The Pattis Family Foundation Creative Arts Book Award
Lisa and Mark Pattis.
Interlochen Center for the Arts is founded on the notion that artistry is best experienced with others — in its enjoyment and its creation. The Artist’s Journey is one of Interlochen’s Core Values; now, it’s also at the heart of a new competition.
The Pattis Family Foundation Creative Arts Book Award identifies and celebrates the best new literature about the arts and the pursuit of creative expression. It’s an annual book competition, currently in its inaugural year, that invites nominations for book-length works of either fiction or nonfiction that explore how artists create and develop their craft.
We have known Interlochen for more than 20 years, and we truly admire its impact across the creative arts. Interlochen’s long history and its transformative effect on its students make it an ideal partner to identify and recognize the most significant books exploring the creative process.
A short list of award finalists will be released in September and the winner announced on November 1. The winner will receive a prize of $25,000 and share their work and skills with our local communities, through both a public event co-hosted by the National Writers Series in Traverse City and a visiting artist residency at Interlochen.
The winning author will further enhance an already rich and essential component of the Interlochen experience: the guest instructors, visiting artists, and artists-in-residence who challenge and motivate Interlochen’s young artists. The finalists and winner of each year’s competition will offer new ways for our community to explore their own artistic potential.
We are thrilled to partner with The Pattis Family Foundation to present this prestigious award celebrating outstanding literary works. Welcoming each of these distinguished authors to Interlochen’s campus to share their artistic process offers tremendous learning opportunities for our students and for our local community. It is an honor to add this award to our portfolio of offerings, and we are deeply grateful to The Pattis Family Foundation for their generous collaboration.