Distinguished Legacy Award
Awarded to FAA alumni who have attained outstanding success and national or international distinction in their chosen profession or life’s work and whose accomplishments reflect admirably on, or bring honor to, the College of Fine and Applied Arts and the University of Illinois.
David Bilger
David Bilger (BMUS ’83)
Hailed by the New York Times for his playing of “easy brilliance” and by the Washington Post for his “engaging legato touch,” David Bilger is Professor of Trumpet at Northwestern University’s Bienen School of Music. From 1995 to 2022, he held the position of principal trumpet of The Philadelphia Orchestra, having previously held the same position with the Dallas Symphony. As a soloist, Bilger has appeared with the Philadelphia Orchestra, the Dallas Symphony, the Houston Symphony, the Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia, the Oakland Symphony, the Indianapolis Chamber Orchestra, Philharmonia Virtuosi of New York, and others. He has appeared with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, with which he recorded Bach’s Second Brandenburg Concerto. Other chamber music appearances include Chamber Music Northwest, the New York Trumpet Ensemble, Saint Luke’s Chamber Ensemble, as well as guest appearances with the Canadian Brass and the Empire Brass. Bilger also released a recording of electro-acoustic music for trumpet and synthesizers with composer Meg Bowles. In addition to his full-time position at Northwestern University, David Bilger is also currently on the faculty of the Curtis Institute of Music. He has performed master classes at dozens of institutions, including the Juilliard School of Music, Indiana University, the University of Michigan, the Manhattan School of Music, and the Peabody Conservatory. David Bilger holds a Master of Music degree from the Juilliard School of Music and a Bachelor of Music degree from the University of Illinois. He is a Yamaha Performing Artist.
Robert Faust
Douglas Busch (BFA ’74 Graphic Design)
Douglas Busch’s large format black and white photographs, ranging from 8”x10” to 40”x60” (shot with the world’s largest portable camera, designed and built by the artist himself), present images of great beauty and irony, great subtlety and elegance. In Busch’s photographs, “actuality is not abbreviated but opened into the world, not merely documented but discovered,” states Dr. Donald Bartlett Doe, Director of the Mulvane Art Museum, Topeka, KS. His vision and personal sensibilities enable him to capture the monumental in the ordinary, to inform the details of everyday life with sensitivity and clarity. Busch’s technical ability is widely acknowledged and respected. His work has been published in virtually every international photographic magazine. Jannes Art Publishing of Chicago, IL, writes, “Mr. Busch will become, within the next few years, one of the world’s outstanding and most noteworthy black and white photographers. The technical caliber of his work is superb, his vision exciting and strong.” Numerous publications have cited Busch’s technical expertise in inventing and building photographic equipment for large format photography. Al Weber comments, “Busch’s genius is his ability to combine his artistic talent with an uncanny technical expertise in a way which has placed him in a unique position within the international photographic field. By those who are familiar with his work, he is considered one of the most talented and accomplished large format black and white photographers anywhere.”
Coleen Sterritt
Coleen Sterritt (BFA ’76 Sculpture)
For close to 45 years, Los Angeles-based artist Coleen Sterritt has fabricated hybrid sculpture evoking the interplay between nature, culture, and lived experience. Her source materials are pulled from everyday objects and elements. Plaster, tar, pinecones, tumbleweeds, found furniture, and studio refuse are just some of the components she uses to construct and express her richly evocative formal language. Questioning the diverse possibilities of sculpture in both scale and form, her eccentric, abstract structures present strong polarities possessing a resonance at once familiar and obscure. Sterritt’s sculpture and drawings have been exhibited nationally and internationally in a wide variety of spaces including numerous museum exhibitions. Prominent public and corporate collections holding her work include the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, The Museum of Contemporary Art, L.A.; The Crocker Art Museum; Scripps College Collection; Anderson Museum of Contemporary Art; Nestlé USA; and The Capitol Group Companies, Los Angeles, New York, & London. Named a John Simon Guggenheim Fellow in 2016, her other awards include the National Endowment for the Arts, the Roswell Artist-in-Residence Program, Art Matters, Inc., the J. Paul Getty Trust Fund Fellowship from the California Community Foundation, and the City of Los Angeles Individual Artist Fellowship (COLA). In 2019, she received the Outstanding Educator Award from the International Sculpture Center. Sterritt’s teaching career began in 1983 and has included noted positions at California State University, Fullerton; Otis College of Art & Design; and The Claremont Graduate University. From 1998 to 2021, she was a professor and the faculty coordinator of the sculpture program at Long Beach City College. Sterritt received a BFA from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and an MFA from Otis Art Institute (now Otis College of Art & Design), Los Angeles.
Scott Curtis Wilson (BSAS '74, MArch '76)
Scott Curtis Wilson (BSAS ’74, MArch ’76)
Scott C. Wilson, AIA is one of the founding partners of Wilson Butler Architects (WBA), an award-winning architecture and interior design firm, specializing in arts and entertainment design, based in Boston, MA. Wilson, his partners, and their teams are known for creating places where people love to be, and love to return. The insight and behavioral values behind the success of these timeless places – theaters, hospitality venues, public gathering places, campus buildings and cruise ships – have helped his peers, clients, and the greater architectural community integrate new ways of thinking about design, creating spaces that are both functional and a delight for audiences and passengers. Early in his career, Wilson was a lead designer and project manager for esteemed architect and AIA Gold Medal Winner Benjamin Thompson, FAIA, of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Throughout his career, he has carried forward the design legacy of the inspirational Harvard Square design community and the work of Walter Gropius, Ben Thompson, Hugh Stubbins, Sert Jackson, and others. Those formative years led to the founding of Wilson Butler Architects (WBA) in 1997 with Wilson as president. Royal Caribbean International (RCCL), recognizing the value of Wilson Butler’s specialty for designing entertainment venues, contracted the firm to design the full complement of entertainment venues on their newest ships. The Wilson Butler team, applying land-based urban design thinking, became integral to the overall planning of the newest generations of ships including the Oasis of the Seas, the largest cruise ship in the world. Today, the Wilson Butler firm is the largest and most prominent cruise ship design firm in the U.S., with few rivals across Europe. Throughout his career, Scott C. Wilson has contributed thousands of pro-bono hours of planning, programming, and technical support to non-profit arts and education clients, including his 15-year commitment to bring the Boston Arts Academy to fruition.
Emerging Legacy Award
Recognizes FAA alumni early in their careers who have made outstanding professional contributions to their field since graduating.
Mariam Thiam (BFA '04 Dance)
Mariam Thiam (BFA ’04 Dance)
Mariam Thiam is a vibrant leader in the realm of arts and public service, epitomizing the spirit of creative empowerment. With an unwavering commitment to the field, she weaves a rich tapestry of cultural exploration and artistic innovation, all while fostering a sense of community and building new talent. Thiam’s transformative leadership has helped amplify Chicago’s rich cultural identity, bringing diverse forms of artistic expression to the public sphere. As the Program Director of Performing Arts for the City of Chicago’s Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, she helms a dynamic creative team responsible for orchestrating impactful downtown and neighborhood programming, including the Chicago Gospel Music Festival, Millennium Park Music Series, Chicago Blues Festival, Chicago Jazz Festival, World Music Festival, and SummerDance. Grounded in a comprehensive academic foundation, Mariam Thiam holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance and a minor in African American Studies from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, a Master of Science in Nonprofit Management with a focus on Human Services Administration from Spertus College in Chicago, and a Certificate in Digital Marketing and Integrated Communications from The University of Chicago. Thiam is a catalyst for creativity, a strong advocate for public service, and a beacon in the arts community. Mariam Thiam’s multifaceted professional journey tells the story of not just an accomplished arts administrator, but a visionary committed to enhancing the artistic landscape she navigates. Her determined spirit and steadfast dedication make her a respected and influential figure within the field.
Illinois Arts Legacy Award
Recognizes volunteers, staff, loyal performers, affiliated artists, etc. who are not necessarily graduates of FAA but whose contributions have made a significant impact in the arts at Illinois.
Kimiko Gunji (MS '71 Library Sciences, MA '79 Asian Studies)
Kimiko Gunji (MS ’71 Library Sciences, MA ’79 Asian Studies)
Kimiko Gunji, Professor Emeritus of Japanese Arts & Culture, officially joined the Illinois faculty in 1979 but has been teaching with Professor Shozo Sato since the late 1960s. She taught courses in Zen aesthetics, Japanese tea ceremony, and Ikebana (Japanese Flower arrangement) until 2011. Gunji played a significant role in raising funds for the new Japan House facility that was dedicated in 1998 and was named director. She is a full professor at the Ikenobo Ikebana School in Kyoto, Japan; an assistant professor, or chamei for the Urasenke Tea School; and serves as president of the Urbana-Champaign Association of Chado Urasenke Tankokai since 1992, which she initiated and established. Professor Gunji has received the UI Campus Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching, the UI Alumni Association Educator’s Award, and the “Order of the Rising Sun” (Kyokujitsu-shō) from the Japanese Government, which was presented to her by the Japanese Emperor. She continues to teach both Japanese traditional arts and culture to students as well as to the community at Japan House. For the last 40 years, she has been introducing the Japanese word kokoro, which encompasses multiple meanings including “mind,” “heart,” and “spirit,” and has been conducting seminars to cultivate kokoro in various fields. In August 2023, she will be introducing the Japanese concept of kokoro at Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin Preservation in Spring Green, WI, with garden specialist, Tim Gruner from Anderson Japanese Gardens. Kimiko Gunji is an author of “The Art of Wagashi: Recipes for Japanese Sweets that Delight the Palate and the Eyes” and “Chado and Kokoro,” which is used for University of Illinois classes taught through Japan House. She also has two books in progress, “Kokoro Insight: Tea and Kokoro,” and “Wagashi: Season by Season.”
Past recipients
The Legacy Award recipients from 2022, 2021, 2019, and 2018, can be found here.