R. Philip Hanes, Pioneer of Arts Councils, Dies

Submitted by GIA News on January 17, 2011

(1-17-2011) R. Philip Hanes, Jr., passed away on Sunday, January 16, 2011 at Hospice in Winston-Salem at age 84. From the News & Observer of Raleigh, N.C.:

A founder of the American Arts Council movement, Phil served on the boards of more than 50 national, state, and local arts agencies, most notably as a founding member of the National Council on the Arts and as founder and first chairman of the North Carolina Arts Council. He established the nation’s first arts council in Winston-Salem.

He was the recipient of three presidential appointments, three honorary university degrees and 24 arts awards, including the National Governor’s Association Award for Distinguished Service to the Arts and the 1991 National Medal for the Arts.

He founded Ampersand, Inc., a fund raising organization dedicated primarily to the arts and received the Association of Fund Raising Professionals Lifetime Achievement Award and the National Endowment for the Arts Chairman’s Award for his commitment to the arts. He also assembled one of the most respected private collections of 19th century American Decorative and Fine Art in the country.