Presented to: Meridian Magazine
For:
The Association for Mormon Letters presents the Award in Criticism for 2004 to Meridian Magazine.
"[Mormons] won't get a great artistic culture," Wayne Booth once declared, "until we have a great critical culture." For this ideal to be realized, criticism of literature and the arts must move beyond casual and uninformed responses, and yet not be limited to the specialized discourse of academic scholarship.
Meridian Magazine has established itself as an important Internet gateway for many aspects of Mormon life. AML specifically commends the success of Meridian in producing and attracting constructive critical conversations about Mormon literature and Mormon film, and in promoting substantive and sensitive interpretation of the arts generally from an informed LDS perspective.
The AML applauds Meridian Magazine, its founders, columnists, and many contributors for helping to shape the aesthetic sensibilities of Latter-day Saint readers, audiences, and artists, and for doing so consistently and attractively through its website, email list, and audio broadcasts. This online journal has proven itself to be a reliable and engaging site for the sort of critical conversations that AML has always encouraged and without which Mormon arts would stagnate. Its articles are thoughtful without being esoteric, timely without being trendy, and its archives reveal a substantial body of criticism that will continue to shape Mormon art and artists well into the future.