Photo/South Carolina Arts Commission
In the Lowcountry, Diane Frankenberger (Individual Category) is known as a powerhouse of wisdom, knowledge, discernment, passion, and humility as well as a community builder who works to create a more colorful South Carolina. She inspires and assists anyone interested in creating with textiles; from children looking to sew their first doll to artists exhibiting in world-class institutions. In 2018, Frankenberger’s idea to turn the old Summerville Town Post Office into a free-to-all nonprofit community art center took shape in 2020. The thriving center of creativity, arts education, art studios, and art exhibitions—free and open to the public—welcomes more than 25,000 people of all ages a year. As the owner of People, Places, and Quilts, a fabric store and educational space in its 34th year (named one of the Top 10 Quilt Shops in North America), her impact on the arts, for the state of South Carolina and beyond, is immeasurable.