Twenty-five, $25,000 grants awarded to artists, journalists and creative minds

NEW YORK, NY – OCTOBER 28, 2010 – AOL today announced the winners of 25 for 25: The AOL Grant Program on AOLArtists.com. Created in honor of AOL's 25th Anniversary, AOL has awarded twenty-five, $25,000 grants to innovators and visionaries – tomorrow's groundbreaking artists, journalists and creators who believe in the power of ideas. Part of AOL's Project on Creativity, the 25 for 25 grant program is inspired by AOL's partnership with Chuck Close and his commitment to philanthropic work in art and arts education.

AOL assembled a distinguished Advisory Board to review the 25 for 25 grant applicants, including Adam D. Weinberg, Director, Whitney Museum of American Art; Chrissie Iles, Curator, Whitney Museum of American Art; Andy Spade, Partners & Spade; Rafael de Cardenas, Architecture at Large; Kim Hastreiter, Paper Magazine; Christian Viveros Faune, Village Voice; Jen Bekman, 20x200; and Glenn O'Brien, Writer.

"We are thrilled to honor and provide a platform for these very worthy 25 individuals who have inspired us," said AOL Senior Vice President of Brand & Marketing, Maureen Sullivan. "25 for 25 is an affirmation of our commitment to the creative community."

Hosted on AOLArtists.com, 25 for 25 drew applications from over 9,000 artists, writers and creative professionals throughout the world. With the winners selected, AOLArtists.com will now highlight grant recipients, and also include exclusive content and background from the winners, tracking the progress of their creative endeavors.

The complete list of 25 for 25 Grant Recipients includes:

• Adital Ela: Product Designer, Sustainable Design, Tel Aviv, Israel
• Angela Riechers: Writer, Educator, Documentary Film, Brooklyn, NY
• Anthony Feyer: Photography & Painting, New York, NY
• Christopher Johnson: Radio & Journalism, Oakland, CA
• Coke O'Neal: Photography & Video, New York, NY
• Daniel McCabe: Photojournalism & Filmmaker, Saugerties, NY
• Dantes Rameau: Bassoonist & Music Education, Atlanta, GA
• Davide Balliano: Painting & Performance Art, New York, NY
• Eléonore Hendricks: Photography, New York, NY
• Evelyn Davis: Designer & Visual Communications and Education, Westerville, OH
• Jason Polan: Illustration, New York, NY
• Jeremy Dziedzic: Sound, Syracuse, NY
• Jimmy McBride: Creative Textile Fabricator, Chicago, IL
• Josh Safdie: Filmmaker, New York, NY
• Julio F. Torres-Santana: Architect & Industrial Design, Cortland, NY
• Kristen Campbell: Animation & Film, Valencia, CA
• Lauren Seiden: Visual Artist & Drawing, New York, NY
• Marc Horowitz: American Culturalist & Artist, Los Angeles, CA
• Marian Pierce Hoffart: Painting & Community, Needham, MA
• Michael Duva: Photographer, New York, NY
• Rachel Sussman: Photographer, New York, NY
• Sara Lamm: Documentary Filmmaker, Los Angeles, CA
• Taj Forer: Photographer, Portrait and Landscape, Chapel Hill, NC
• Tema Stauffer: Photographer & Art Blogger, New York, NY
• Zach Lieberman: Artist & Technology, New York, NY

About AOL
AOL Inc. (NYSE: AOL) is a leading global Web services company with an extensive suite of brands and offerings and a substantial worldwide audience. AOL's business spans online content, products and services that the company offers to consumers, publishers and advertisers. AOL is focused on attracting and engaging consumers and providing valuable online advertising services on both AOL's owned and operated properties and third-party websites. In addition, AOL operates one of the largest Internet subscription access services in the United States, which serves as a valuable distribution channel for AOL's consumer offerings.


Media Contact:

Nicole Wyman
Nadine Johnson & Associates, Inc. for AOL
212.228.5555
nicky@nadinejohnson.com