The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation just dropped its 2026 Fellowships, and if you weren't already feeling underachieved, get ready. A cool 223 scholars and artists across 55 fields just received one of the most prestigious nods in academia and the arts.
This year marks the 101st class of fellows, plucked from a pool of nearly 5,000 applicants. Think of it as the academic equivalent of winning the lottery, but instead of cash, you get serious bragging rights and a boost to your already impressive career. The chosen few span creative arts, social sciences, natural sciences, and humanities — because apparently, genius isn't limited to a single discipline.
Who Got the Nod in the Arts?
The creative arts category alone is a who's who of talent, with 30 fellows for fine arts, 19 for photography, and another 19 for film and video. Plus, 10 for fiction and six for drama and performance art. Because, you know, someone has to make the world interesting.
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Start Your News DetoxAmong the fine art honorees, you'll find sculptor John Ahearn and new media artist American Artist (yes, that's their name, which is just brilliant). Kenneth Tam, who's about to be a big deal at MoMA PS1's "Greater New York," also made the list, alongside fiber artist Sonya Clark and multidisciplinary artist John Miller. And because the art world is vast, Juana Valdes, Fia Backström, Allison Janae Hamilton, and Francis Ruyter were also recognized.
Video artists Steve Reinke, Beatriz Santiago Muñoz, and Christopher Harris also snagged fellowships. Reinke's work is so good, it lives in MoMA's permanent collection. Muñoz has graced the Whitney Biennial, and Harris's films were making waves at the Tate Modern just last year. Meanwhile, novelist Lucy Ives, who also writes for Art in America, proved her fiction chops are top-tier.
Since its inception in 1925, the Guggenheim Fellowship has dished out almost $450 million to over 19,000 artists and scholars. Which, if you think about it, is both a testament to human creativity and a pretty solid investment in the future of thought.
Congratulations to everyone who can now officially add "Guggenheim Fellow" to their already intimidating résumés. The rest of us will just be over here, trying to remember where we left our car keys.
