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The MacArthur Foundation announced 20 fellows on September 29, including visual artists Christine Sun Kim, Rodney McMillian, Vincent Valdez and Chip Thomas. Each recipient will receive an unrestricted $800,000 fellowship in quarterly installments over five years.
The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation named Christine Sun Kim, Rodney McMillian, Vincent Valdez and Chip Thomas among its 20 MacArthur Fellows for 2026 on September 29. Each fellow will receive an unrestricted $800,000 award, paid in quarterly installments over five years, supporting work across the arts and other fields.
The four artists work across performance, painting, photography and public art. Berlin-based Christine Sun Kim, a Deaf sound artist, examines communication and its political dimensions through multimedia work, including billboards, murals and performances. Her 2020 video Palm Reader animates American Sign Language signs for words such as “state” and “rule.”
Los Angeles-based Rodney McMillian uses materials including secondhand quilts and household objects in work engaging with the American South and racial and socioeconomic injustice. His 2026 exhibition A Son of the Soil at the Columbia Museum of Art returned to his hometown of Columbia, South Carolina. Houston-based Vincent Valdez combines Chicano art traditions with narrative painting; his large-scale portraits address inequity and stereotypes. Chip Thomas, a physician who retired in 2023, has collaborated with Diné people on murals and photography on Navajo Nation land and founded the Painted Desert Project, which connected public artists with local communities.
The other 16 fellows include poet Layli Long Soldier, fiction writer Bryan Washington, choreographer Trajal Harrell and saxophonist and composer Immanuel Wilkins. The complete list also names Holly Jean Buck, Felipe De Brigard, Ellora Derenoncourt, Elizabeth Ellis, Kaiyu Guan, Marika Holland, Song Lin, Maaza Mengiste, Ariel Ron, Kate Spradley, Vincenzo Vitelli and Liangfang Zhang.
What the Fellowship Provides
The fellowship brings substantial unrestricted funding to artists working in distinct forms and communities. Because the award is paid over five years and is not tied to a specified project, recipients have financial support they can direct toward their work. The foundation says the program recognizes people for exceptional creativity and the prospect of further contributions.
The selection also places four visual artists within a cohort spanning writing, dance, music, research and other fields. Their practices address subjects including communication, social inequality and community collaboration. The award announcement does not prescribe how any fellow must use the funds.
How MacArthur Fellowships Are Chosen
The MacArthur Foundation describes its fellowship as a no-strings-attached award. Fellows are nominated by people outside the foundation and selected by an independent committee, according to the foundation. The award is disbursed in quarterly installments over five years.
Since the program began in 1981, the foundation has awarded 1,195 fellowships across disciplines including art history, visual culture, writing, health policy, anthropological research, musical performance and entrepreneurship. The 2026 announcement adds 20 recipients to that history.
““who show exceptional creativity in their work and the prospect for still more in the future.””
— John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation
What the Announcement Does Not Specify
The announcement confirms the award amount, payment schedule and selection process, but does not state how the four artists plan to use their fellowships or identify particular projects the funding will support. It also does not provide further details about the independent committee’s deliberations or the external nominations. Those details are not specified in the source material.
Five Years of Fellowship Support
The 20 fellows are set to receive their $800,000 awards in quarterly installments over five years. The foundation has not announced project deadlines or required deliverables, consistent with its description of the award as unrestricted. Further information about individual projects may come from the fellows or the foundation.
Key Questions
Which four artists received 2026 MacArthur Fellowships?
The four visual artists are Christine Sun Kim, Rodney McMillian, Vincent Valdez and Chip Thomas.
How much does each fellow receive?
Each of the 20 fellows receives an unrestricted $800,000 award, distributed in quarterly installments over five years.
Who else is among the 2026 fellows?
The cohort includes poet Layli Long Soldier, fiction writer Bryan Washington, choreographer Trajal Harrell and saxophonist and composer Immanuel Wilkins, among 16 recipients beyond the four visual artists.
How are MacArthur Fellows selected?
The foundation says fellows are nominated by external parties and chosen by an independent committee.
Is the fellowship tied to a specific project?
The foundation describes the award as no-strings-attached. The announcement does not require a specific project or explain how each artist intends to use the funding.
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