The Arts Center honors architecture+ and

Architect Frank Pitts and his firm, architecture+, received the 2009 "Art Spirit Award" from The Arts Center of the Capital Region at an awards gala on Sunday, May 3, while Dr. David Griggs-Janower and Albany Pro Musica, the choral group he founded and leads, and Sharon Bates and the Art & Culture Program of Albany International Airport each received "Arts Access Awards" from the Troy-based organization.

The awards are given annually by The Arts Center to recognize extraordinary contributions to the region’s cultural vitality.

The "Art Spirit Award" pays tribute to a person or organization that has "enriched us all through an abiding commitment to the cultural life of our region," according to Arts Center President Amy Williams.

"For outstanding artists to thrive, there must be a supportive and receptive community. The 'Art Spirit Award' honors those who make it possible for the region to have just such a community," Williams said.

In presenting the award to Pitts and architecture+, David Haviland, chairman of the board of The Arts Center, cited "not only their enduring commitment to The Arts Center but their equally impressive impact on the region’s larger cultural community over many years."

Haviland noted that Pits and his firm have been key supporters and leaders of such organizations as WMHT, the Millay Colony for the Arts and WAMC, among others, and that Pitts’ involvement with The Arts Center dates back to his time as a student at RPI in the 1970s.