David C. Driskell, one of the world’s leading authorities on African-American Art, will share the 2010 Harvey B. Gantt Center Award with two Charlotte, NC, couples celebrated for their philanthropy – Leon & Sandra Levine and Dr. Spurgeon & Loretta Webber, Junior. Mayor Anthony Foxx will present the awards at the Gantt Center’s 30th Annual Jazzy Holiday Luncheon on Thursday, Dec. 2, 2010, at noon at the Hilton Charlotte Center City Hotel.
“At thirty years, the luncheon has become a much-anticipated staple of the holiday season,” said Gantt Center President & CEO David Taylor. “We are particularly excited this year because all of the award recipients are strong supporters of the arts. Their generosity has profoundly impacted the Gantt Center and our community.”
In addition to the invaluable contributions he has made to scholarship in the history of art, David Driskell is also a practicing artist. An exhibition of his work was presented at the Gantt Center in the spring. A native of Forest Hill, NC, Driskell is also widely known as the curator of Bill & Camille Cosby’s remarkable art collection.
Among other key initiatives, the Leon Levine Foundation exists to support individuals and institutions who seek to provide cultural activities. Through their foundation, the Levines made a $15 million gift to complete the public-private partnership which funded the new Uptown arts complex and, in November, the Levine Center for the Arts was dedicated in their honor. The Harvey B. Gantt Center was the first institution to open on the cultural campus.
The Webbers are lauded for both their business endeavors and community service. Because of their generosity – endowing scholarships for underserved students enrolled in dental programs – and Dr. Webber’s dedicated service as vice-chair of Central Piedmont Community College’s board of directors, the college’s dental laboratory is named for the couple. As Gantt Center members, their substantial gift to the Founders Society helped the Center reach its capital campaign goal.
Individual tickets for the 2010 Jazzy Holiday Luncheon are $100. Tables of eight begin at $1,500 and include a graduated series of benefits for civic and corporate table sponsors.
One of the world’s leading authorities on the subject of African American Art, Professor David C. Driskell is highly regarded as an artist and a scholar. He has made invaluable contributions to scholarship in the history of art and the role of the African American artist in American society and is among the master artists who have exhibited at the Harvey B. Gantt Center during its inaugural season.
Trained as a painter, Driskell works primarily in collage and mixed media and sites European artists Rembrandt and Paul Cezanne, as well as the African American master of collage, Romare Bearden, as influences.
After teaching at several colleges and universities – including Talladega College, Howard University and Fisk – Driskell joined the faculty of the University of Maryland at College Park in 1977. He served as Chairperson of the Department of Art there from 1978-1983. In 1995, Driskell was named Distinguished University Professor of Art and taught until his retirement in 1998. In 2001, the University of Maryland established the David C. Driskell Center to celebrate him.
In December 2000, President Bill Clinton bestowed the National Humanities Medal on Driskell noting that Driskell “… has focused attention on black artists sparking worldwide interest among art lovers, critics and historians and enriching the cultural heritage and history of our Nation.”
Among Charlotte’s most prominent couples, Sandra and Leon Levine are a shining example of extraordinary citizenship and personal integrity. They have established an enviable legacy of philanthropic support benefiting Carolinians. Leon Levine opened his first store in Charlotte in 1959. Today, Family Dollar Stores is recognized as one of the nation’s most profitable discount retailers. Sandra P. Levine graduated from Myers Park High School in Charlotte and attended Women’s College University of North Carolina-Greensboro.
Buoyed by substantial success, the Levines created The Leon Levine Foundation in 1980 to advance the human condition in four key areas. Defining community broadly, their legacy includes local, national and international commitments. The Levine Center for the Arts was recently dedicated in honor of the $15 million gift from the Leon Levine Foundation which completed the $83 million arts-endowment drive spearheaded by Charlotte’s Arts and Science Council.
Dr. and Mrs. Spurgeon Webber, Jr. are outstanding civic leaders, philanthropists and stalwart patrons of the arts. Dr. Webber graduated high school in Kings Mountain, NC, before attending Hampton Institute and Meharry Medical College and served as a captain in the United States Air Force Dental Corps. In private practice in Charlotte for over 50 years, Dr. Webber has established associate opportunities for over 25 dentists – many of whom now lead successful independent dental practices. Loretta Jean Webber earned her nursing degree at Meharry Medical College and has served as Program Director with the Metrolina Lung Association and as a Health Analyst with the City of Charlotte.
The Webbers are lauded for their business endeavors and community service. Together they have founded several successful companies and presently share ownership in the Charlotte Bobcats. Because of their generosity – endowing scholarships for underserved students enrolled in dental programs – and Dr. Webber’s dedicated service as vice-chair of Central Piedmont Community College’s board of directors, the college’s dental laboratory was named for the couple.
Between them, they have served on countless other civic, arts and community boards including those of the Boy Scouts of America, the Mint Museum of Art and the YMCA. They are Founders Society members – having given a substantial gift to the Gantt Center Founders campaign – and boast an impressive and expansive art collection.
Founded in 1974, the Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture (formerly the Afro-American Cultural Center) exists to present, preserve and promote African-American art, culture and history. The Harvey B. Gantt Center is an epicenter for the best in visual, performing and literary arts and leads community outreach initiatives and arts education programs.
To learn more, please visit (www.ganttcenter.org).
Tags: Charlotte NC, David C. Driskell, David Taylor, Dr. Spurgeon & Loretta Webber Junior, Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts & Culture, Jazzy Holiday Luncheon, Leon & Sandra Levine, Levine Center for the Arts, Mayor Anthony Foxx
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