Las Cruces artists honored by governor

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Two artists from Las Cruces are among the seven recipients of this year’s Governor’s Awards for Excellence in the Arts.

Las Cruces filmmaker, New Mexico State University professor and film festival director Ross Kagan Marks’ selection was hailed by the university in a news release.

Marks has been on the faculty of the Creative Media Institute at NMSU for 14 years, and is the founder and executive director of the Las Cruces International Film Festival. He has also worked steadily as a director and producer of film productions often filmed in and around Las Cruces with students and former students among the cast and crew. Per NMSU, Marks has received international film festival awards for 16 of his movies. He has also been a proponent for investing in Las Cruces-area film industry incentives and infrastructure.

“I very much celebrate this award with the NMSU community, my colleagues at CMI and our wonderful students,” Marks said in a news release.

Las Cruces visual artist John Garrett, brother to former Doña Ana County Commissioner Billy Garrett, works in textile compositions, sometimes incorporating untraditional materials. According to the awards website, Garrett has twice been awarded National Endowment for the Arts fellowships, and he has taught and seen his work exhibited around the U.S. in a practice spanning five decades.

Founded in the 1974, the annual state honors mark their 50th anniversary with October’s ceremony. Winners are nominated by individuals and art organizations across New Mexico ahead of an exhibition and awards ceremony in Santa Fe.

The awards ceremony takes place Oct. 10 at the New Mexico Museum of Art in Santa Fe, with an exhibition of the honorees’ work displayed in the governor’s gallery at the state Capitol building opening Oct. 11 with a reception.

Governor’s Awards, Excellence in the Arts, Ross Marks, John Garrett

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