Graywolf Receives Sally Ordway Irvine Award

January 4, 2005—Graywolf Press is proud to receive a 2004 SALLY ORDWAY IRVINE AWARD for vision. The award ceremony will be held at 317 on Washington (next to Ordway Center) on January 31st at 11:00 AM. Each winner receives $2,500 and a crystal trophy. Fiona McCrae will be introduced by Rohan Preston of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. 

Established in 1992, the Sally Ordway Irvine Awards annually honor individuals and institutions who make a valuable community difference through their contributions to the region’s artistic and cultural resources. This year’s winners also include: Gary Hines for Initiative, Leigh Kamman for Commitment, and Park Square Theatre for Education.

A Sally Ordway Award in Vision recognizes exemplary broad creative thinking and/or strategic leadership in support of a particular project or development of a body of work that will have long-term impact on the community by creating new artistic/cultural opportunities, expanding access to the arts or leading the community in new directions.

This award crowns a banner year for Graywolf Press. At the close of 2004, Graywolf celebrates its 30th anniversary and Fiona McCrae’s 10th year with the press. Celebratory events took place around the country, including: New York; Washington, DC; Los Angeles; Boston; Chicago; and the Twin Cities.

In 1974, Graywolf Press began printing letterpress chapbooks in Port Townsend, Washington. In 1985, the press moved to Saint Paul, Minnesota, and became part of a thriving independent publishing community. Over the years, the Graywolf list has expanded to include novels, short fiction, and memoir as well as poetry. In 1994, Fiona McCrae took over the role of publisher at the press. In the last ten years, sales of Graywolf’s highly diversified list have increased by 35 percent, and in 2002, Farrar Straus & Giroux became the press’s distributor. Graywolf is recognized nationally as a leader in its field. At a time when five major conglomerates control 80 percent of the market, Graywolf Press is committed to creating a place for original, diverse, and energizing literature.