Join us in celebrating the 2025 Cultural Innovator Award honoring Carla Dupree
RSVP for the 2025 Cultural Innovator Ceremony
About the 2025 Honoree
Carla Du Pree is a fiction writer, literary consultant, state arts ambassador, and speaker, whose short stories and excerpts from her work-in-progress, Where the Spirit Meets the Bone, have appeared in Callaloo, Potomac Review, a Special Fiction and Poetry edition of City Paper – Baltimore, and anthologies The Spirit of Pregnancy and Street Lights: Illuminating Tales of the Urban Black Experience.
Ms. Du Pree is the Executive Director of CityLit Project, a small literary nonprofit that nurtures readers and writers throughout the region. She was appointed to the Maryland State Arts Council, served as the Vice Chair, and the Chair of the Diversity Outreach Committee, and completes a six-year stint as a counselor in 2017. She’s currently on the One Maryland One Book Selection Committee (a second time), and has served as a county and state judge for the flourishing Poetry Out Loud, NEA’s national poetry competition. She produced Raising Our Voices: Womyn Out Loud, a reading devoted to diverse voices. Ms. Du Pree’s speaking engagements include tributes to Maya Angelou, Toni Morrison – all with the Furious Flower Poetry Center, The Baltimore Choral Arts Society, in a tribute to Lucille Clifton, and the Baltimore debut of Listen to Your Mother speaker series. Ms. Du Pree has spoken before the National Association of State Arts Agencies (NASAA) about the benefits and necessity of diversity and inclusivity, and worked as a parent liaison for the Howard County public middle schools. She was an adjunct professor and independent thesis advisor at The Johns Hopkins University part-time graduate writing seminars in Fiction.
The Award
The Greater Baltimore Cultural Alliance proudly presents the first-ever Cultural Innovator Award to Kevin Brown, a visionary in the Baltimore arts community and the esteemed Owner and Head Chef of Nancy by SNAC. This award recognizes the exceptional contributions of individuals who go above and beyond in creating and supporting art in the Baltimore community. The award aims to celebrate trailblazers who have been instrumental in driving cultural innovation in the region and to honor their commitment to aspiring artists, curators, educators, and enthusiasts alike.
Event Details
Date & Time: Join us on Wednesday, April 16, 2024, at 5:00p.m.
Location: The Peale, 225 Holliday St., Baltimore, MD
Gather with artists, innovators, and community members for an evening of reflection, celebration, and forward-thinking as we honor Kevin Brown's remarkable contributions to Baltimore's arts and culture.
Inaugural Honoree: Kevin Brown
About Kevin Brown
Kevin Brown, whose career spans over two decades, has made significant contributions to both the communications field and the arts community in Baltimore. Owner and Head Chef of Nancy by SNAC, Brown is a visionary and innovator who has created a vital space in the Station North neighborhood, which gathers community, elevates artists, and cultivates joy. Welcoming customers from all walks of life, he has curated a public art and dining experience where art objects and food engage the senses and encourage guest-to-guest interactions. From art installations to book signings, Brown has thoughtfully established a home for creatives, many early in their career, and cemented Nancy by SNAC as a place to see and be seen in Baltimore.
Beyond his culinary success and profound impact on artists, Brown's journey from the Market Planning Division at Baltimore Gas & Electric to pivotal roles within the City of Baltimore showcases his versatile expertise. He served in communications for the Baltimore Center for the Performing Arts, Inc., and as public relations director for the New Metropolitan Theater Company. His voice has been a staple in Baltimore’s cultural narrative, with editorial contributions to The Baltimore Sun, the Baltimore Afro-American Newspaper, and other local publications. Additionally, Brown is the founder of The National James Baldwin Literary Society. His dedication to the arts and community development reflects the spirit of the Cultural Innovator Award, honoring his lifetime of enriching Baltimore’s cultural fabric.
