National Medal of Arts
The National Medal of Arts is an award and title created by the United States Congress in 1984, for the purpose of honoring artists and patrons of the arts. A prestigious American honor, it is the highest honor specifically given for achievement in the arts conferred to an individual artist on behalf of the people. Honorees are selected by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), and ceremoniously presented the award by the President of the United States. The medal was designed for the NEA by sculptor Robert Graham.
Laureates
In 1983, prior to the official establishment of the Medal, the following artists and patrons received a medal from President Reagan, arranged by the President's Committee on the Arts and the Humanities:
(artists) Pinchas Zukerman, Frederica von Stade, Czesław Miłosz, Frank Stella, Philip Johnson and Luis Valdez;
(patrons) The Texaco Philanthropic Foundation, James Michener, Philip Morris, The Cleveland Foundation, Elma Lewis and The Dayton Hudson Foundation.