Inaugural Tyler Tribute Award

Hester Stinnett, Penny Balkin Bach and Dean Stroker

Photo from left: Hester Stinnett, Vice Dean, Tyler School of Art; Penny Balkin Bach; Dean and Vice Provost for the Arts, Robert T. Stroker. Photo: Ryan Brandenberg

The inaugural Tyler Tribute Award was presented to Penny Balkin Bach (Tyler BFA ‘68), executive director of the Association for Public Art (formerly the Fairmount Park Association) on April 13 in conjunction with the Tyler School of Art annual student exhibit.

Tyler alumni, faculty, students, local curators, gallery owners, artists and representatives from cultural and educational organizations gathered at a reception hosted by Robert T. Stroker, dean and vice provost for the arts, to honor Ms. Balkin Bach for her advocacy for public art in and around Philadelphia.

The Association for Public Art, founded in 1872, is the nation’s first private, nonprofit organization dedicated to integrating public art and urban planning. Balkin Bach helped launch a number of influential projects in Philadelphia including Museum Without Walls, downloadable audio programs tied to dozens of sculptures along the Benjamin Franklin Parkway and Kelly Drive. She is author of several books and the 2013 recipient of the national Public Art Dialogue Award.