The foundation awards grants to individuals with a track record of excellence in their fields who have the ability to impact society through their work. Each recipient receives a no-strings-attached grant of $800,000 given over five years.
Valdez is known for his powerful, richly detailed portraits of Latinos as well as pieces exploring the history of the Latino experience. Among his best-known works is “El Chavez Ravine,” a collaboration with musician Ry Cooder. Valdez painted a 1953 ice cream truck with images detailing the stories of the Los Angeles neighborhood that was destroyed to make way for the Dodger Stadium. In another series titled “Strangest Fruit,” he created haunting paintings dealing with the lynching of Latinos.
The 20 new MacArthur Fellows in this grant cycle include two other Texans: Dallas-based historian Ariel Ron and San Marcos-based anthropologist Kate Spradley.
“For 45 years, MacArthur Fellows have defied boundaries, by questioning conventions, crossing disciplines, and driving collective progress,” foundation executive Kristen Mack said in a statement on the foundation’s website. “The 2026 Fellows continue that creative tradition — they explore the depths of our humanity; they reveal untold origins to modern challenges; they expand the edges of scientific inquiry and life-saving research. They show us new ways to understand the world.”
Valdez, who divides his time between his hometown of San Antonio and Houston, will be in San Antonio this weekend. He will be giving away drawings in his “New Americans” series depicting scenes, communities and people across the country. The works are designed to create a portrait of resistance.
The event, part of the ACLU of Texas artist-in-residence program, will take place at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center Latino Bookstore and Gift Shop, 1300 Guadalupe.
In addition, the exhibit “La Linea/The Line: Works by Vincent Valdez” is opening with a reception at 5:30 p.m. Oct. 7 at Alamo Colleges’ Common Ground Gallery, 2222 N. Alamo. In December, Valdez was named the colleges’ first artist-in-residence. The exhibit will be up through Feb. 26, 2027.