at Webster College in 1966 and helped found the Repertory Theatre of St. Louis. In 1995, he became the dean of Leigh Gerdine College of Fine Arts. He currentlyheads the lighting design and stage management programs at Webster University (formerly Webster College).
The MAC website states about Sargent, “He is an indefatigable advocate for the arts and arts education. Among the many organizations in which he has played or continues to play a leadership role are the College Theatre Council of Greater St. Louis, Insight Theatre Company, St. Louis Black Repertory Theatre, Young Audiences of St. Louis, Dance St. Louis, Shakespeare Festival of St. Louis, and the Arts and Education Council.”
Each year, an independent panel of representatives from the Missouri arts community select representatives to be honored in six categories. The Missouri Arts Council website states the Leadership in the Arts zwardee is an “individual who has influenced arts policy and/or issues, but is not an artist.”
The primary criteria utilized in the selection process is the “total contribution or body of work and the effect this effort has produced on the cultural climate of the city, region and/or state of Missouri.”
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