Kenneth Tam, Alina Tenser, Sheida Soleimani, Leeza Meksin, and American Artist are among the 223 individuals receiving the annual award.
2026 Guggenheim Fellow Kenneth Tam’s installation The Medallion at Bridget Donahue, New York (January 17–March 8, 2025) (photo Jason Mandella, courtesy Kenneth Tam and Hoffman Donahue)
The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation has announced 223 recipients of its annual fellowship, including 76 artists, fine arts researchers, architects, designers, and photographers.
Among this year’s fellows are Iranian-American artist and fine arts professor Sheida Soleimani; Leeza Meksin, co-founder of the Brooklyn artist-run gallery Ortega y Gasset Projects; New York-based sculptor American Artist; video artist Kenneth Tram; Ukrainian-born sculptor Alina Tenser; and Sonya Clark, known for her use of human hair as a medium in works exploring the Black American experience. A full list of visual arts recipients is included at the end of this article.
The 2026 Guggenheim Fellowship cohort spans 55 artistic and scientific disciplines selected from a competitive 5,000-person applicant pool. This year’s total applicants increased by nearly 2,000 from 2024 and by 1,500 from last year, when President Trump took office. Since the beginning of Trump’s second term, federal arts agencies have axed grants to both cultural organizations and individual artists.
The foundation does not specify the award amount and notes that grants vary depending on each year’s budget.
“Sleeved Meander” (2026) by 2026 Guggenheim Fellow Alina Tenser
In 1925, Republican Senator Simon Guggenheim established the foundation and award in memory of his late 17-year-old son, with the stated aim of supporting scholars and artists “by assisting them to engage in research in any field of knowledge and creation in any of the arts, under the freest possible conditions.”
The grant has supported the creation of iconic works, including Robert Frank’s 1958 photography book The Americans and Zora Neal Hurston’s famed 1937 novel Their Eyes Were Watching God.
Applicants to the foundation’s 2026 awards in the Creative Arts and Humanities category sharply increased by 50% this year, the foundation said in a press release.
This year’s class hails from 10 countries and 33 US states. Most recipients are affiliated with a college or university, and the youngest member is 28 years old. The oldest recipient of the award is 76 years old.
The 2026 Guggenheim Fellowship visual arts recipients are listed below.
Fine ArtsJohn AhearnAmerican ArtistFia BackströmElena BajoAmy BessoneRaymond BoisjolySonya ClarkKota EzawaJude GriebelIva GueorguievaKarl HaendelFariba HajamadiAllison Janae HamiltonLaMont HamiltonJames HoffJulia M. KuninMonica MajoliAspen MaysLeeza MeksinJohn MillerMarina RosenfeldMichael RossFrancis RuyterKate ShepherdClaire ShermanKenneth TamAlina TenserJuana ValdesJennifer WestAnne WilsonFine Arts ResearchNathan ArringtonClaudia BrittenhamElizabeth MansfieldPhotographySamantha AppletonJeremiah AriazChris Aluka BerryHarlan BozemanJonathan Michael CastilloStephen FerryAllison GrantKapulani LandgrafMatthew LeifheitPixy LiaoChris McCawFred RitchinCollier SchorrLara ShipleySheida Soleimaniriel SturchioSadie WechslerGuanyu XuSamira YaminFilm, Video, and New Media StudiesNoah IsenbergJulie TurnockMargaret BrownBrian M. CassidyReid DavenportCate GiordanoJacqueline GossChristopher HarrisBrian Christopher HawkinsMadeleine Hunt – EhrlichZhu JiaSarah LasleySteve MaingMitch McCabeTenzin PhuntsogSteve ReinkeAnna SamoBeatriz Santiago MuñozMelanie ShatzkyFern SilvaAdam James SmithArchitecture, Planning, and DesignNeil BrennerScott Redford