ArtPrize founder receives Calvin honor

Rick DeVos is the recipient of Calvin's 2011 Horizon Award. On Tuesday, September 20, 2011, Calvin's young alumni business group, "MBA@Calvin," which stands for "Meeting Business Alumni," bestowed the honor on DeVos at an "Imagination and Innovation" discussion at the college's Prince Conference Center.

See full story: http://www.calvin.edu/alumni/chapters/groups/mba/horizon/devos

The Award recognizes outstanding young Calvin alumni business professionals who demonstrate significant contributions to their field and the impact of faith on their work.

After graduating from Calvin with a degree in communications, DeVos began innovating and has yet to stop. In 2009, he created ArtPrize, a public conversation about art that has had a significant impact on the local art scene and the art world worldwide. The event has also given city planners much to think about as they attempt collaborations between urban business, art and government.

But DeVos's work and interests go far beyond ArtPrize, and many of them reflect the "agent of renewal" theme that is associated with Calvin College.

DeVos has been instrumental in encouraging new business start-ups in West Michigan through Momentum, Pomegranate Studios and the 5 x 5 Night business idea competition. He is engaged in Boxed Water is Better, an environmentally friendly packaging concept. In addition, he helped found thecommon.org, which was formed to address a widespread headache among churches and other non-profit groups--volunteer recruitment and management.

DeVos is also active in the community as a board member of ArtPrize, the Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts, the Grand Rapids Art Museum and the Grand Rapids Chamber of Commerce. He also serves on Grand Rapids Christian High's Blue/Black and Calvin College's Young Leaders in Annual Giving fund-raising councils.

Asked about ArtPrize, DeVos said he wanted "to do something totally different with as few rules as possible and not simply be another version of some previously thought-of public event."

"I wanted to see crazy crowds of people in downtown Grand Rapids, and that's exactly what's happened."

"The goal is engagement," he said, "with a totally open platform."

On Tuesday, DeVos was on an innovation panel with Momentum director Mike Morin and 5x5 Night winner Kelly LeCoy '11, whose new business start-up, Urban Kitchen, is getting underway.

All three panelists noted that West Michigan needed to improve as a place that encouraged innovative ideas, so that the area would be known for its availability of guidance, mentorship and "first check writers" to creative entrepreneurs.

NOTE: Past recipients of the Horizon Award are David Dorner of Dorner Works; Brad Haverkamp of Chase Bank; Amy Ruis of Art of the Table; and Heather, Jackson and Barry Van Dyke of Bear Manor Properties.

For more info, contact Mike Van Denend at 616-526-6142.

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Received on Wed Sep 21 15:08:45 2011